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It’s once again Music’s Biggest Night, where heavy hitters vie for the most esteemed qualifiers to stick onto album packaging. There’s a lot for five-time host Trevor Noah to get into after this weekend in Los Angeles saw huge ICE Out demonstrations and <a href="https://www.vulture.com/article/do… More »
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Oddsmakers and analysts say the winners of the Grammys 2026 are too close to call. Will Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, or Kendrick Lamar take home Album of the Year? Will ubiquitous Kpop Demon Hunters anthem “Golden” take home yet another trophy for Song of the Year? Is Olivia Dean‘s presumed lock on Best New Artist guaranteed?
We won’t know until Sunday, February 1, when—starting at 8 p.m.—this year’s awards will be distributed. The ceremony, will be hosted by former Daily Show host Trevor Noah, will be broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+. Vanity Fair is also liveblogging every moment, and will update this page every time a winner is announced.
So read on for the full list of Grammys 2026 winners below, and don’t miss Vanity Fair’s coverage of the night’s best-dressed stars, every red carpet look, and much more.
WINNER: “Folded,” Kehlani
WINNER: Mutt, Leon Thomas
WINNER: Never Enough, Turnstile
WINNER: “Changes (Live From Villa Park) Back to the Beginning,” Yungblud featuring Nuno Bettencourt, Frank Bello, and Adam Wakeman, and II
WINNER: “As Alive as You Need Me to Be,” Nine Inch Nails
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Eve Batey
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Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo have won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 2026 Grammy Awards for their rendition of “Defying Gravity,” from Wicked. The duo claimed the prize ahead of Katseye’s “Gabriella”; Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “Apt.”; SZA and Kendrick Lamar’s “30 for 30”; and “Golden,” performed by KPop Demon Hunters’ fictional girl group Huntr/x. Grande and Erivo were not on hand to accept the award.
Grande has taken home this trophy once before, in 2021, for “Rain On Me,” her duet with Lady Gaga from Chromatica. For her role as Glinda in Wicked, she earned a Best Supporting Actress nod at the 2025 Academy Awards, but the film’s sequel, Wicked: For Good, was completely shut out during this year’s Oscar nominations. This is Erivo’s second Grammy, following her 2017 win for Best Musical Theater Album, as part of the cast of The Color Purple.
At last year’s Grammys, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance went to Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga for their Mayhem duet “Die With a Smile.”
See the full winners list and follow along with all of Pitchfork’s coverage of the 2026 Grammys.
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Walden Green, Alex Suskind
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Taylor Swift doesn’t have any Grammy nominations this year, so it’s unsurprising that the star is spending the evening out of the public eye. ELLE understands Swift will not be at tonight’s ceremony. Her fiancé, Travis Kelce, isn’t expected, either.While Swift released one of the buzziest albums of 2025, “The Life of a Showgirl,” it came out in October—after the 2026 eligibility period (Aug. 31, 2024 to Aug. 30, 2025). She can be nominated for it at the 2027 ceremony.Ahead of tonight’s show, Grammys executive producer Ben Winston addressed rumors of Swift’s attendance in an interview with Hits. “The only reason people think Taylor might be performing or coming is because Hits decided to print it this week and put it in their Hits List, and it was picked up globally,” he said. “But Hits just totally made that up. And now I am getting asked about it by you, as if it’s a real thing, when it was made up in your office! That really is a full-circle rumor!”The star attended last year’s Grammys as a presenter. She wore a glittery red Vivienne Westwood minidress that teased her upcoming “The Life of a Showgirl” era. Since releasing her “The End of an Era” docuseries in December, Swift has kept a low profile. She was photographed with Travis Kelce getting dinner in Beverly Hills on the Monday after the Golden Globes, but the couple wasn’t seen at the ceremony or any of its after-parties.On December 16, a source told “Us Weekly” that Swift “always has ideas percolating” for her music career but isn’t “locked into” doing a tour for “The Life of a Showgirl.” “There have been ideas floated, but right now she is enjoying her break.”An industry source echoed that sentiment, saying they weren’t “aware of any Showgirl tour plans,” either. “The Eras Tour was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so she’s not going to put pressure on herself to make everything that big and ambitious,” the insider added. “She’ll make sure the next one is special in its own right, but she’s also realistic about it.”Swift and Kelce are also planning their wedding together. “Taylor thinks it’s cute , and it’s something they have been bonding over,” the first source said.The singer confirmed herself that she isn’t planning to tour right now during her press tour for “The Life of a Showgirl.” She told BBC Radio 1’s Greg James that she doesn’t have the itch to go back out on the road. “I am going to be really honest with you,” she said. “I am so tired when I think about doing it again because I’d want to do it really well again.”Days later, she quickly shut down speculation that after getting married, she’d stop making music during her interview with BBC Radio 2’s Scott Mills. “That’s a shockingly offensive thing to say. It’s not why people get married, so that they can quit their jobs,” she said.She added that Kelce is extremely supportive of her career: “I love the person that I am with because he loves what I do, and he loves how much I am fulfilled by making art and making music. That’s the coolest thing about Trav: He is so passionate about what he does that me being passionate about what I do, it connects us. There’s no point in time where he’s going to be like, ‘I’m really upset that you’re still making music, the music thing that I signed up for, that I knew you loved, I thought you were going to stop doing that.’”
Taylor Swift doesn’t have any Grammy nominations this year, so it’s unsurprising that the star is spending the evening out of the public eye.
ELLE understands Swift will not be at tonight’s ceremony. Her fiancé, Travis Kelce, isn’t expected, either.
While Swift released one of the buzziest albums of 2025, “The Life of a Showgirl,” it came out in October—after the 2026 eligibility period (Aug. 31, 2024 to Aug. 30, 2025). She can be nominated for it at the 2027 ceremony.
Ahead of tonight’s show, Grammys executive producer Ben Winston addressed rumors of Swift’s attendance in an interview with Hits. “The only reason people think Taylor might be performing or coming is because Hits decided to print it this week and put it in their Hits List, and it was picked up globally,” he said. “But Hits just totally made that up. And now I am getting asked about it by you, as if it’s a real thing, when it was made up in your office! That really is a full-circle rumor!”
The star attended last year’s Grammys as a presenter. She wore a glittery red Vivienne Westwood minidress that teased her upcoming “The Life of a Showgirl” era.
Since releasing her “The End of an Era” docuseries in December, Swift has kept a low profile. She was photographed with Travis Kelce getting dinner in Beverly Hills on the Monday after the Golden Globes, but the couple wasn’t seen at the ceremony or any of its after-parties.
On December 16, a source told “Us Weekly” that Swift “always has ideas percolating” for her music career but isn’t “locked into” doing a tour for “The Life of a Showgirl.” “There have been ideas floated, but right now she is enjoying her break.”
An industry source echoed that sentiment, saying they weren’t “aware of any Showgirl tour plans,” either. “The Eras Tour was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so she’s not going to put pressure on herself to make everything that big and ambitious,” the insider added. “She’ll make sure the next one is special in its own right, but she’s also realistic about it.”
Swift and Kelce are also planning their wedding together. “Taylor thinks it’s cute [he’s involved], and it’s something they have been bonding over,” the first source said.
The singer confirmed herself that she isn’t planning to tour right now during her press tour for “The Life of a Showgirl.” She told BBC Radio 1’s Greg James that she doesn’t have the itch to go back out on the road. “I am going to be really honest with you,” she said. “I am so tired when I think about doing it again because I’d want to do it really well again.”
Days later, she quickly shut down speculation that after getting married, she’d stop making music during her interview with BBC Radio 2’s Scott Mills. “That’s a shockingly offensive thing to say. It’s not why people get married, so that they can quit their jobs,” she said.
She added that Kelce is extremely supportive of her career: “I love the person that I am with because he loves what I do, and he loves how much I am fulfilled by making art and making music. That’s the coolest thing about Trav: He is so passionate about what he does that me being passionate about what I do, it connects us. There’s no point in time where he’s going to be like, ‘I’m really upset that you’re still making music, the music thing that I signed up for, that I knew you loved, I thought you were going to stop doing that.’”
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For the second year in a row, Kendrick Lamar, with nine nominations, is poised to dominate at Grammys 2026, after winning record and song of the year in 2025 for “Not Like Us.” His sixth studio album, GNX, is in competition for best album of the year with fellow past and soon-to-be future Super Bowl headliners Lady Gaga and Bad Bunny, whose albums Mayhem and Debí Tirar Más Fotos (“I Should Have Taken More Photos”) are up for seven and six nominations, respectively.
The heated rivalry in that category isn’t the only reason for watching the Grammys live. Among the snubs and surprises of the 2026 Grammy nominations was the inclusion of Justin Bieber’s four-time-nominated surprise summer album, Swag, songs from which he’ll perform at his first Grammys in four years. Joining Bieber on the Grammys stage, although presumably not at the same time, will be all eight of the best new artist nominees: Olivia Dean, Katseye, the Marías, Addison Rae, Sombr, Leon Thomas, Alex Warren, and Lola Young.
Speaking of fresh blood, a pair of new categories are coming to the Grammys: best traditional country album—where nominees range from Willie Nelson to Margo Price—and best album cover, which could go to Bad Bunny, Tyler the Creator, Perfume Genius, Djo, or the British indie pop group Wet Leg.
But some traditions remain: the Grammys 2026 will be hosted by former Daily Show host Trevor Noah, who returns for his sixth and—as the Recording Academy confirmed—final stint as emcee. During last year’s well-received telecast, the Grammys raised funds for the California wildfires, but has yet to announce a philanthropic cause for this year’s show.
With that, it’s time to make like Addison Rae and put your headphones on in preparation for music’s biggest night. Ahead, a breakdown of where to watch the Grammys 2026 and which A-list musicians are expected to make a splash on stage.
The 2026 Grammys air live on Sunday, February 1, on CBS and Paramount+. This year’s broadcast will also be available to stream online at cbs.com, through the CBS app, or via the Recording Academy’s social channels. Streaming options for those without a cable login include Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DirectTV Stream, Sling TV, and FuboTV, many of which come with free-trial periods.
If you’re interested in watching the Grammys live, you may also want to tune in to the annual Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony, where the first and majority of awards are handed out. This event will stream live from Peacock Theater in Los Angeles hours before the proper show at 3:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. PT on the Recording Academy’s YouTube channel and on live.grammy.com. Glee alum Darren Criss will host the ceremony and perform with his costar in Broadway’s Maybe Happy Ending, Helen J. Shen, with more performances from artists such as Zara Larsson and nominated musician Grace Potter.
Sabrina Carpenter enters the 2026 Grammys with a half-dozen nods, including for album, record, and song of the year—all three of the night’s biggest awards—and was the first artist to join the awards show’s stacked performer lineup. She’ll be joined by Bieber, Gaga, the best new artist slate, and Let God Sort ‘Em Out collaborators Clipse and Pharrell Williams.
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Savannah Walsh
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Honoring Mariah Carey, the MusiCares gala blended glamour, compassion, and the enduring power of music during Grammy Week in Los Angeles
Last night in Los Angeles, the MusiCares Person of the Year gala unfolded as one of those rare evenings where glamour carried real meaning and music reminded everyone why it matters. Honoring Mariah Carey, the event rose far beyond celebration and became a vivid expression of unity, compassion, and shared responsibility within the global music community.
Mariah Carey was, quite simply, ethereal. Radiant and serene, she appeared more otherworldly than ever, moving through the room with a quiet confidence that reflected both her iconic legacy and her generosity of spirit. Honored not only for an extraordinary career but for a long-standing commitment to giving back, Carey embodied the heart of MusiCares and its mission to support music professionals through moments of crisis, recovery, and renewal.
Fashion added its own layer of storytelling. Kesha delivered one of the night’s most unforgettable visual moments in a sculptural floral gown by Kilian Kerner. The bold, blooming silhouette felt symbolic, expressive, resilient, and unapologetically alive, echoing the spirit of the evening and the strength found in community.
Jennifer Hudson brought her unmistakable presence to the room, grounded, warm, and quietly commanding, while Rita Wilson added a deeply soulful dimension to the night. The Greek American actress and musician, gifted with a beautiful voice and an authentic artistic sensibility, remains closely connected to the Grammys and the Grammy Museum. Only days earlier, she hosted an intimate and memorable songwriters gathering as part of the Liner Notes series, reaffirming her role as a cherished cultural presence in Los Angeles. On the red carpet, she appeared alongside her close friend Gayle King, whose iconic career and continued excellence in broadcast journalism make her one of the most influential voices in American media today. Together, they radiated intelligence, warmth, and genuine friendship.
As the evening unfolded, attention turned toward the leadership shaping the modern Grammys. Panos A. Panay, President of the Recording Academy, appointed in 2021 alongside co-President Valencia Battlefield Jones, represents a new era of vision and global perspective. In recent years, the Grammys have felt sharper, more relevant, and increasingly impactful, reflecting a systematic and thoughtful approach to celebrating music across genres, cultures, and borders. Under this leadership, the Grammys have continued to elevate talent, foster unity, and resonate far beyond the United States, shaping conversations and careers worldwide.
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With Grammy Week building toward its climax, anticipation now turns to the live Grammy Awards broadcast from the transformed Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The venue has been reimagined to meet the scale and ambition of the year’s most important music event, one that signals not only celebration but momentum, including the much-anticipated return of Justin Bieber to the stage ahead of Coachella.
Yet it was this night, intimate in emotion and powerful in purpose, that truly set the tone. The MusiCares gala was not simply about honoring a legend with so many milestones, like Mariah Carey. It was about humanity, resilience, and the enduring power of music to bring people together, reminding everyone in the room, and beyond it, that when the industry leads with heart, the impact is felt everywhere.
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George Satsidis
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Bruno Mars has joined the lineup of performers at the 2026 Grammy Awards. “Apt.”, his collaboration with Blackpink’s Rosé, is up for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Rosé is also performing at Sunday’s ceremony, though it’s currently unclear whether she and Mars will take the stage together or separately.
In addition to Mars and Rosé, the 2026 Grammys are currently set to feature performances by Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Sabrina Carpenter, Tyler, the Creator, Clipse and Pharrell Williams, Reba McEntire, all of this year’s Best New Artist nominees, and Lauryn Hill, who will perform a tribute to D’Angelo and Roberta Flack. At the 2025 ceremony, Mars and Lady Gaga covered the Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreamin’” in a tribute to the victims of the California wildfires.
The 2026 Grammy Awards take place on Sunday, February 1, 2026, at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena. The ceremony will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream on Paramount+.
Follow along with all of Pitchfork’s coverage of the 2026 Grammy Awards.
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Walden Green
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The 2026 Grammy Awards are just around the corner, coming to CBS and Paramount+ With Showtime from 8 p.m. Eastern this Sunday, February 1. Below, get caught up on the full list of nominees announced back in November. (Pitchfork earns a commission from purchases made through affiliate links on our site.)
Kendrick Lamar leads the field with nine nominations and will be looking to repeat in several categories. Trailing the GNX rapper are Lady Gaga, Jack Antonoff, and Mayhem producer Cirkut, with seven apiece. Bad Bunny and Sabrina Carpenter are among those with six nominations, and SZA, Turnstile, and Tyler, the Creator each have five nods.
The Recording Academy has been drip-feeding performer reveals in the weeks leading up to the ceremony. The lineup includes those multi-nominees Gaga, Carpenter, and Tyler, as well as Clipse, who are nominated four times this year and will perform with Let God Sort Em Out producer Pharrell Williams. Expect additional songs from Justin Bieber (who also has four nods), Reba McEntire, and Lauryn Hill—performing a tribute to D’Angelo and Roberta Flack—plus all of this year’s Best New Artist nominees.
Kendrick Lamar, who is not slated to perform at the show, swept his categories at the 2025 Grammy Awards, winning wherever “Not Like Us” was nominated. He will be looking to go back-to-back in the Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Rap Performance categories, with “Luther” up for the former two categories and his Clipse collaboration “Chains & Whips” nominated in the latter. Lamar will also be trying to win Album of the Year for the first time, a category in which he has now competed seven times.
Joining Lamar in the Album of the Year race are Bad Bunny, Clipse, Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, R&B upstart Leon Thomas, Sabrina Carpenter, and Tyler, the Creator. None of the nominees has ever won the category, although everybody except Leon Thomas and Clipse has been nominated in the past. Antonoff’s seven nominations all come from his work for Carpenter and Lamar.
In the Record and Song of the Year fields, Billie Eilish will be looking to win her first Grammy since 2024, and she’ll be doing it with a song that came out that year: Her Hit Me Hard and Soft cut “Wildflower” was serviced as a single this year, making it eligible for the 2026 Grammys. Similarly, Doechii’s five-time-nominated “Anxiety” has been known to fans since 2019 but got a formal release (and Best Music Video–nominated visual) in March.
Several artists will compete across genre categories, and there may be none more varied than Turnstile. The band has rock, metal, and alternative music nominations connected to Never Enough. A somewhat surprising nominee for Best Alternative Music Album is Tyler, the Creator, for his second eligible album of the year, Don’t Tap the Glass. The two-time Best Rap Album winner also has three rap nominations, all associated with Chromakopia. Elsewhere, Paramore singer Hayley Williams has four nominations, spanning rock and alternative music categories.
As usual, there are plenty of first-time nominees. Among the notable first-timers are Dijon, who is up for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, and Album of the Year (for his contributions to Justin Bieber’s Swag); neotraditional country revivalist Zach Top; pop favorite Addison Rae; British singer, songwriter, and producer PinkPantheress; and “Messy” artist Lola Young.
There are also numerous acts looking to win a Grammy for the first time or the first time in a long time. The Cure are up for Best Alternative Music Album for their 2024 comeback effort, Songs of a Lost World, and the single “Alone” is in contention for Best Alternative Music Performance. It’s the first time since the 2001 Grammys that Robert Smith’s band has been nominated and would be its first-ever win.
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Jazz Monroe, Matthew Strauss
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It’s an honor just to be nominated, but winning at the Grammy Awards isn’t so bad either. Just ask Taylor Swift, she knows. Trophies are forever, but so are red-carpet photos, and looking back on what artists like Swift chose to wear over the years is something of a sartorial time capsule.
Swift, who attended her first Grammy Awards ceremony in 2008 as a 19-year-old nominee for best new artist (she was up against Ledisi, Feist, Paramore, and Amy Winehouse, who ultimately won the category), has won 14 Grammys total. She has been honored with the album-of-the-year award a record-setting four times, with her latest win in 2024, for the album Midnights, breaking the tie she’d previously held in the category with Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, and Paul Simon.
Though Swift’s latest effort, The Life of a Showgirl, isn’t eligible for the awards this year due to its October release date, she may still be a guest at the ceremony. In celebration of the Grammys 2026, revisit Swift’s Grammys looks, from the ethereal pale purple strapless Sandy Spika gown she wore for her first time at the ceremony in 2008, to her 2025 choice of a sparkly red custom Vivienne Westwood look accessorized with a tiny “T” charm on a chain—perhaps a nod to fiancé Travis Kelce—codesigned with Lorraine Schwartz, coyly adorning her thigh.
Ahead, take a walk down memory lane and see all 12 dresses that Taylor Swift has worn to the Grammy Awards over the years.
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Kase Wickman
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NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Julio Iglesias denies physical and sexual assault allegations made against him by two former employees.
ElDiario.es and Univision Noticias published a joint interview of two women accusing the Spanish singer of assaulting them while working as live-in employees at his Caribbean homes.
The alleged assaults occurred between January 2021 and October 2021, according to The Associated Press.
Iglesias called the allegations “absolutely false” in a statement posted on Instagram.
Spanish singer Julio Iglesias has been accused of sexual assault by two women. (Getty Images)
“With deep regret, I respond to the accusations made by two people who previously worked at my home. I deny having abused, coerced or disrespected any woman. These accusations are absolutely false and cause me great sadness,” Iglesias’s statement, originally posted in Spanish, began.
TYLER PERRY HIT WITH NEW $77M SEXUAL ASSAULT LAWSUIT FROM MALE MODEL
“I had never experienced such malice, but I still have the strength for people to know the full truth and to defend my dignity against such a serious affront.”
“These accusations are absolutely false and cause me great sadness.”
The “Spanish Girl” singer thanked the “many dear people who have sent me messages of affection and loyalty.”
“I have felt great comfort in them,” Iglesias wrote.
Julio Iglesias has denied any physical or sexual assault allegations. (Getty Images)
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The Spanish prosecutors’ office told The Associated Press it received formal allegations against Iglesias by an anonymous person Jan. 5.
Women’s Link Worldwide, a nonprofit organization, is representing the two accusers. The women are going by the pseudonyms Rebecca and Laura.
Julio Iglesias, 82, is a two-time Grammy winner. (Getty Images)
In a statement shared with the organization and obtained by AP, Rebecca noted she’s coming forward “to get justice for three reasons.”
“The first is for myself: for how difficult this process has been and for everything I have had to face in order to overcome it. The second is for the women who work in his homes: I want to tell them to be strong, to raise their voices, to remember that he is not invincible. And the third, for my country [the Dominican Republic]: so that something like this never happens again and so that he understands that he cannot come and do whatever he wants without facing the consequences,” Rebecca wrote.
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Laura added, “My goal is to ensure that no woman ever suffers this kind of abuse from him again. I want to send the message that women are victims and survivors, not perpetrators or guilty parties.”
Julio Iglesias is the father of Enrique Iglesias. (Getty Images)
Iglesias, the father of famed singer Enrique Iglesias, is a two-time Grammy-winning artist. He has been inducted into the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame.
