Nirvana members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic reunited on stage at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards to receive the Video Vanguard Award.
The legendary grunge band accepted the prestigious award during MTV’s annual awards show on Sunday, September 27, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Grohl, 57, and Novoselic, 61, were joined by Nirvana’s touring guitarist Pat Smear — though late singer Kurt Cobain‘s widow, Courtney Love, and the couple’s daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, were not present.
“The idea for [our] videos grew out of the vision of one of the greatest artists of all time, Kurt Cobain. Kurt was one of one. None of us could have imagine our band or our sound or our aesthetic would mean so much to so many people,” Novoselic told viewers in their acceptance speech. “Ultimately, the music had a life of its own. It charted its own course. Nirvana continues to resonate so deeply because people are still hungry for authenticity, for something real, for something uncompromising, something that tells you it’s just OK to come as you are. Kurt would have loved that legacy.”
Prior to the living Nirvana members accepting the Video Vanguard Award, Public Enemy’s Chuck D touched on the band’s place in the pantheon of rock history.
“Tonight, I have the distinct honor of recognizing a band that changed the course of music. … Nirvana never bent to the will of the mainstream, they always stayed true to their vision. Their sound was loud, beautiful. Their lyrics were blazing, raw, human,” Chuck D, 66, said. “Their music videos defined an era. They were completely original and fearless at a time when the status quo kinda got to the point of being formulaic. Today, their influence can be heard in virtually every generation of artists that followed. While Nirvana never chased accolades, we get to celebrate them with the VMAs’ most coveted award.”
The network announced that Nirvana would be this year’s Video Vanguard Award recipients for “shaping music, culture and MTV forever” on September 9, which marked the 34th anniversary of their groundbreaking debut on the VMA stage in 1992.
On that night, Nirvana sent network censors into a panic by teasing the opening strains of their controversial song “Rape Me” on live TV before kicking into their hit “Lithium” instead.
The 1992 VMAs also became infamous for what took place behind the scenes as tensions ran high between Nirvana and fellow VMA performers Guns N’ Roses.
“My wife and I were sitting at a tent at the MTV Music Awards, and we’re having lunch when Axl Rose walks by us,” Cobain later relayed to fans at a concert. “We yelled at Axl. We said, ‘Axl! Will you be the godfather of our child?’ He stopped, he turned around, he pointed his finger at my wife. He had like 20 bodyguards with him.”
The singer continued, “[Rose is] doing a documentary, so he’s got his little film camera with him. I had a little helpless child in my arms. He said to my wife, ‘You better shut up, bitch! Don’t pitch me any s*** tonight!’ Because tonight was obviously a highlight of his career — the last highlight!”
Contemporary news reports suggested that Novoselic and Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan nearly came to blows during the VMAs telecast before cooler heads prevailed.
McKagan, 62, apologized for his altercation with Novoselic in 2010, explaining in a Seattle Weekly column that he “blew [his] lid” over perceived “slander toward my band from the Nirvana camp.”
“In my drunken haze and drug-induced mania, I heard what I wanted to hear, and I went after Krist Novoselic backstage,” he recalled. “I had no control of myself then. And Krist, I am sorry for that day.”
That awkward incident aside, Nirvana’s iconic “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video won Best New Artist in a Video and Best Alternative Video at that year’s VMAs. The band went on to win three more VMAs throughout their career.
Nirvana ultimately broke up in 1994 following lead singer Cobain’s death by suicide. He was 27. Surviving members Grohl and Novoselic have reunited occasionally over the years, including making a rare public appearance with Love at Nirvana’s 2014 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
“It was a nice excuse to finally be friends,” Grohl told Us at the time. “It was one of the greatest nights of my life. Wish Kurt could’ve been there!”
In February 2025, Grohl and Novoselic were joined by Post Malone on stage at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall to perform “Smells Like Teen Spirit” at SNL50: The Homecoming Concert as part of the sketch show’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
The MTV Video Music Awards 2026 aired on MTV, CBS and Paramount+ on Sunday. A replay of the ceremony will be available on Monday, September 28, on Paramount+.
