The 2020 MTV Video Music Awards are to be held on August 30, 2020, in New York City, being the first event to take place in the city since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The awards were scheduled to take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn with “limited or no audience” per orders from New York Governer Andrew Cuomo regarding pandemic protocols, but both MTV and Barclays mutually decided on August 7, 2020 not to have the event inside the arena over safety concerns. The 37th annual ceremony will feature performances from various iconic locations across the city throughout all five boroughs to honor the spirit and resilience of New York.