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If you’ve been living anywhere other than under a rock this year, there’s a one hundred percent chance that you’ve heard of Sabrina Carpenter! In just a few short years, we’ve gotten to watch an artist we’ve loved for years blossom into a full-blown pop star, and 2025 was the biggest year of them all! From being on SNL, to winning big at the Grammys (and being nominated again) to releasing Man’s Best Friend, there was no stopping Sabrina Carpenter this year! When looking back at Sabrina’s list of accomplishments this year, we knew we had to break down some of the biggest and best for you!
Let’s jump in!
We say this with complete confidence, Man’s Best Friend is one of the best pop albums of the last decade! And we don’t even think that’s a hot take because we’ve watched the general public fall as in love with this record as we, career-long fans, have. The witty songwriting, the visual storytelling, the vocals, and the elements Sabrina continuously excels at are heightened even further here on this record. From ‘Manchild,’ which has been inescapable, to some of our favorites, ‘Go Go Juice,’ and ‘House Tour,’ there is no doubt in our mind that Man’s Best Friend will have a long, ever-evolving life with fans.
The Grammys are one of those accomplishments that artists spend their whole careers chasing, that hold meaning for their nominees, and for fans alike. At the 2025 Grammy Awards, Sabrina Carpenter took home two (!!!!) awards, and has already scored six nominations for the 2026 ceremony! That is the direct result of over a decade of hard work and dedication to mastering her craft.
Much like the Grammy Awards, being named Hitmaker of the Year comes on the heels of hard work. What sets this honor apart is that being a “Hitmaker” in such a pop-saturated market takes a deep understanding of what a “pop” song entails, and how to catch lightning in a bottle time after time. From ‘Espresso’ and ‘Manchild’ to ‘Nonsense,’ Sabrina’s deep understanding of this concept just keeps growing.
SNL is a true rite of passage for creatives throughout the entertainment industry, and Sabrina pulled off three appearances this year alone! And even more impressively, one of these appearances included the double duty of hosting and performing! These appearances reminded so many people that Sabrina is an actress! Her comedic timing is impeccable, and she also happens to have an incredible voice and is a master storyteller.
Check out more of our year-end/holiday content here!
We would love to hear from you! What was your favorite Sabrina Carpenter moment from 2025? Let us know by commenting below or by tweeting @TheHoneyPOP! We are also on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!
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Hailey Hastings
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Listen here. The 2026 Grammy nominations were announced Friday morning, marking honors for artists such as Lady Gaga—who surpassed her own nomination record this year by getting seven, including album of the year. Super Bowl 2026 halftime performer Bad Bunny did well, scoring six of his own; so did last year’s headliner, Kendrick Lamar, who scooped up nine. Sabrina Carpenter is standing tall with a half-dozen nods, including for album, record, and song of the year—all three of the night’s biggest awards.
Sure, it’s an honor just to be nominated. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have strong opinions about those nominations, right?
Vanity Fair’s staff of cultural experts erupted with opinions while taking in the nods this morning: There was jubilation for Addison Rae’s best new artist nod, and a raised eyebrow at the total exclusion of Lorde from the list. There was also confusion: what exactly is the difference between a contemporary country album and a traditional country album? And while we love Doechii’s “Anxiety,” doesn’t that song feel like it’s been around for tens of years—how is it still eligible for Grammys?
No, we’re not inviting you into our Slack channel—members only! But below, find the VF staff’s hot (and correct) takes on the biggest snubs and surprises of the 2026 Grammy nominations.
