Snoop Dogg turns the VMAs’ return to Los Angeles into a West Coast homecoming
TheGrio...
Hosting the 2026 ceremony, Snoop joked about bringing the show home and promised the VMAs’ “biggest party.”
Snoop Dogg brought his signature West Coast personality to the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday, hosting the ceremony in Los Angeles and joking that he was responsible for bringing the VMAs back to his hometown. The hip-hop icon opened the show at Peacock Theater with jokes, celebrity shout-outs and a promise to make it “the biggest party the VMAs has ever seen.”
The VMAs had been held on the East Coast since 2018, according to Billboard, making the ceremony’s return to Los Angeles a notable homecoming for Snoop. The rapper has deep ties to the city and the West Coast hip-hop scene. “When they first asked me to host this award show, I said, ‘Is it gonna be in L.A.?’ I said, ‘No? Well, I’m busy,’” Snoop joked during his opening monologue.
He said organizers eventually called him back with a change of plans. “They called me back and said, ‘Hold on, Mr. Dogg. It’s in L.A. now.’” That set the tone for a ceremony built around Snoop’s personality and his connection to Los Angeles.
The rapper leaned into his longtime cannabis-friendly persona while promising to make the night memorable for the show’s winners. “So having this show hosted by me in my city means two things: One, tonight is going to be the biggest party the VMAs has ever seen,” Snoop said. “And two, it wouldn’t be a Snoop Dogg party if I didn’t provide some of that special sticky icky icky. Hold on, that’s for every winner here tonight.”
Snoop also acknowledged several of the night’s major stars, including Madonna, who opened the ceremony, and Taylor Swift. The 54-year-old rapper added some traditional Snoop humor to the opening, including a brief stand-up routine and a “Deez Nuts” knock-knock joke.