1993 MTV Video Music Awards
The 1993 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 2, 1993, honoring the best music videos from June 16, 1992, to June 15, 1993. The show was hosted by Christian Slater at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. This would be Kurt Cobain's final VMA appearance.
This year marked the introduction of yet another new category with the addition of Best R&B Video ballot. However, this would be the first time that a new award was added to the list of genre categories, a move that was mainly propelled by the success and popularity of MTV Jams.
The night's biggest winner was Pearl Jam, whose video for "Jeremy" earned four awards that night, including Video of the Year. Closely following were En Vogue with three Moonmen and Madonna and Peter Gabriel with two awards apiece. All other winners took one award each.
Meanwhile, in terms of nominations R&B group En Vogue and their video for "Free Your Mind" were the most nominated act and video that night, receiving a total of eight nominations. The second most nominated artists of the night were Peter Gabriel, Aerosmith, and R.E.M., who received six nominations that night. Gabriel split his six nominations evenly between his videos for "Digging in the Dirt" and "Steam." All of R.E.M.'s nominations went to their video for "Man on the Moon." Lastly, Aerosmith, the winners of the Viewer's Choice award, received six nominations for their clip "Livin' on the Edge."
Winners and nominations
Winners are in bold text.Video of the Year
Pearl Jam – "Jeremy"- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- En Vogue – "Free Your Mind"
- Peter Gabriel – "Digging in the Dirt"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
Best Male Video
- Peter Gabriel – "Steam"
- George Michael – "Killer/Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"
- Sting – "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You"
Best Female Video
- Neneh Cherry – "Buddy X"
- Janet Jackson – "That's the Way Love Goes"
- Annie Lennox – "Walking on Broken Glass"
Best Group Video
- Depeche Mode – "I Feel You"
- En Vogue – "Free Your Mind"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
Best New Artist in a Video
- Tasmin Archer – "Sleeping Satellite"
- Belly – "Feed the Tree"
- Porno for Pyros – "Pets"
Best Metal/Hard Rock Video
- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- Helmet – "Unsung"
- Nine Inch Nails – "Wish"
Best R&B Video
- Mary J. Blige – "Real Love"
- Boyz II Men – "End of the Road"
- Prince and The New Power Generation – "7"
Best Rap Video
- Digable Planets – "Rebirth of Slick "
- Dr. Dre – "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang"
- Naughty by Nature – "Hip Hop Hooray"
Best Dance Video
- Janet Jackson – "That's the Way Love Goes"
- RuPaul – "Supermodel"
- Stereo MCs – "Connected"
Best Alternative Video
- 4 Non Blondes – "What's Up?"
- Belly – "Feed the Tree"
- Porno for Pyros – "Pets"
- Stone Temple Pilots – "Plush"
Best Video from a Film
- Arrested Development – "Revolution"
- Boy George – "The Crying Game"
- Paul Westerberg – "Dyslexic Heart"
Breakthrough Video
- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- Terence Trent D'Arby – "She Kissed Me"
- Green Jellÿ – "Three Little Pigs"
- George Michael – "Killer/Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"
- Porno for Pyros – "Pets"
Best Direction in a Video
- En Vogue – "Free Your Mind"
- Los Lobos – "Kiko and the Lavender Moon"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
Best Choreography in a Video
- Mary J. Blige – "Real Love"
- Janet Jackson – "That's the Way Love Goes"
- Michael Jackson – "Jam"
Best Special Effects in a Video
- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- Terence Trent D'Arby – "She Kissed Me"
- Billy Idol – "Shock to the System"
Best Art Direction in a Video
- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- Faith No More – "A Small Victory"
- Lenny Kravitz – "Are You Gonna Go My Way"
- k.d. lang – "Constant Craving"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
- Sting – "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You"
Best Editing in a Video
- Tasmin Archer – "Sleeping Satellite"
- Billy Idol – "Shock to the System"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
Best Cinematography in a Video
- Duran Duran – "Ordinary World"
- En Vogue – "Free Your Mind"
- k.d. lang – "Constant Craving"
- Sting – "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You"
Viewer's Choice
- En Vogue – "Free Your Mind"
- Peter Gabriel – "Digging in the Dirt"
- Pearl Jam – "Jeremy"
- R.E.M. – "Man on the Moon"
International Viewer's Choice Awards
MTV Asia
Indus Creed – "Pretty Child"- Beyond – "The Great Wall"
- Jerry Huang – "The Love March"
- Mai – "Sia-Jai-Dai-Yin-Mai"
- Tang Dynasty – "A Dream Return to Tang Dynasty"
MTV Brasil
- Deborah Blando – "Decadence Avec Elegance"
- Capital Inicial – "Kamikase"
- Engenheiros do Hawaii – "Parabólica"
- Nenhum de Nós – "Jornais"
MTV Europe
- The Beloved – "Sweet Harmony"
- Björk – "Human Behaviour"
- Peter Gabriel – "Digging in the Dirt"
- Shakespears Sister – "Hello"
MTV Internacional
- Café Tacuba – "María"
- Juan Luis Guerra y 440 – "El Costo de la Vida"
- Mecano – "Una Rosa Es una Rosa"
Performances
- Madonna – "Bye Bye Baby"
- Lenny Kravitz – "Are You Gonna Go My Way"
- Sting – "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You"
- Soul Asylum, Peter Buck and Victoria Williams – "Runaway Train"
- Aerosmith – "Livin' on the Edge"
- Naughty By Nature – "Hip Hop Hooray"
- R.E.M. – "Everybody Hurts"/"Drive"
- Spin Doctors – "Two Princes"
- Pearl Jam – "Animal"/"Rockin' in the Free World"
- The Edge – "Numb"
- Janet Jackson – "That's the Way Love Goes"/"If"
Appearances
- Michael Richards – presented Best Alternative Video
- Dr. Dre, Snoop Doggy Dogg and George Clinton – presented Best R&B Video
- Kennedy and John Norris – appeared in a backstage vignette about Viewer's Choice voting
- Peter Gabriel and Natalie Merchant – presented Best Group Video
- Lyle Lovett and Arrested Development – presented Best New Artist in a Video
- Dan Cortese, Bill Bellamy and Steven Tyler – appeared in a backstage vignette about Viewer's Choice voting
- Christian Slater – introduced the winners of previously announced categories
- Shaquille O'Neal and Cindy Crawford – presented Best Dance Video
- Martin Lawrence – presented Best Rap Video
- Beavis and Butt-head – presented Best Metal/Hard Rock Video
- John Walsh – appeared in a video vignette about Viewer's Choice voting
- VJs Sophiya Haque, Simone Angel, Daisy Fuentes and Gastão Moreira – announced their respective region's Viewer's Choice winner
- Milton Berle and RuPaul – presented Viewer's Choice
- Sharon Stone – presented Best Direction in a Video
- Whoopi Goldberg – introduced The Edge
- Keanu Reeves – presented Best Female Video and Best Male Video
- Tony Bennett and the Red Hot Chili Peppers – presented Video of the Year
- Heather DeLoach – tap-danced for the audience during the show's closing