1987 MTV Video Music Awards
The 1987 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 11, 1987, honoring the best music videos from May 2, 1986, to May 1, 1987. The show was hosted by MTV VJs Downtown Julie Brown, Carolyne Heldman, Kevin Seal, Michael Tomioka, and Dweezil Zappa, and it took place at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles.
| 1987 MTV Video Music Awards | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Date | Friday, September 11, 1987 |
| Location | Universal Amphitheatre, Los Angeles |
| Country | United States |
| Hosted by | Downtown Julie Brown Carolyne Heldman Kevin Seal Michael Tomioka and Dweezil Zappa |
| Most awards | Peter Gabriel (10) |
| Most nominations | Peter Gabriel (12) |
| Television/radio coverage | |
| Network | MTV |
This year featured the debut of the award for Best Video from a Film, which recognized the most outstanding video of a song taken from a movie soundtrack. Concurrently, 1987 also saw the elimination of the Special Recognition award that had been given out every year since 1984. Unlike Video Vanguard, which could go a few years without being handed out and then return, the Special Recognition award was never again given out at the VMAs.
Peter Gabriel received a record-setting ten awards, including Video of the Year and the Video Vanguard award. Gabriel's video for "Sledgehammer" earned nine awards out of the ten it was in the running for, making it the most nominated video of the night, as well as the most rewarded video in VMA history. Gabriel also set a record for the most VMA nominations in a single year, as along with the ten nominations for "Sledgehammer", his video for "Big Time" also received two, bringing his total up to twelve nominations in 1987. This record would go uncontested until 2010, when Lady Gaga received thirteen nominations.
The ceremony's other major nominees were fellow Video of the Year nominees Genesis, Paul Simon, Steve Winwood, and U2, as well as two-time Best Female Video nominee Madonna. Genesis, Winwood, and U2 all received seven nominations for their videos "Land of Confusion", "Higher Love", and "With or Without You", respectively. Meanwhile, Simon and Madonna split their six nominations: the former between "The Boy in the Bubble" and "You Can Call Me Al", and the latter between "Papa Don't Preach" and "Open Your Heart."
Performances
| Artist(s) | Song(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Los Lobos | "La Bamba" | |
| Bryan Adams | "Only the Strong Survive" "Victim of Love" |
|
| The Bangles | "Walk Like an Egyptian" "Walking Down Your Street" |
|
| Bon Jovi | "Livin' on a Prayer" (live from New York City) | |
| Crowded House | "Don't Dream It's Over" "Now We're Getting Somewhere" |
|
| Madonna | "Causing a Commotion" (live from Italy) | |
| Whitesnake | "Still of the Night" | |
| Whitney Houston | "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (live from Saratoga Springs, New York) | |
| The Cars | "You Are the Girl" "Double Trouble" |
|
| David Bowie | "Never Let Me Down" (live from Montreal) | |
| Prince | "Sign o' the Times" "Play in the Sunshine" |
|
| Whitney Houston | "Didn't We Almost Have It All" (live from Saratoga Springs, New York) | |
| Cyndi Lauper | "Change of Heart" "True Colors" |
|
| Run-D.M.C. (featuring Steven Tyler and Joe Perry) | "Walk This Way" |
Presenters
- Howie Mandel – presented Best New Artist in a Video
- Dweezil Zappa – introduced the nominees of the Viewer's Choice award and later briefly interviewed Los Lobos
- Laurie Anderson – presented the Video Vanguard Award to Peter Gabriel
- Richard Wilkins – briefly interviewed Glenn Frey and introduced the next presenter
- Cyndi Lauper – presented Most Experimental Video
- Tina Turner – presented Best Male Video
- Blake Clark – performed a short stand-up routine and introduced a "Randee of the Redwoods" video package
- Robbie Nevil – presented Best Overall Performance in a Video
- Kevin Seal – briefly interviewed Richard Page and introduced the next presenter
- Whoopi Goldberg – presented Best Stage Performance in a Video
- Vanna White – presented Best Choreography in a Video
- Marcel Vanthilt – briefly interviewed Herbie Hancock and introduced the next presenters
- Poison – presented Best Female Video
- Carolyne Heldman – briefly interviewed Cher, Ally Sheedy, Dan Schneider and Brian Robbins
- Bobcat Goldthwait – performed a short stand-up routine and introduced the winner of Best Art Direction in a Video
- Glenn Frey – presented the Special Recognition Award
- Kenny Loggins – presented Best Direction in a Video
- Steve Guttenberg – presented Best Video from a Film
- Sandra Bernhard – presented Best Concept Video
- Eddie Money – introduced the winner of Best Special Effects in a Video
- Michael Tomioka – briefly interviewed "Weird Al" Yankovic and introduced the next presenter
- Judy Tenuta – introduced he winners of Best Editing in a Video and Best Cinematography in a Video
- Robin Leach – introduced a video package on show-business scandals
- Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie – presented Best Group Video
- David Bowie – presented the Video Vanguard Award to Julien Temple
- Cher – presented Viewer's Choice
- Huey Lewis – presented Video of the Year
Winners and nominees
Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold.