19 Extremely Pure Things That Happened At The 2023 Video Music Awards

In case you missed it, Tuesday night was the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards, and — of course — the stars were out. And as with any good star-studded event, the backstage pics were cute, wholesome, and even a little bit surprising. Here's a look at some fun behind-the-scenes celeb moments captured on camera:

1.Shakira was honored with the Video Vanguard Award and brought the most adorable dates — her sons, Milan and Sasha, who cheered on their mama:

2.Taylor Swift truly had a blast with so many celebs, including her bestie Selena Gomez:

3.Speaking of Selena, she shared a sweet moment with Rema, whom she collaborated with on the VMA-winning song "Calm Down" — the duo won the show's first-ever VMA for Best Afrobeats:

4.Taylor Swift shared a hug with Sabrina Carpenter, who supported her on her most recent Eras Tour dates:

5.Halle and Chloe Bailey shared a sweet sisterly moment backstage, and I just love this duo:

6.They also sweetly chatted with Taylor Swift:

7.Dove Cameron passed on the Best New Artist baton to this year's winner, Ice Spice:

8.Yeonjun from TXT posed with Anitta backstage — she debuted her song "Back for More" with the band at the show:

9.Shakira and Karol G shared a sweet hug as they accepted the award for Best Collab together:

10.Also, Karol G shared a laugh with Nicki Minaj in the audience...

11....and struck a pose with Nelly Furtado:

12.We also got a glimpse of how fun and silly it can get backstage, with Sabrina Carpenter cracking up while chatting with Yeonjun:

13.Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes (who were also having a couples red moment) shared a moment with Bebe Rexha backstage:

14.The pair also posed with Reneé Rapp...

15....and Billy Porter!

16.NSYNC goofed around backstage — the group reunited to present the Best Pop Award to Taylor Swift:

17.Lil Nas X and Ice Spice struck a pose together:

18.Diddy and his son King Combs celebrated the big night — Diddy had accepted the Global Icon Award and performed a medley of his hits:

19.Finally, Taylor Swift, alongside her cinematographer Rina Yang and editor Chancler Haynes, posed with her MASSIVE new collection of Moon People:

Check out all of our VMAs coverage here.