Lorde is hardly a Grammy virgin, having won two awards for her debut song “Royals”. Since then, she’s had a complicated relationship with the Recording Academy. Her second album, Melodrama, was nominated for album of the year, but she was not asked to perform solo come Grammy night. Fans noticed, and that decision was swept up in the online discourse about how the Recording Academy treats female artists. Since then, Lorde has struggled to get recognition from the group. Her most recent album, Virgin, was seen as a return to form—and while it didn’t produce major hits like “Royals,” it felt in the same vein as Melodrama, an album with a loyal and dedicated fanbase that went on to become very influential in pop music. Sadly, Grammy voters weren’t feeling it for Lorde. She didn’t receive one nomination this morning, not even in the smaller categories. —John Ross
“Fame is a Gun,” and Addison Rae has it pointed at the best new artist category. Rae fell on, and then off, every prediction list for this award—but when the announcement was finally made, she clinched the nomination as pop music fans rejoiced. Though her album, Addison, was widely praised by critics, many thought the Grammy voters wouldn’t understand her brand of pop, and the many nods she makes to artists like Lana Del Rey and Britney Spears. Her origin story as a TikTok star, also didn’t help. But it turns out voters liked what she was doing. During the voting period, Rae happened to be on tour; she delivered solid live performances on The Tonight Show and at the Grammy museum, which could have put her over the top. Now please put your headphones on, and listen to one of the best pop albums of the year if you haven’t already. —JR
An album that was made in a factory for Grammy voters was surprisingly snubbed this morning—proof, perhaps, that as the Recording Academy expands its membership, some of these typical shoo-ins are going by the wayside. Elton John has never won album of the year, despite being nominated for the category three times, and the sentiment that he was owed another chance is why many expected his album with Brandi Carlile to be nominated. But this was a very crowded year in music, and unfortunately for Elton, the album never really took off. —JR
Despite originating what Alex Warren deniers would call the song of the summer with “Daisies,” Justin Bieber got little love in the Grammys’ big three categories. His surprise R&B album SWAG came on the heels of Bieber’s infamous “standing on business” paparazzi video, offering prodigious instrumentation and an ode to the Rhode lip-gloss-carrier iPhone case—the makings of a great album. And though it was evidently great enough for album of the year, Bieber was blanked in record and song of the year. Maybe that snub is attributable to the subsequent release of his spotty (and shockingly long) SWAG II—evidence that sequels sometimes make things worse. —Abigail Sylvor Greenberg
Though it’s no surprise that Mayhem received its flowers on Grammy nomination day, I was a little worried that Gaga’s other most recent album would be left in the shadows of its highly panned companion film, Joker: Folie á Deux. The vocal performances on Harlequin are truly some of Gaga’s best work—including “Happy Mistake,” which I believe is one of her best songs to date. Now to rewatch her performance of “Happy Mistake” on Jimmy Kimmel to celebrate. —Brandon Leung
As a Mixer, I have been standing by this woman for 13 years—but the lack of recognition from this side of the pond has not gotten any easier to stomach. X Factor and Little Mix alum Jade Thirwall had one of the most impressive debuts I’ve seen in years: “Angel of My Dreams” is ambitious and unique.“Fantasy,” “Plastic Box,” “Midnight Cowboy,” “Self Sabotage,” “Lip Service”—the girl didn’t let us breathe! I have a huge respect for artists who fearlessly surrender themselves to their creativity and vision, and Jade is just that. Too bad the Grammys didn’t agree —BL
Demon hunters aren’t the only rising stars in the K-pop space. KATSEYE, the K-pop girl group whose formation was captured on the Netflix reality competition series Pop Star Academy, scored a surprise nomination for best new artist this year. Last summer, the world watched as Lara Raj, Manon Bannerman, Yoonchae, Daniela Avanzini, Megan Skiendiel, and Sophia Laforteza survived a rigorous multi-year audition process before being hand-selected to form the world’s first global K-Pop group. Since their debut, KATSEYE has been steadily rising, with a viral dance for their first single “Touch” taking TikTok by storm and Gap shrewdly hiring the diverse girl group to pose for a jean ad shortly after Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle debacle. The momentum was clear when KATSEYE pulled off an unexpected win for Push Performance of the Year (whatever that is) at the VMAs in 2025. Still, a best new artist Grammy nod didn’t seem like a sure bet, given their humble reality television beginnings and the fact that other fresh-faced solo pop acts like Olivia Dean and Addison Rae seemed to dominate the discourse this year. But through a combination of talent, hard work, and certified bops, KATSEYE was able to convince the music industry to take them seriously. That’s “Gnarly.” — Chris Murphy
Once, it was just her and her permanently shouldered purse against the world. Now PinkPantheress has finally scored her first-ever Grammy nominations: Illegal is up for best dance pop recording, and her mixtape Fancy That was nominated for best dance/electronic album. It’s a huge day for both her and Stateside addicts—her track, now remixed with Zara Larsson (also a long overdue nomination this round), lands just as both artists are catching a fresh lease on U.S. recognition and TikTok obsession. DJ Joe, The Dare to PinkPanthress’s Charli XCX—or maybe the tartan-clad Ryan Evans to her Sharpay, whatever your prerogative—also deserves credit for the Fancy That era that makes her latest work impossible to ignore. (Somehow, best new artist still passed her by—but we’ll take a win when we get one.) —Wengel Gemu
