MTV Video Music Award for Best Alternative Video

The MTV Video Music Award for Best Alternative Video (also known as Best Alternative Music Video) was first given out at the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards. Prior to being called Best Alternative Video, it was known as Best Post-Modern Video in 1989 and 1990. After the 1998 ceremony, this award was eliminated, and it was not presented until over two decades later, when it was brought back for the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, under the name Best Alternative. During its discontinuation, artists and videos who would have normally been eligible for this award became eligible for other genre categories, including Best Rock Video.

Nirvana is the biggest winner of this award, winning all three of their consecutive bids for the Moonman from 1992 to 1994. In terms of nominations, though, Green Day ties with Nirvana as biggest nominee, receiving three nominations in 1994, 1995, and 1998.

Recipients

Year	Winner	Other nominees	Ref.
1991	Jane's Addiction – "Been Caught Stealing"	Jesus Jones – "Right Here, Right Now" R.E.M. – "Losing My Religion" The Replacements – "When It Began"	[1]
1992	Nirvana – "Smells Like Teen Spirit"	Pearl Jam – "Alive" Red Hot Chili Peppers – "Give It Away" The Soup Dragons – "Divine Thing"	[2]
1993	Nirvana – "In Bloom"	4 Non Blondes – "What's Up?" Belly – "Feed the Tree" Porno for Pyros – "Pets" Stone Temple Pilots – "Plush"	[3]
1994	Nirvana – "Heart-Shaped Box"	Beck – "Loser" Green Day – "Longview" The Smashing Pumpkins – "Disarm"	[4]
1995	Weezer – "Buddy Holly"	The Cranberries – "Zombie" Green Day – "Basket Case" Hole – "Doll Parts" Stone Temple Pilots – "Interstate Love Song"	[5]
1996	The Smashing Pumpkins – "1979"	Bush – "Glycerine" Everclear – "Santa Monica" Foo Fighters – "Big Me"	[6]
1997	Sublime – "What I Got"	Beck – "The New Pollution" Blur – "Song 2" Foo Fighters – "Monkey Wrench" Nine Inch Nails – "The Perfect Drug"	[7]
1998	Green Day – "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)"	Ben Folds Five – "Brick" Garbage – "Push It" Radiohead – "Karma Police" The Verve – "Bitter Sweet Symphony"	[8]
2020	Machine Gun Kelly – "Bloody Valentine"	The 1975 – "If You're Too Shy (Let Me Know)" All Time Low – "Some Kind of Disaster" Lana Del Rey – "Doin' Time" FINNEAS – "Let's Fall in Love for the Night" Twenty One Pilots – "Level of Concern"	[9]

See also

• MTV Europe Music Award for Best Alternative
• MTV Video Music Award for Best Post-Modern Video

References

1. "MTV Video Music Awards 1991". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
2. "MTV Video Music Awards 1992". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
3. "MTV Video Music Awards 1993". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
4. "MTV Video Music Awards 1994". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
5. "MTV Video Music Awards 1995". MTV. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
6. "MTV Video Music Awards 1996". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
7. "MTV Video Music Awards 1997". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
8. "MTV Video Music Awards 1998". MTV. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
9. "MTV Video Music Awards 2020". MTV. Retrieved July 30, 2020.