The 2026 Grammys are over… and I have some thoughts and a recap of one of the biggest nights in music. We will be looking at who won the big four categories (Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist), the best performances, and the snubs of the night.
This year’s Album of the Year was DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS by Bad Bunny. It is a phenomenally rich and sentimental album which blends various sounds of Puerto Rican music, and pays homage to Bad Bunny’s culture and love for his island. It was truly a deserved win, which I predicted the day before the show, and in his speech, he dedicated his award to “all the people that had to leave their homeland, their country, to follow their dreams;” and “To all the people who have lost a loved one and, even so, have had to move forward, and continue with great strength.”
For Best New Artist, Olivia Dean took home the Grammy following her very successful 2025 release The Art Of Loving. While I did not personally predict her win, I was not shocked as she truly deserved it with her soulful and high vibrational music and performances in these trying times of the 2020s. Similarly to Bad Bunny, she also honoured immigrants, by saying “I’m up here as a granddaughter of an immigrant. I wouldn’t be here… I am a product of bravery, and I think that those people deserve to be celebrated.”
I’m up here as a granddaughter of an immigrant. I wouldn’t be here… I am a product of bravery, and I think that those people deserve to be celebrated
As Cher said, the Grammy for Record of the Year “goes to Luther Vandross!” or as everyone else might know it, “Luther” by Kendrick Lamar and SZA. By the grace of the music gods, Kendrick and SZA came together again to produce and release “Luther.” The song samples Cheryl Lynn and Luther Vandross’s 1982 cover of Marvin Gaye’s “If This World Was Mine,” and exemplifies the harmonious artistry of both artists (as well as making Cher right, in her own way).
Surprisingly enough, the Song of the Year Grammy went to Billie Eilish’s “Wildflower,” which was originally released in 2024 but was made a single in 2025 qualifying notorious Grammy darling Billie for the award. I feel like any other nomination could have won, including Lady Gaga’s “Abracadabra” and Huntr/x’s “Golden,” both songs actually released in 2025 and significantly impacting music this year.
For the main ceremony the better performances were by Tyler the Creator, Sabrina Carpenter, and everyone who took part in the Tribute to D’Angelo and Roberta Flack. The tribute to the Black musical legends D’Angelo and Roberta Flack was amazing, with legendary Lauryn Hill arriving on time to perform and honour the memory of both artists. She was joined by various Black musical legends such as Chaka Khan. The Roberta Flack tribute featured a Fugees reunion, singing both Roberta’s and the Fugees’ versions of “Killing Me Softly” which was amazing to see on the first day of America’s Black History Month. Tyler the Creator masterfully blended the aesthetics of his two most recent albums CHROMAKOPIA and DON’T TAP THE GLASS with stable live vocals and a great costume change and transition between the two concepts, as well as an explosive ending to the performance.
I will say that last year’s Grammy’s certainly had a more stacked Best New Artist medley, and this year’s crop fell short in a few places due to short performances and bad vocals. I’d say the best from the medley were The Marías, Olivia Dean, and Leon Thomas who all showcased their music and talent with great staging, choreography, and deliveries.
Now onto the most important part of any Grammy discussion: the snubs. Before I mention my own list, I have been instructed by my lovely music editors to highlight the injustice of Geese falling victim to missing the eligibility window with their album Getting Killed. I actually was surprised they received no nominations as many publications had the album on their end of year lists, and singles like “Taxes” were eligible. Regarding my personal snub list, I would say PinkPantheress was snubbed for Best Dance Pop Recording for her excellent song “Illegal” which dominated social media and the summer of 2025. FLO had a strong chance for Best Progressive R&B Album, but also could have been nominated for Best R&B Performance.
Some of this year’s snubs were quite justified and I am glad they happened like Justin Bieber and Sabrina Carpenter. Justin was nominated five times, including Best R&B Performance for Dijon-produced “Yukon.” After his long, empty, half-naked performance of the track, he thankfully went home empty handed. While Sabrina Carpenter did have an amazing performance with excellent staging and production, she lost all six of her nominations due to strong competition in her categories.
To end this recap of the 2026 Grammys I want to shout out some of this year’s winners. Firstly, congratulations to FKA Twigs winning Best Dance/Electronic album for Eusexua, her first grammy after over ten years in the game. Shout-out to Lola Young for winning Best Pop Solo performance for “Messy,” Zara Larsson for her beautiful rendition of “Midnight Sun,” and PinkPantheress for her nominations and development as a musician.
