Global Recognition for African Music in 2026 Grammy Awards
The Recording Academy has announced the nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards, with several Nigerian and African artists making a significant impact across various categories. The 68th Annual Grammy Awards are scheduled to take place on February 1, 2026, at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The event will celebrate music released between August 31, 2024, and August 30, 2025, highlighting the growing global recognition of African music. This year’s nominations also introduced two new categories: Best Traditional Country Album and Best Album Cover. Kendrick Lamar leads the overall nominations with nine nods, followed closely by Lady Gaga with seven, including her fifth Album of the Year nomination for MAYHEM.
African artists made a strong showing in the Global and African music categories, with five Nigerians and nine African acts recognized. Burna Boy received two nominations: Best African Music Performance for his hit “Love” and Best Global Music Album for No Sign of Weakness, making him Africa’s most-nominated artist for 2026.
Other Nigerian stars such as Davido, Ayra Starr, Wizkid, and Omah Lay also featured prominently in the Best African Music Performance category.
Key Categories and Nominations
Album of the Year– Bad Bunny –DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS– Justin Bieber –Swag– Sabrina Carpenter –Man’s Best Friend– Clipse –Let God Sort ’Em Out– Lady Gaga –Mayhem– Kendrick Lamar –GNX– Leon Thomas –Mutt– Tyler, the Creator –Chromakopia
Record of the Year– Bad Bunny – “DtMF”- Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”- Doechii – “Anxiety”- Billie Eilish – “Wildflower”- Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”- Kendrick Lamar with SZA – “Luther”- Chappell Roan – “The Subway”- Rosé and Bruno Mars – “APT.”
Song of the Year– Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”- Doechii – “Anxiety”- Rosé and Bruno Mars – “APT.”- Bad Bunny – “DtMF”- Huntr/x (Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami) – “Golden” (fromKPop Demon Hunters)- Kendrick Lamar with SZA – “Luther”- Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”- Billie Eilish – “Wildflower”
Best African Music Performance– Burna Boy – “Love”- Davido featuring Omah Lay – “With You”- Eddy Kenzo & Mehran Matin – “Hope & Love”- Ayra Starr featuring Wizkid – “Gimme Dat”- Tyla – “Push 2 Start”
Best Global Music Performance– Bad Bunny – “EoO”- Ciro Hurtado – “Cantando en el Camino”- Angélique Kidjo – “Jerusalema”- Yeisy Rojas – “Inmigrante Y Que?”- Shakti – “Shrini’s Dream” (Live)- Anoushka Shankar featuring Alam Khan & Sarathy Korwar – “Daybreak”
Best New Artist– Olivia Dean- KATSEYE- The Marias- Addison Rae- Sombr- Leon Thomas- Alex Warren- Lola Young
Additional Notable Categories
Songwriter of the Year (Non-Classical)– Amy Allen- Edgar Barrera- Jessie Jo Dillon- Tobias Jesso Jr.- Laura Veltz
Producer of the Year (Non-Classical)– Dan Auerbach- Cirkut- Dijon- Blake Mills- Sounwave
Best Pop Solo Performance– Justin Bieber – “Daisies”- Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”- Lady Gaga – “Disease”- Chappell Roan – “The Subway”- Lola Young – “Messy”
Best Pop Vocal Album– Justin Bieber –Swag– Sabrina Carpenter –Man’s Best Friend– Miley Cyrus –Something Beautiful– Lady Gaga –Mayhem– Teddy Swims –I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 2)
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance– Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande – “Defying Gravity”- Huntr/x (Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami) – “Golden”- KATSEYE – “Gabriela”- Rosé and Bruno Mars – “APT.”- SZA with Kendrick Lamar – “30 for 30”
Best Dance Pop Recording– Selena Gomez & benny blanco – “Bluest Flame”- Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”- Zara Larsson – “Midnight Sun”- Tate McRae – “Just Keep Watching”- PinkPantheress – “Illegal”
