The 2026 Grammys are Sunday: Here's What to Expect

Lots of first-evers, first-in-a-whiles, and long-time-comings

Music’s Biggest Night returns to Los Angeles on February 1st with Trevor Noah hosting for a sixth consecutive time. The ceremony will bring together emerging talent and established legends at Crypto.com Arena—for the last time, as the show marks its 23rd and final year at the venue. Here’s what to expect.

The Performances: Comebacks, Firsts, and Best New Artist Takeover

Justin Bieber’s Grand Return

The biggest performance story of the night belongs to Justin Bieber, who returns to the Grammy stage after a four-year hiatus—his first major award show performance since 2022. The last time Bieber performed at the Grammys, he delivered “Peaches” from his Justice album. This comeback is particularly significant given his health struggles with Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, which forced him to cancel his Justice World Tour in 2023. Now, with four nominations for his album SWAG (including Album of the Year), Bieber is making his triumphant return to the award show circuit.

Pharrell’s First Performance in Over a Decade

Pharrell Williams is also making an anticipated return, performing at the Grammys for the first time since his orchestral rendition of “Happy” in 2015. The 13-time Grammy winner is teaming up with hip-hop duo Clipse (brothers Pusha T and Malice). Their collaborative album Let God Sort Em Out earned five nominations, including Album of the Year and Best Rap Album.

Best New Artist Showcase

Following last year’s tradition, all eight Best New Artist nominees will perform in a special segment during the ceremony. This year’s diverse lineup includes:

• Addison Rae: The TikTok star-turned-pop artist making her Grammy stage debut

• Alex Warren: The YouTube sensation whose “Ordinary” topped the Billboard Hot 100 and earned him Best New Artist at the VMAs

• KATSEYE: The six-member America-bbased girl group representing K-pop’s global expansion, who went viral for their GAP ad dancing to Milkshake

• Leon Thomas: The only R&B artist in the Best New Artist category, also nominated for six total awards including Album of the Year

• Lola Young: The British artist whose “Messy” went viral on TikTok last year

• Olivia Dean: The indie-turned-mainstream mega star who’s topping charts

• The Marías: The bilingual indie pop band who broke through with “No One Noticed”

• sombr – The alternative artist whose concert behavior caused viral TikTok drama

Pop Royalty Takes the Stage

Sabrina Carpenter, the first confirmed performer, leads pop’s charge with six nominations including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year for “Manchild” and Man’s Best Friend. Lady Gaga, in her ninth Grammy performance, arrives with seven nominations—her most ever—for her album MAYHEM and comeback single “Abracadabra.”

The Pop Categories: Sabrina, Gaga & the Rise of K-Pop

The pop categories this year reflect an industry in transition, with established stars facing fresh competition and K-pop making historic inroads.

Record of the Year: Pop Dominance

The pop representation in Record of the Year is formidable:

• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”

• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”

• Billie Eilish – “WILDFLOWER”

• Chappell Roan – “The Subway”

• ROSÉ & Bruno Mars – “APT.”

Notably, two of the eight Record of the Year nominees fall under the K-pop umbrella: ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” and HUNTR/X’s “Golden” from the KPop Demon Hunters Netflix film. This marks a significant moment for K-pop’s integration into mainstream Grammy recognition, with 25% of Song of the Year nominees coming from the K-pop sphere.

Album of the Year: Pop’s Power Players

Pop albums make up three of the eight Album of the Year nominations:

• Sabrina Carpenter – Man’s Best Friend (6 total nominations)

• Lady Gaga – MAYHEM (7 total nominations)

• Justin Bieber – SWAG (4 total nominations)

For Sabrina, this marks her second consecutive Album of the Year nomination, following last year’s nod for Short n’ Sweet. Lady Gaga’s fifth Album of the Year nomination without a win mirrors Kendrick Lamar’s trajectory—both artists are looking to finally capture their respective category’s top recognition.

Best Pop Solo Performance: The Heavyweights

This category showcases the year’s biggest pop moments:

• Billie Eilish – “BIRDS OF A FEATHER”

• Chappell Roan – “Good Luck, Babe!”

