Ariana Grande, Mendes sign up for MTV awards

New York : Pop stars Ariana Grande and Shawn Mendes will be among the performers at the MTV Video Music Awards on August 20, the network announced Thursday. Announcing the first batch of appearances for the live broadcast from New York, MTV said Grande would sing “God Is a Woman,” the 25-year-old former child star’s newly mature track about the delights of sex.

The awards will come three days after Grande releases her fourth album, “Sweetener.” MTV also said that rapper Logic would perform live for the first time his new song “One Day” alongside featured artist Ryan Tedder, the singer of pop group OneRepublic. MTV earlier announced that Jennifer Lopez would receive an award named after Michael Jackson for her lifetime contributions to pop culture.

The bilingual New York-born diva will appear at the awards for the first time since 2001. Rapper Cardi B is the frontrunner at the latest VMAs, narrowly taking more nominations than Jay-Z and Beyonce for their Louvre-shot video “Apeshit” and Childish Gambino for his politically charged “This Is America.” But unlike the industry-led Grammys, the VMAs prides itself on outrageous made-for-television moments with less focus on who wins the awards.