Archive · 28 Sep 2026
Yung Lean’s STORM Earns Four VMA Nominations, Loses All
“STORM” is a song and short movie made by GENER8ION and featuring Yung Lean.
The movie takes place at a future English boarding school.
Yung Lean plays a very mean student who controls the other boys.
The first part feels angry and dangerous.
The second part becomes calmer and more hopeful.
At the end, all the students dance together in matching suits.
Many people praised the unusual story, acting, and choreography.
The video received four VMA nominations but did not win any.
GENER8ION also performed it at the awards show with a dramatic broken-trophy scene.
GENER8ION’s double single “STORM” features Swedish rapper Yung Lean and arrived with a seven-minute short film.
The film follows an all-boys boarding school where Yung Lean plays a cruel bully before the students unite in a choreographed dance.
The project received VMA nominations for Video of the Year, Best Long Form Video, Best Direction, and Best Choreography.
“STORM” lost all four awards but remained widely discussed for its ambitious visuals, acting, music, and choreography.
GENER8ION performed the song at the September 27, 2026, ceremony with a staged trophy-smashing stunt and dancers on the risers.
- Who
- GENER8ION, a project by Surkin and Romain Gavras, with Swedish rapper Yung Lean and choreography by Damien Jalet.
- What
- A double single and short film called “STORM,” followed by four MTV Video Music Awards nominations and a live performance.
- When
- The release date was April 24, 2026; the album arrived June 12, 2026, and the VMA performance took place September 27, 2026.
- Where
- The film is set at an all-boys boarding school in England, while the ceremony took place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
- Why
- The project drew attention for combining electronic music, a long-form short film, Yung Lean’s villainous acting, large-scale choreography, and an unusual awards-show performance.
Award Outcome
Cultural Impact
Recognition versus wins
Award Outcome
“STORM” received four VMA nominations but lost in every nominated category.
Cultural Impact
The nominations still recognized the video’s direction, choreography, long-form format, and overall impact.
Video interpretation
Award Outcome
The film’s bullying, drugs, fights, and threatening atmosphere make its first half deliberately uncomfortable.
Cultural Impact
Its final group dance transforms that same collective energy into unity and beauty, giving the work a more hopeful conclusion.
- Artists
- GENER8ION, Surkin, Romain Gavras, and Yung Lean
- Release
- April 24, 2026
- Album
- Love & Tears, released June 12, 2026
- VMA nominations
- Video of the Year, Best Long Form Video, Best Direction, and Best Choreography
- Awards result
- “STORM” did not win any of its four nominations
- Film length
- A little over seven minutes; one critic described it as seven and a half minutes
- Performance date
- September 27, 2026, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles