The 2026 Grammys: Artists Get Political, Bad Bunny Makes History, Olivia Dean Wins Best New Artist, and More

If last year’s GRAMMY Awards carried a theme of unity, this year’s ceremony felt defined by diversity, not in a shallow or corporate sense, but in a way that felt genuinely lived in. Throughout the night, I kept coming back to how much I love music and how rare it is to see so many genres, voices, and perspectives represented so fully across the categories, the nominees, and the performances.

Beyond the music itself, the subject matter of the night extended into the state of the world. Several artists used their time onstage to speak candidly about what is happening in America and beyond, touching on immigration, political division, and collective anxiety. Rather than feeling out of place, these moments felt deeply connected to the music being honored, underscoring how art continues to reflect the realities we are living through. Host Trevor Noah also did not hold back, using his sixth and final time hosting to comment on the political climate in America, call out the president, and even take a jab at Nicki Minaj.

Going into the night, the category of Best New Artist felt like the one everyone had their eyes on. The performance segment in particular felt like a true celebration of individuality. Watching each nominee take the stage one after the other, I found myself beaming at how much I genuinely love all of them and how distinctly different each artist is.

The Marías opened the segment with “No One Noticed,” performing in their signature blue lighting framed by a large circular portal that opened onto an ocean backdrop. Addison Rae followed with “Fame Is a Gun,” starting outside on the back of a truck in a bejeweled purple coat. She served directly to the camera with full theatrical commitment (despite her lackluster vocal delivery) punctuated by an incredible dance break before seamlessly transitioning into KATSEYE. Their performance of “Gnarly” brought their iconic choreography to the GRAMMYs stage in full force, including the dance break I have seen far too many times online.

Leon Thomas took the stage next with “Mutt,” opening the performance with an incredible guitar solo. His presence reinforced why he is nominated not only for Best New Artist, but also for Album of the Year (he also took home two Grammys in the pre-show for R&B Album and Traditional R&B Performance).

Alex Warren followed, performing “Ordinary” by walking out from backstage and into the crowd. He sounded incredible—despite having some technical difficulties—and eventually rose above the audience on a floating platform.

The camera then panned to Lola Young, seated at the piano, delivering a stripped back, raspy version of “Messy.” Looking straight into the camera, her vocals carried immense weight, evoking classic soul influences. Another move of the camera revealed Olivia Dean, radiant in a red dress against a shimmering sequined backdrop. She exuded star power.

Finally, dressed in a silver suit and lowered on a platform like a human disco ball, Sombr closed out the segment. He danced through the audience alongside Doechii and Billie Eilish, ending the performance with infectious energy. After the commercial break, last year’s winner Chappell Roan presented the award to anticipated winner Olivia Dean, whose speech acknowledged that she would not be here without immigrants and their bravery, declaring that those people deserve to be celebrated.

The other most anticipated award of the night, Album of the Year, was presented by Harry Styles, whose appearance felt perfectly timed with his upcoming album and tour (though Beyoncé, last year’s winner and presumed presenter of this year’s winner, was nowhere to be found). The award went to Bad Bunny, who remained seated at his table for a long moment, visibly overwhelmed as the room erupted around him. When he finally took the stage, he delivered his second powerful speech of the night, cementing the win as one of the most emotional and defining moments of the ceremony.

Performance highlights:

• Bruno Mars and Rosé opened the stage with their collaboration “Apt.,” delivering a slightly more rock forward version complete with a brief guitar solo from Bruno.

• Sabrina Carpenter transformed the stage into an airport, complete with a fully choreographed baggage claim populated by dancers dressed as various professions, a mini plane entrance where Pilot Sabrina descended, and even a dove.

• Justin Bieber, wearing nothing but silver shorts and socks, used a guitar and loop pedals to bring a completely unique and transcendent performance of “Yukon.” It is the best he has ever sounded and it needs to be released on streaming platforms.

• Lady Gaga gave us another version of “Abracadabra,” focusing on the music instead of the dancing, though she still incorporated some of the hand choreography, while wearing what appeared to be a giant basket on her head. The camera did much of the work, zooming and shifting angles with the music in a way that felt entirely intentional.

• Bruno Mars returned to the stage for a second time, performing his newest song “I Just Might,” dressed in red with his band and delivering signature belting vocals and slick dance moves.

• Tyler, the Creator performed “Thought I Was Dead” from Chromakopia in the same outfit as the album cover, which won a GRAMMY earlier in the night. He then transitioned into “Sugar on My Tongue,” featuring a cameo from Regina King and a full gas station set that he danced around before ultimately blowing it up.

• The In Memoriam tribute featured Reba McEntire performing at the GRAMMYs for the first time with “Trailblazer,” followed by a rock tribute honoring legends like Ozzy Osbourne through a cover of “War Pigs,” and concluded with a massive celebration of Black music led by Lauryn Hill in honor of Roberta Flack, D’Angelo, and others. She was joined by Lucky Daye, Leon Thomas, Jon Batiste, Chaka Khan, John Legend, Wyclef Jean, and many more. There were too many legends to count.

Non-performance highlights:

• Doechii and Queen Latifah hyped each other up before presenting Kendrick Lamar with Best Rap Album.

• Jelly Roll won Best Country Album and declared that Jesus is for everyone.

• Bad Bunny’s speech after winning Best Latin Album was the best of the night. Before thanking God, he declared “ICE out” and spoke about the importance of leading and fighting with love.

• Lady Gaga won Best Pop Vocal Album for Mayhem and addressed female musicians directly, encouraging them to speak up and fight for what they believe in when producing in male dominated spaces.

• Charli XCX presented Lola Young with Best Pop Solo Performance for “Messy”, saying “I can relate to this song,” leaving Lola visibly shocked and overwhelmed.

