The 2026 Grammy Awards were nothing short of eventful, leaving viewers with much to discuss. With historical award winners, multiple political messages, and live performances, this was surely one for the records.
Award Winners
There were a plethora of awards given out at this year’s ceremony, but let’s look at some of the most talked about awards.
Record of the Year was awarded to Kendrick Lamar and SZA for their song “Luther,” and, although I’m not personally the biggest fan of this song, I will admit that it was a worthy candidate for this award. The song itself is fairly enjoyable, but it’s just not as good as some of SZA and Kendrick’s previous collaborations. However, “Luther” did spend 13 weeks as the US number one hit, so it’s safe to say that its popularity is validated. Kendrick Lamar also won this award in 2025 for his song “Not Like Us,” making him a back-to-back winner.
Album of the Year, arguably the most controversial category, was given to Bad Bunny for his album “Debí Tirar Más Fotos.” I still haven’t listened to this album in its entirety, although I’ve definitely been getting into it after his Super Bowl performance, which was the week after the Grammy’s. I think this award was well deserved, as this album (and his speech) made a great political statement and the songs in it have very impactful messages. Especially considering today’s political climate, I think this was a bold but necessary win, making history as the first all-Spanish album to win a Grammy. There were other great nominations for this award, but I think Bad Bunny’s album was a standout to win.
Song of the Year went to “Wildflower” by Billie Eilish. I am a massive fan of this song, and a lot of Billie’s further discography, but I was quite surprised with this win as it was not what I predicted. Once again, I did predict Bad Bunny as a possible winner, but he won Record of the Year, so it makes sense that this one went to someone else. I was also leaning towards “APT” by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars, solely due to its popularity and significance throughout the year. It is admittedly a quite catchy song. However, I am happy with the outcome, as I think “Wildflower” is a great emotional song that has gained virality throughout this year.
Best New Artist was awarded to Olivia Dean, which was extremely predictable in my opinion. Throughout 2025, she had gained an immense amount of popularity. Speaking from experience with the infamous Ticketmaster “war”, her concert tickets sold out extremely quickly despite her being a fairly new artist. There were some other artists who had a definite chance, such as Sombr, who has also gained a lot of attention this year. Although he has a lot of hit songs, I feel like his audience is mostly a younger demographic, which could explain why the voting committee was not in his favor. Olivia Dean’s music is not only extremely catchy, but also caters to all ages. My mom and I both enjoy her music, and are persistently trying to score tickets to her upcoming tour!
Although there were a lot of notable awards, another important highlight of the award ceremony was definitely the live performances, so let’s talk about a few.
Live Performances
There were lots of standout performances throughout the ceremony, but for me, many of the most notable came from the “Best New Artist” medley, where each nominated artist performed for a short period of time.
Addison Rae’s performance was underwhelming, to say the least. As someone who does enjoy some of her music, I didn’t find her performance equally enjoyable. She sings with a breathy, higher pitched voice, which does sound good when it has been produced into a song, but not so much when it’s live, where she just sounded a bit winded. Her song “Fame is a Gun” was recorded in the performance area’s parking garage and backstage, which didn’t enhance her singing. It wasn’t awful, but definitely not the best performance of the night.
Alex Warren had a pretty decent performance. Admittedly, I’m not a big fan of his music, but I can recognize when someone has a good voice, and I think he sings well. He had some trouble with his earpiece during the performance, which caused his singing to be delayed for a portion of the song, but he was able to recover well and get back on track. I applaud him for being able to act fast in a situation like that, because I know I would already be extremely nervous.
Lola Young’s performance was great! Her striking voice was nothing short of impressive in her Grammy performance of “Messy.” I think she made a good choice of playing piano while singing, as it added to the ambiance and raw talent showcased in her performance. Her singing was seamless, and I think her voice sounds even better live than it does in her recorded songs.
Although there were a large number of awards and performances at this year’s Grammy’s, these notable accolades continue to be topics of discussion in the music industry and in wider pop culture spaces. I’m excited to see what new music comes out in this upcoming year, and who will be nominated for next year’s Grammy awards.
