Our Favorite 2026 Grammy Award Nominees

by Tyler Glover & Julian Spivey

Photos: Streamline/Interscope Records, Island Records & Republic Records

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"Mayhem" by Lady Gaga for Album of the Year
Lady Gaga's first three albums were all nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys: The Fame, The Fame Monster and Born This Way. After this, though, the only time she has been able to get into this coveted category was in 2022 for her jazz album with Tony Bennett: Love For Sale. Joanne and Chromatica were both fantastic albums that deserved to be in the category as well, so it made my heart so happy to see Lady Gaga return to the category for arguably her best album: Mayhem. The album had already won a Grammy before the nominations were announced this morning because its lead single: "Die With A Smile," with Bruno Mars, won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the Grammys last year. It was also exciting to see the now-iconic "Abracadabra" nominated for Record and Song of the Year. This album really was a return to the Gaga we all fell in love with from her first three albums. TG

"Man's Best Friend" by Sabrina Carpenter for Album of the Year
Sabrina Carpenter’s Man's Best Friend was such an impressive album to me. Carpenter won her first two Grammys last year for Pop Solo Performance for "Espresso" and her album, Short n' Sweet, won Best Pop Vocal Album. It was also nominated for Album of the Year but lost to Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, who FINALLY got an Album of the Year win. Short n' Sweet was such a fantastic pop album and showcased Carpenter's incredible skills as a songwriter and a performer. With Man's Best Friend released so soon after, many worried about the album's overall quality. Had Carpenter had enough time to really make another solid album? It turned out that while ‘MBF’ wasn't as great as Short n' Sweet, it was pretty dang close. I was so excited to see her nominated for her massive hit, "Manchild," in Record and Song of the Year. TG

"Golden" by HUNTR/X for Song of the Year
Even though “KPOP Demon Hunters” has become a cultural phenomenon, I was still skeptical it could get its hit song, "Golden," into Song of the Year. After all, "We Don't Talk About Bruno" from 2022's "Encanto" enjoyed similar success but was left off the list on Grammy nominations morning. I was late to the game in watching “KPOP Demon Hunters,” but I became obsessed with all of the film's music. "Golden" was my favorite song from the movie, so one of my biggest Grammy wishes was to see it nominated for Song of the Year. I was so incredibly happy to see "Golden," written by EJAE and Mark Sonnenblick, nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Song Written For Visual Media. TG

"The Subway" by Chappell Roan for Record of the Year 
One of my biggest Grammy wishes was for "The Subway" by Chappell Roan to be nominated for Record and Song of the Year. Chappell Roan is one of the most exciting new artists of the last few years, and her win for Best New Artist last year was so well-deserved. I feel she should have won Song of the Year for "Good Luck, Babe!" but Kendrick Lamar was a deserving winner for "Not Like Us." While Chappell Roan did not get into Song of the Year for "The Subway," she did get into (arguably) the biggest category of the night. The song captures the very sad moments of a breakup, when everyday things remind us of the one we lost. It is such a sad and moving song with a top-notch production. TG

Who Believes in Angels? by Elton John & Brandi Carlile for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
I truly don’t know what the Elton John & Brandi Carlile album Who Believes in Angels?, filled with a bunch of different sounds from rock to soaring pop, is doing in the Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album alongside multiple Christmas albums and a Barbra Streisand duets album, but I’m happy it’s nominated – and it might be the favorite to win the category. Carlile has gotten to live out her wildest dreams over the last few years, becoming close to and recording with her idols like Elton John and Joni Mitchell, and while the album may not be the best of either Elton John or Carlile, it’s still better than much of what’s nominated annually by the Grammys. JS

Foxes in the Snow by Jason Isbell for Best Folk Album
My favorite album of any of the Grammy-nominated ones in any genre this year is Jason Isbell’s Foxes in the Snow. Isbell, my favorite singer-songwriter over the last decade-plus, has always been an emotional lyricist, mixing real-life moments with fiction to great success and six Grammy wins. Foxes in the Snow is his first release after both a divorce and finding new love, so there are a lot of feelings and emotions on what amounts to Isbell’s most stripped-down album yet. He’s been a winner of Best Americana Album before, but this is his first try at Best Folk Album, with Foxes in the Snow being just him and his guitar. JS
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"I Never Lie" by Zach Top for Best Country Song
Zach Top’s “I Never Lie” is a classic country song in today’s modern world. One of my favorite songs of 2024, it has a great throwback sound to ‘90s country, where it certainly would’ve been a smash hit. It’s too country for today’s mainstream. Written by Top, Carson Chamberlain, and Tim Nichols, it uses sarcasm effectively to answer the question of how the narrator has been doing since a breakup. It should’ve been in the general field, Song of the Year, too, but the Grammys have left country music behind. JS
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"Defying Gravity" by Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
"Wicked" has always been my favorite Broadway musical. When I heard it was getting the cinematic treatment, I was worried because it was the kind of film that they simply could not get wrong. The stakes were way too high, and it was so beloved worldwide. One of the BIGGEST decisions director Jon M. Chu and his casting team had to make was who would play the main roles of Elphaba and Galinda. After watching the first film, it was very clear that Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were BORN to play Elphie and Glinda. Since the film was split into two, the first ends with the Act 1 finale, the iconic song  "Defying Gravity." Grande and especially Cynthia Erivo simply could not have sung the song any better. There was not a dry eye in the theater after their performance of "Defying Gravity." When the Grammy nominations came out this morning, my heart was instantly happy when I saw Erivo and Grande nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. TG
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​"Bad As I Used to Be" by Chris Stapleton for Best Country Solo Performance
From the first time I heard Chris Stapleton’s “Bad As I Used to Be,” written for the Brad Pitt Summer blockbuster “F1,” I was hooked. It instantly became one of the most badass tracks of Stapleton’s career, and fit Pitt’s character in the film perfectly. The scene in the film featuring the song is actually the movie's highlight. Stapleton’s performance, vocally and with his guitar, drives this propulsive country-rocker and will keep it stuck in your head. JS   
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"Lonely Avenue" by Jon Batiste & Randy Newman for Best American Roots Performance
Jon Batiste & Randy Newman together on “Lonely Avenue,” off Batiste’s Big Money, is like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker on the same track – I suppose, I’m not really a “Star Wars” guy. The modern American roots superstar and living legend mix perfectly on this old Doc Pomus-written song recorded by Ray Charles, and they sound like they’re having a blast doing so. JS