A$AP Rocky won Best Hip Hop / Grime / Rap Video, International at the 2026 UK Music Video Awards for “Helicopter,” directed by Dan Streit. The prize, handed out on November 4 at the Roundhouse in London, is his second straight win in the category.
The ceremony handed out 40 awards and returned to the Roundhouse for the first time since 2021, hosted by Ana Matronic. The night’s biggest winner was Romain Gavras, whose “Storm” for Gener8ion starring Yung Lean took five awards including Video of the Year, but the international hip hop prize stayed with Rocky for a second year. The full credits are listed in the official UKMVA winners report:
Join The iimiTV Letter
Enter your email and we will send you a confirmation link. Click it and your first edition lands on Friday.
Best Hip Hop / Grime / Rap Video, International: A$AP Rocky, Helicopter. Director: Dan Streit. Production company: Somesuch, Grin Machine. Record company: AWGE / RCA Records.
Inside The Helicopter Video
“Helicopter” arrived on January 12, 2026, as the second single from Don’t Be Dumb, with the video premiering the same day. Streit and Rocky co-wrote the clip, their fourth collaboration, and built it from motion-captured animation rather than live action: a dystopian, early PlayStation styled New York where Rocky and his crew flee in a stolen helicopter while SWAT teams swarm below. Executive producers Ryland Burns and Dan Streit, producers Fabien Colas and Malcom Duncan, and commissioner Lindsey Oh complete the winning credits.
Rocky made a point of the method at release, posting that the video was not AI generated and calling it, in his words, just generational. In a year when synthetic visuals became the industry default, the UKMVA jury rewarded the hand-built alternative.
The Don’t Be Dumb Rollout Keeps Paying Off
The award extends a long rollout. Don’t Be Dumb, Rocky’s fourth studio album, followed the single on January 16, 2026, through AWGE and RCA Records. ESPN also built its College Football Playoff championship promotion around “Helicopter” in January, putting the record in front of a sports audience months before the video awards caught up.
On the UK side of the category, kwn took Best Hip Hop / Grime / Rap Video, UK for “Risk It All,” directed by Sophie Jones. The international prize, though, now belongs to Rocky two years running, and “Helicopter” stands as the visual the Don’t Be Dumb era will be remembered by.
