Camila Cabello sang “June Gloom” from her new LP C,XOXO at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, live from the UBS Arena on Long Island.
The pop star’s performance began with a video clip from that album cycle, showing off her blonde look, played from a laptop. The camera then zoomed out to show a brunette Cabello singing from a glass box and performing directly into a camera while surrounded by dancers wearing balaclavas and flashing lights. In a shocking move, Cabello smashed the laptop and exited the enclosure. Her dancers unmasked before crowding around her and ending the performance with a pose.
Fans have speculated that “June Gloom,” which Cabello announced on social media shortly after her 2023 Coachella reunion with ex-boyfriend Shawn Mendes, was written about her breakup. “How come you’re just so much better? Is this ever going to end?/I guess I’ll fuck around and figure it out (I guess I’ll fuck around)/I know I pretend it doesn’t matter, it just makes me feel better/The truth is, honey, you’re all I think about,” she sings in the track.
Mendes, who also performed at this year’s VMAs, debuted “Nobody Knows,” a song that hinted that it was about the end of his on-off romance with Cabello. Similar to “June Gloom,” the new single found Mendes addressing his disappointment in pursuing a romance that he knows isn’t good for him. He sings, “When you’re so in love/And your souls touch/But it’s still not enough/Where does it go?/Nobody knows.”
This is Cabello’s third appearance at the VMAs. She made her debut at the 2019 show, sharing the stage with Mendes for their hit “Señorita.” She also performed at the 2021 VMAs. Cabello was nominated for two VMAs this year but went home empty-handed.