Other Major Categories
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album– Laila Biali –Wintersongs– Jennifer Hudson –The Gift of Love– Elton John & Brandi Carlile –Who Believes in Angels?– Lady Gaga –Harlequin– Laufey –A Matter of Time– Barbra Streisand –The Secret of Life: Partners, Volume 2
Best Rock Album– Deftones –Private Music– Haim –I Quit– Linkin Park –From Zero– Turnstile –Never Enough– Yungblud –Idols
Best Rock Song– Nine Inch Nails – “As Alive As You Need Me To Be”- Sleep Token – “Caramel”- Hayley Williams – “Glum”- Turnstile – “Never Enough”- Yungblud – “Zombie”
Best Rock Performance– Amyl and The Sniffers – “U Should Not Be Doing That”- Linkin Park – “The Emptiness Machine”- Turnstile – “Never Enough”- Hayley Williams – “Mirtazapine”- Yungblud featuring Nuno Bettencourt, Frank Bello, Adam Wakeman II – “Changes (Live from Villa Park, Back to the Beginning)”
Best Metal Performance– Dream Theater – “Night Terror”- Ghost – “Lachryma”- Sleep Token – “Emergence”- Spiritbox – “Soft Spine”- Turnstile – “Birds”
Best Alternative Music Performance– Bon Iver – “Everything Is Peaceful Love”- The Cure – “Alone”- Turnstile – “Seein’ Stars”- Wet Leg – “Mangetout”- Hayley Williams – “Parachute”
Continued Recognition in Music Categories
Best Alternative Music Album– Bon Iver –SABLE, fABLE– The Cure –Songs of a Lost World– Tyler, The Creator –Don’t Tap the Glass– Wet Leg –Moisturizer– Hayley Williams –Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party
Best R&B Album– Givēon –Beloved– Coco Jones –Why Not More?– Ledisi –The Crown– Teyana Taylor –Escape Room– Leon Thomas –Mutt
Best R&B Song– Kehlani – “Folded”- Summer Walker – “Heart of a Woman”- Chris Brown featuring Bryson Tiller – “It Depends”- Durand Bernarr – “Overqualified”- Leon Thomas – “Yes It Is”
Best R&R Performance– Justin Bieber – “Yukon”- Chris Brown featuring Bryson Tiller – “It Depends”- Kehlani – “Folded”- Leon Thomas – “Mutt (Live from NPR’s Tiny Desk)”- Summer Walker – “Heart of a Woman”
Best Traditional R&B Performance– Durand Bernarr – “Here We Are”- Lalah Hathaway – “Uptown”- Ledisi – “Love You Too”- SZA – “Crybaby”- Leon Thomas – “Vibes Don’t Lie”
Best Progressive R&B Album– Durand Bernarr –Bloom– Bilal –Adjust Brightness– Destin Conrad –Love on Digital– Flo –Access All Areas– Terrace Martin & Kenyon Dixon –Come As You Are
Best Rap Album– Clipse –Let God Sort ’Em Out– GloRilla –Glorious– JID –God Does Like Ugly– Kendrick Lamar –GNX– Tyler, The Creator –Chromakopia
Best Rap Song– Doechii – “Anxiety”- Clipse featuring John Legend & Voices of Fire – “The Birds Don’t Sing”- Tyler, The Creator featuring GloRilla, Sexyy Red & Lil Wayne – “Sticky”- GloRilla – “TGIF”- Kendrick Lamar featuring Lefty Gunplay – “TV Off”
Best Melodic Rap Performance– Fridayy featuring Meek Mill – “Proud of Me”- JID featuring Ty Dolla $ign & 6LACK – “Wholeheartedly”- Kendrick Lamar with SZA – “Luther”- Terrace Martin & Kenyon Dixon featuring Rapsody – “WeMaj”- PartyNextDoor & Drake – “Somebody Loves Me”
Best Rap Performance– Cardi B – “Outside”- Clipse featuring Kendrick Lamar & Pharrell Williams – “Chains & Whips”- Doechii – “Anxiety”- Kendrick Lamar featuring Lefty Gunplay – “TV Off”- Tyler, The Creator featuring Teezo Touchdown – “Darling, I”
Best African Music Performance– Burna Boy – “Love”- Davido featuring Omah Lay – “With You”- Eddy Kenzo & Mehran Matin – “Hope & Love”- Ayra Starr featuring Wizkid – “Gimme Dat”- Tyla – “Push 2 Start”
Best Global Music Performance– Bad Bunny – “EoO”- Ciro Hurtado – “Cantando en el Camino”- Angélique Kidjo – “Jerusalema”- Yeisy Rojas – “Inmigrante Y Que?”- Shakti – “Shrini’s Dream (Live)”- Anoushka Shankar featuring Alam Khan & Sarathy Korwar – “Daybreak”
Best Global Music Album– Siddhant Bhatia –Sounds of Kumbha– Burna Boy –No Sign of Weakness– Youssou N’Dour –Éclairer le Monde (Light the World)– Shakti –Mind Explosion (50th Anniversary Tour Live)– Anoushka Shankar featuring Alam Khan & Sarathy Korwar –Chapter III: We Return to Light– Caetano Veloso and Maria Bethânia –Caetano e Bethânia Ao Vivo
