Taylor Swift Sweeps the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards—But Skips a Red Carpet Outfit

She still had a surprise for fans during the show.

Taylor Swift at the 2023 iheartradio music awards
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Before the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards even began on Mar. 17, Taylor Swift had already won all six fan-voted trophies she was nominated to receive. Those included "Favorite Tour Tradition" for her Eras Tour 's surprise songs that changed every show and "Favorite Surprise Guest" for boyfriend Travis Kelce's on-stage cameo in London last summer. By the time the ceremony got underway, she'd also earned the accolade for most invisible red carpet look of the night.

Instead of what Swifties hoped would be her first public appearance since the 2025 Super Bowl, Taylor Swift appeared to sit out from the iHeartRadio Music Awards red carpet at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre for the second year in a row. There was no glittering dress styled by Joseph Cassell Falconer, no new way of swiping on her favorite NARS lipstick. Any dreams of a date night cameo from Kelce were dashed, too.

Once the event started, there was still a chance Swift could appear virtually to accept additional prizes. By more than halfway through the broadcast, as her former tour-mate Gracie Abrams gave her a shout-out in her "Breakthrough Artist" acceptance speech, she still hadn't shown up IRL.

Taylor Swift appears onscreen for the iHeartRadio music awards 2025 wearing a black shirt with a snake necklace

Taylor Swift didn't attend the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards red carpet, but she accepted her "Tour of the Century" award in a virtual message.

(Image credit: FOX)

But finally, Swift appeared onscreen to accept her "Tour of the Century" award in a pre-recorded message. "I really can't tell you how much this means to me, because I accept this on behalf of all my tour-mates," she said. Her speech outlined how strenuous the three and a half hour set list could be; how much effort she and her bandmates put into each show over its nearly two-year run; and how grateful she was for the entire whirlwind experience. "This tour was the most challenging thing that I've ever done in my life," Swift added. "It really was the most rewarding thing I've ever done."

She wore a long-sleeve black sweater and button-up plaid miniskirt by Miu Miu, the most casual takes on the academic-gone-goth style of her latest studio album, The Tortured Poets Department. A diamond snake necklace eating its tail wrapped around her neck—a reference to Reputation (Taylor's Version), perhaps?—which coordinated with an $18,330 Cartier watch on her wrist. (This is a developing story; additional outfit credits will be added as they become available.)

After the fan-voted categories, Taylor Swift's Tortured Poets Department-era music was up for a few more trophies at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards, including Best Collaboration (for "Fortnight" with Post Malone—which ultimately lost to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars's "Die With a Smile") and Pop Artist of the Year (another loss, to former Eras Tour opener Sabrina Carpenter). Her record-breaking Eras Tour, however, received the aforementioned special award: Tour of the Century, honoring its record-shattering sales, attendance, and global impact. Before the night ended, the accolade was announced with a never-before-seen clip of Swift performing "mirrorball" on opening night exactly two years ago in Glendale, Arizona.

Swift's busy schedule criss-crossing the globe on tour, topping the streaming charts with Tortured Poets, and taking in Chiefs games (with outfits to match) meant she had to miss accepting in-person the three iHeartRadio Music Awards she won last year as well. She skipped the red carpet in a pared-back Alix NYC bodysuit accessorized with Tilly Sveaas and Jacquie Aiche jewelry.

Taylor Swift onscreen at the 2025 iheartradio music awards

In 2024, Taylor Swift remotely accepted her iHeartRadio Music Awards wins in a pre-taped acceptance speech.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The year before, Swift had arrived IRL to celebrate her wins for Midnights. Her affinity for coordinating outfits to album cycles was on full display in a hooded, crystal-coated Alexandre Vauthier jumpsuit—a nod to the dark-disco energy of records like "Anti-Hero."

Taylor Swift onstage at the 2023 iHeartRadio music awards wearing a hooded dress

The year before, she took home her trophies in a hooded Alexandre Vauthier jumpsuit.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Taylor Swift's previous iHeartRadio Music Awards outfits similarly captured the mood of her latest project in a relaxed, experimental fashion. In the Lover era, she wore a shimmering purple mini-short bodysuit; for back-to-back 1989 appearances in 2015 and 2016, she followed a cut-out black mini dress with a black sequin halter jumpsuit. In other words? Two sides of the same "Bad Blood"-coded coin.

Taylor Swift attends the 2025 iheartradio music awards in a sequin jumpsuit

Taylor Swift's earliest iHeartRadio Music Awards outfits, in 2015 and 2016, aligned with 1989's release.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Taylor Swift holding trophies at the iheartradio music awards

For two years in a row, she opted for tight black outfits coated in sequins—which looked ripe for the "Bad Blood" music video.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

So far, Taylor Swift has only made one other awards circuit appearance this spring. She turned up to the 2025 Grammys red carpet in a dazzling custom Vivienne Westwood mini dress, coated in shimmering candy-apple fabric to match a "T" charm on her thigh. Later in the night, she'd change into an equally sparkly Gucci after-party dress.

Taylor Swift attending the 2025 Grammy Awards wearing a custom Vivienne Westwood mini dress

Taylor Swift's only red carpet of 2025 was the Grammy Awards, where she was also up for several nominations.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Swift unfortunately went home after the Grammys empty-handed (save for the jacket she caught during a performance). Knowing how prodigious the singer can be, she'll have more award-worthy work ready in no time with a new aesthetic to match.

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Halie LeSavage
Senior Fashion & Beauty News Editor

Halie LeSavage is the senior fashion and beauty news editor at Marie Claire, where she assigns, edits, and writes stories for both sections. Halie is an expert on runway trends, celebrity style, emerging fashion and beauty brands, and shopping (naturally). In over seven years as a professional journalist, Halie’s reporting has ranged from fashion week coverage spanning the Copenhagen, New York, Milan, and Paris markets, to profiles on industry insiders like celebrity stylist Molly Dickson, to breaking news stories on noteworthy brand collaborations and beauty product launches. (She can personally confirm that Bella Hadid’s Ôrebella perfume is worth the hype.) She has also written dozens of research-backed shopping guides to finding the best tote bags, ballet flats, and more. Most of all, Halie loves to explore what style trends—like the rise of emotional support accessories or TikTok’s 75 Hard Style Challenge—can say about culture writ large. She also justifies almost any purchase by saying it’s “for work.”

Halie has previously held writer and editor roles at Glamour, Morning Brew, and Harper’s Bazaar. She has been cited as a fashion and beauty expert in The Cut, CNN Underscored, and Reuters, among other outlets, and appears in newsletters like Selleb and Self Checkout to provide shopping recommendations. In 2022, she earned the Hearst Spotlight Award for excellence and innovation in fashion journalism. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Harvard College. Outside of work, Halie is passionate about books, baking, and her miniature Bernedoodle, Dolly. For a behind-the-scenes look at her reporting, you can follow Halie on Instagram and TikTok.