MTV VMAs’ 2019 Date Revealed

It’s official. A date has been set for the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, set to take place in Newark, New Jersey, according to Variety.

The VMAs will take place Monday, August 26, and will be held at Newark’s Prudential Center arena, the network revealed. This year, the awards show will feature The MTV VMA Stan Cam, a new viewing experience that will allow viewers on Twitter to vote for which camera feeds they want to see during select performances. The Stan Cam will also show behind-the-scenes moments with talent.

According to the outlet, MTV is considering inserting the live-streams selected via Stan Cam into the live TV broadcast during commercial breaks. The feed would appear in a picture-in-picture corner window, Variety reported.

Jacqueline Parkes, CMO and executive VP of digital studios for MTV, VH1, CMT and Logo, said MTV hopes the Stan Cam will be a refreshing change for VMAs viewers. The goal, according to Parkes, is to allow fans to feel included in the experience, even if they aren’t in attendance. Sarah Rosen, Twitter’s head of U.S. entertainment partnerships added, “The VMAs have some of the best fans, which makes it the perfect show to launch the Stan Cam on Twitter.”

“We wanted to give them something they haven’t had before and connect them to what they want to see the most,” Parkes told Variety. “It’s as much a marketing case as much as business case, to create an integrated fan experience.”

The interactive opportunities don’t stop there. According to Variety, followers on Twitter will be asked during the 2019 VMAs to pick between three celebrity attendees to feature on a live-reaction cam.

This year marks the first time the MTV VMAs have ventured across the Hudson River to New Jersey. In 2018, they were held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The VMAs have also been held in Los Angeles. Of the move, VMAs executive producer Bruce Gilmer told Deadline MTV was looking forward to being able to “celebrate all that New Jersey has given to music fans around the globe.”

“New Jersey has an incredible music heritage and is home to some of the world’s biggest artists including ‘Chairman of the Board’ Frank Sinatra, ‘The Boss’ Bruce Springsteen, Queen Latifah, Bon Jovi, Whitney Houston, the Jonas Brothers, the Fugees, and Halsey. The list is wide and endless,” Gilmer said.

More details about the show are expected to follow as the date draws nearer.