• Justin Bieber – “Daisies”

• Lady Gaga – “Disease”

• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”

Best Pop Vocal Album: Gaga’s Comeback

Lady Gaga’s MAYHEM represents what many critics are calling a return to her dark pop roots—reminiscent of The Fame and Born This Way. The album’s lead single, “Abracadabra” features bass-driven beats and pulsing synths that evoke her earliest work, with its hypnotic chorus drawing comparisons to “Bad Romance.”

Best New Artist: The Most Diverse Class Yet

This year’s Best New Artist category is remarkably versatile in genre, spanning:

• Traditional pop: Alex Warren, Olivia Dean

• Alt-pop: sombr, The Marías

• Global pop: KATSEYE

• Pop-R&B fusion: Leon Thomas (nominated for 6 total awards, the most of any Best New Artist nominee)

• TikTok-to-mainstream: Addison Rae, Lola Young

Leon Thomas: The R&B Standout

Leon Thomas enters as the lone R&B voice in a pop-heavy category, but he’s hardly an underdog. With six total nominations, including Album of the Year for MUTT, Best R&B Album, Best R&B Performance, Best R&B Song and Best Melodic Rap Performance, Thomas represents a genre-blurring approach that could make him this year’s Chappell Roan—last year’s Best New Artist winner who similarly dominated across categories.

Hip-Hop & R&B: Kendrick’s Continued Reign and a Reunion for the Ages

Kendrick Lamar’s Historic Run Continues

After sweeping five awards at the 2025 Grammys for “Not Like Us” (including Record and Song of the Year), Kendrick Lamar returns as the most-nominated artist of 2026 with nine nods. His surprise-released album GNX and single “luther” (featuring SZA) position him for potential back-to-back dominance. With 66 career nominations and 22 wins, Lamar continues to cement his legacy as one of the most Grammy-decorated rappers ever.

Album of the Year: Hip-Hop’s Triple Threat

For the first time in the 2020s, three rap albums earned Album of the Year nominations:

• Kendrick Lamar – GNX (9 total nominations)

• Clipse – Let God Sort Em Out (5 total nominations)

• Tyler, The Creator – CHROMAKOPIA (5 total nominations)

Best Rap Album: The Veterans vs. The Rising

The Best Rap Album category features:

• Kendrick Lamar – GNX

• Clipse – Let God Sort Em Out

• Tyler, The Creator – CHROMAKOPIA

• GloRilla – GLORIOUS

• JID – God Does Like Ugly

R&B’s Moment: Leon Thomas Leading the Pack

In Best R&B Album, Leon Thomas’s MUTT competes against:

• GIVĒON – BELOVED

• Coco Jones – Why Not More?

• Ledisi – The Crown

• Teyana Taylor – Escape Room

Thomas is the only R&B artist nominated for Best New Artist, highlighting both R&B’s competitive landscape and his crossover appeal.

Record and Song of the Year: Hip-Hop’s Big Moments

Two major hip-hop and R&B tracks compete in both Record and Song of the Year:

• Doechii – “Anxiety” (5 total nominations)

• Kendrick Lamar & SZA – “luther” (the single topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 consecutive weeks)

Doechii’s five nominations tie her with Clipse, Sounwave, SZA, and Tyler, The Creator, making her one of the ceremony’s most-nominated artists. Following last year’s win, she’s poised to build on that momentum.

What to Watch For

• Justin Bieber’s emotional return after years away from major performances

• Pharrell’s first Grammy performance in 11 years, marking a full-circle moment

• The Best New Artist sweep of performances, showcasing the future of pop music

• Kendrick vs. himself: Can he repeat last year’s historic sweep?

• Lady Gaga’s quest for Album of the Year on her fifth nomination

• K-pop’s growing Grammy presence, with multiple nominees across major categories

• Leon Thomas’s potential breakout, potentially becoming the second Victorious star to win a Grammy

The 68th Annual Grammy Awards air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+ on Sunday, February 1st at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. With 95 total categories, this year’s ceremony promises to be a celebration of music’s most innovative year yet—and a proper send-off for the venue that’s hosted Music’s Biggest Night for over two decades.