Ariana Grande’s reaction to the Ozzy Osbourne tribute featuring Yungblud at the VMAs has gone viral, although not everyone’s buying her response.
Ariana Grande was one of the biggest winners at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs), but it wasn’t just her trophies that got people talking. The singer and Wicked actress went viral for her reactions during the all-star tribute to Ozzy Osbourne, featuring artists such as Yungblud, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
Grande took home video of the year, best long-form video and best pop video for ‘Brighter Days Ahead.’ In one of her speeches, she thanked her father for his cameo in the video, adding a nod to “my therapist and gay people,” a line that quickly spread across social media.
But it was the emotional Ozzy Osbourne tribute that set the stage for the night’s biggest viral moment. Osbourne, who died in July at 76, was remembered on-stage with a star-studded performance. Yungblud led the medley, opening with ‘Crazy Train’ and later delivering his version of Black Sabbath’s ‘Changes,’ backed by guitarist Nuno Bettencourt and keyboardist Adam Wakeman. The tribute closed with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry joining for ‘Mama, I’m Coming Home.’
Ariana Grande was repeatedly shown in the crowd during the set, with cameras capturing her wide-eyed, open-mouthed reactions, hands raised in disbelief and clapping along.
Check out the video from the night, posted to X by MTV, here:
Some viewers accused her of being overly performative. “She knows she’s on camera. Over acting,” one critic wrote on X. Another commented: “Why did she react like that?” while others said the moment felt forced.
Grande isn’t the only one to react to the Ozzy Osbourne tribute – although Dan Hawkins’ response was far less positive. The Darkness guitarist took to Instagram after the VMAs to call the performance “cynical” and “sh*t” amongst a raft of other criticisms
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