Additional Grammy Categories
Best Gospel Performance/Song– Kirk Franklin – “Do It Again”- Tasha Cobbs Leonard & John Legend – “Church”- Jonathan McReynolds & Jamal Roberts – “Still (Live)”- Pastor Mike Jr. – “Amen”- CeCe Winans featuring Shirley Caesar – “Come Jesus Come”
Best Country Solo Performance– Chris Stapleton – “Think I’m in Love with You”- Lainey Wilson – “Hang Tight Honey”- Kacey Musgraves – “Deeper Well”- Luke Combs – “The Man He Sees in Me”- Carly Pearce – “My Place”
Best Country Duo/Group Performance– Zach Bryan featuring Kacey Musgraves – “I Remember Everything”- Dan + Shay – “Save Me the Trouble”- Brothers Osborne – “Goodbye’s Kickin’ In”- Maren Morris & Hozier – “What’s Mine Is Yours”- Little Big Town – “Songbird”
Best Country Song– “Deeper Well” – Kacey Musgraves- “Hang Tight Honey” – Lainey Wilson- “The Man He Sees in Me” – Luke Combs- “Think I’m in Love with You” – Chris Stapleton- “What Was I Made For?” (Country Version) – Billie Eilish
Best Country Album– Chris Stapleton –Higher Ground– Kacey Musgraves –Deeper Well– Lainey Wilson –Whirlwind– Luke Combs –Fathers & Sons– Zach Bryan –The Great American Bar Scene
Best Americana Performance– Brandi Carlile – “Right on Time (Live)”- The Avett Brothers – “Love and Resolve”- Allison Russell – “Stay Right Here”- Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – “Cast Iron Skillet”- The War and Treaty – “Yesterday’s Burn”
Best Americana Album– Brandi Carlile –Echoes and Grace– Allison Russell –The Returner– Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit –Weathervanes– Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats –South of Here– The War and Treaty –Lover’s Game
Best Bluegrass Album– Billy Strings –Me/And/Dad– Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway –City of Gold– Rhonda Vincent –Music Is What I See– Sam Bush –Radio John: Songs of John Hartford– Sierra Hull –Weight of the World
Best Pop Solo Performance– Billie Eilish – “What Was I Made For?”- Taylor Swift – “Fortnight”- Olivia Rodrigo – “Vampire”- Dua Lipa – “Houdini”- Miley Cyrus – “Flowers”
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance– Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone – “Fortnight”- Beyoncé featuring Miley Cyrus – “II Hands II Heaven”- Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Glitter & Gold”- Ed Sheeran & Elton John – “Seasons”- SZA & Justin Timberlake – “Ghosts of Summer”
Best Pop Vocal Album– Taylor Swift –The Tortured Poets Department– Olivia Rodrigo –Guts (Spilled)– Billie Eilish –Hit Me Hard and Soft– Dua Lipa –Radical Optimism– Miley Cyrus –Endless Summer Vacation
Best Dance/Electronic Recording– Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding – “Miracle”- Fred again.. & Romy – “Strong”- Peggy Gou – “(It Goes Like) Nanana”- Tiësto & Tate McRae – “10:35”- David Guetta & Bebe Rexha – “I’m Good (Blue)”
Best Dance/Electronic Album– Fred again.. –Actual Life 3 (January 1 – September 9, 2022)– Calvin Harris –Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 3– Skrillex –Quest for Fire– Peggy Gou –I Hear You– ODESZA –The Last Goodbye
Best R&B Performance– Beyoncé – “II Hands II Heaven”- SZA – “Snooze”- Usher – “Good Good”- Victoria Monét – “On My Mama”- Coco Jones – “ICU”
Best Traditional R&B Performance– Babyface & Toni Braxton – “The Door”- Patti LaBelle – “Still in Love”- Ledisi – “Sell Me No Dreams”- Victoria Monét – “How Does It Make You Feel”- Beyoncé – “My House”
Best R&B Song– “Snooze” – SZA- “On My Mama” – Victoria Monét- “Good Good” – Usher, 21 Savage & Summer Walker- “ICU” – Coco Jones- “My House” – Beyoncé
Best Progressive R&B Album– SZA –SOS– Victoria Monét –Jaguar II– Beyoncé –Renaissance Act II– Chlöe –In Pieces– Kali Uchis –Red Moon in Venus
Best R&B Album– Usher –Coming Home– Coco Jones –What I Didn’t Tell You (Deluxe)– Babyface –Girls Night Out– Victoria Monét –Jaguar II– SZA –SOS