• Billie Eilish used her Record of the Year win to call out ICE and declare that “no one is free on stolen land.”

• Cher presented Record of the Year after reflecting on her decades long journey in the industry and nearly walking offstage before announcing the winner. She awarded the honor to Kendrick Lamar and SZA for their collaboration “Luther,” though she initially read the title as “Luther Vandross.” What could have been an awkward blunder became a meaningful moment, as the team used it to acknowledge Luther Vandross, whose song “If This World Were Mine,” performed with Cheryl Lynn, is sampled in the track and serves as a foundational inspiration for the record.

Category highlights:

Best New Artist

This category recognizes an artist whose eligibility-year release(s) achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and notably impacted the musical landscape.

• Olivia Dean – WINNER
• KATSEYE
• The Marias
• Addison Rae
• sombr
• Leon Thomas
• Alex Warren
• Lola Young

Album of the Year, presented by Beyoncé, last year’s winner: 

Award to Artist(s) and to Featured Artist(s), Songwriter(s) of new material, Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s), Mixer(s) and Mastering Engineer(s) credited with 20% or more playing time of the album.

• DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, Bad Bunny – WINNER
• SWAG, Justin Bieber
• Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina Carpenter
• Let God Sort Em Out, Clipse, Pusha T & Malice
• MAYHEM, Lady Gaga
• GNX, Kendrick Lamar
• MUTT, Leon Thomas
• CHROMAKOPIA, Tyler. The Creator

Song of the Year

A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.

• “Abracadabra,” Lady Gaga (+ songwriters)
• “Anxiety,” Doechii (+ songwriters)
• “APT,” ROSÉ, Bruno Mars (+ songwriters)
• “DtMF,” Bad Bunny (+ songwriters)
• “Golden,” HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, REI AMI (+ songwriters)
• “Luther, “Kendrick Lamar With SZA (+ songwriters)
• “Manchild,” Sabrina Carpenter (+ songwriters)
• “WILDFLOWER,” Billie Eilish (+ songwriters) – WINNER

Record of The Year

Award to the Artist and to the Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s) and/or Mixer(s) and mastering engineer(s), if other than the artist.

• “DtMF,” Bad Bunny
• “Manchild,” Sabrina Carpenter
• “Anxiety,” Doechii
• “WILDFLOWER,” Billie Eilish
• “Abracadabra,” Lady Gaga
• “luther,” Kendrick Lamar With SZA – WINNER
• “The Subway,” Chappell Roan
• “APT., ROSÉ,” Bruno Mars

Best Dance Pop Recording

For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances. Vocal or Instrumental. Singles or tracks only.

• “Illegal,” PinkPantheress
• “Bluest Flame,” Selena Gomez & benny blanco
• “Abracadabra,” Lady Gaga – WINNER
• “Midnight Sun,” Zara Larsson
• “Just Keep Watching,” Tate McRae

Best Pop Solo Performance

For new vocal or instrumental pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

• “DAISIES,” Justin Bieber
• “Manchild,” Sabrina Carpenter
• “Disease,” Lady Gaga
• “The Subway,” Chappell Roan
• “Messy,” Lola Young – WINNER

Best Pop Vocal Album

• SWAG, Justin Bieber
• Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina Carpenter
• Something Beautiful, Miley Cyrus
• MAYHEM, Lady Gaga – WINNER
• I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 2), Teddy Swims

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

For new vocal or instrumental duo/group or collaborative pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

• “Defying Gravity,” Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande – WINNER
• “Golden,” HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, REI AMI
• “Gabriela,” KATSEYE
• “APT,” ROSÉ, Bruno Mars
• “30 For 30,” SZA Featuring Kendrick Lamar

Best Rock Performance

For new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative rock recordings.

• “U Should Not Be Doing That,” Amyl and The Sniffers
• “The Emptiness Machine,” Linkin Park
• “NEVER ENOUGH,” Turnstile
• “Mirtazapine,” Hayley Williams
• “Changes (Live From Villa Park) Back To The Beginning”, YUNGBLUD Featuring Nuno Bettencourt, Frank Bello, Adam Wakeman, II – WINNER

Best Rock Song

A Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Rock, Hard Rock and Metal songs. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.

• “As Alive As You Need Me To Be,” Nine Inch Nails – WINNER
• “Caramel,” Sleep Token
• “Glum,” Hayley Williams
• “NEVER ENOUGH,” Turnstile
• “Zombie,” YUNGBLUD

Best Rock Album

For albums containing greater than 75% playing time of new rock, hard rock or metal recordings.

• private music, Deftones
• I quit, HAIM
• From Zero, Linkin Park
• NEVER ENOUGH, Turnstile – WINNER
• Idols, YUNGBLUD

Best Alternative Music Performance

For new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative Alternative music recordings.

• “Everything Is Peaceful Love,” Bon Iver
• “Alone,” The Cure – WINNER
• “SEEIN’ STARS,” Turnstile
• “mangetout,” Wet Leg
• “Parachute,” Hayley Williams

Best Alternative Music Album:

Vocal or Instrumental.

• SABLE, fABLE, Bon Iver
• Songs Of A Lost World, The Cure – WINNER
• DON’T TAP THE GLASS, Tyler, The Creator
• moisturizer, Wet Leg
• Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party, Hayley Williams

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: 

A Producer’s Award.

• Dan Auerbach
• Cirkut – WINNER
• Dijon
• Blake Mills
• Sounwave

Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical: 

A Songwriter’s Award.

• Amy Allen – WINNER
• Edgar Barrera
• Jessie Jo Dillon
• Tobias Jesso Jr
• Laura Veltz

Check out our previous Grammys coverage HERE.