In a lineage of outlaw country artists that includes Lil Nas X (2020), Jelly Roll (2024), and Shaboozey (2025), the Academy seemed primed to recognize yet another crossover country act this year: BigXThaPlug, the Texas rapper whose 2025 album I Hope You’re Happy won hearts, minds, and a place on the Billboard country charts. Indeed, the newly created best contemporary country album prize (which I’m inclined to nickname the Cowboy Carter Memorial Award) seemed designed with BigX in mind. But perhaps BigX proved a bridge too far for the Nashville voting block, because he didn’t make it onto the list. BigX also appeared on many best new artist prediction lists—but a roster of TikTok hitmakers (Olivia Dean, Lola Young) left no room for music’s favorite hip hop upstart turned Ella Langley collaborator. In fact, there was no room at all for rap or country in best new artist this year, and a total shutout of country in the show’s main prizes The Shaboozification of pop is over, it seems—at least for Grammy voters. —ASG
Over the course of the last year, Role Model has convinced everyone from Charli xcx and Olivia Rodrigo to Natalie Portman and Kate Hudson to join him onstage while performing his viral, joy-infused hit, “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out.” But the extremely online singer/songwriter, whose name is actually Tucker Pillsbury, couldn’t charm his way into the highly sought after best new artist category this year. My guess is that the Recording Academy favored new kid on the rock block Sombr in place of Pillsbury’s more folk inspired pop-rock. Which is a huge bummer, considering Pillsbury—who released his first EP in 2017—really came into his own with his heartfelt breakup album Kansas Anymore, after making the risky leap from Soundcloud rapper to the mainstream. Don’t cry for Role Model: He has a role in Lena Dunham‘s upcoming rom-com, and a focus firmly on his next album. As he told Vanity Fair last year on the eve of his album release, “I’m happy with the music I’ve made and where my career is at. I feel like this is my happy ending—finally.” That said, I will be keeping an eye on Pillsbury’s cheeky “enemies list” on Instagram—because the Recording Academy might have just earned itself a spot on it. —Daniela Tijerina
The ubiquity of a pop song does not always translate into a Grammy nomination, much to my surprise, specifically with the case of Benson Boone’s “Mystical Magical.” We, as a people, have been inundated with this record on almost every platform possible, from Midwestern GRWMs and spoofs on TikTok to Spotify’s suspicious habit of repeatedly queuing this song after Radiohead. Because of this virtual inescapability, I had assumed Boone’s song would be nominated for either song or record of the year. I am happy to be wrong, though I fear the era of “moonbeam ice cream” is not yet over: there is still a chance that the Recording Academy could wheel out Benson Boone for a surprise performance at the Grammys, where he backflips continuously to this song. My guess is that I was not the only one for whom this ice cream flavor has run dry. —Wisdom Iheanyichukwu
Over the last few years, country music’s long-running war between cowboys and city slickers reached new levels of intensity, as Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan became megastars while Beyoncé and Post Malone entered the genre. This divide led to some upsets during awards ceremonies, and even Beyoncé was memorably surprised when she took home the country trophy last year. For the 2026 Grammys, a new split between “traditional country” and “contemporary country” was meant to address some hurt feelings—but though they may have made sense in theory, the biggest surprise is that these new categories are incredibly arbitrary in practice.
Wallen and Bryan both declined to submit their most recent albums for Grammy eligibility, and no further pop stars made an entry into the genre. So the divide is mainly one of vibes. Willie Nelson and his son Lukas Nelson are both on the traditional side. So is their friend and acolyte Margo Price. Considering their attitudes towards major-label Nashville, that all makes sense. Kelsea Ballerini and Eric Church wound up in a logical place on the contemporary side, too. But it’s hard to see how Tyler Childers is considered contemporary when similarly twangy artists Zach Top and Charley Crockett are not. And every Miranda Lambert album focuses on blowing up the binary between traditional and pop country, so either outcome wouldn’t feel quite right for her. In the end, there’s not a bad album in this bunch—even Jelly Roll’s occasionally baffling country-rap extravaganza Beautifully Broken is worth a listen—so I suppose I can be satisfied knowing that there will be two big country moments on stage during this February’s show. —Erin Vanderhoof
How about that: Timothée Chalamet just earned his first Grammy nomination for the music of A Complete Unknown. The actor’s rise to the Grammys has been fated ever since that viral “Statistics” video where he first showcased his musical prowess. As a big fan of Bob Dylan, I was very excited for the Dylan Disease (no one calls it that) to take over a new generation thanks to Chalamet’s amazing portrayal of him in the film. Now I implore the Recording Academy, on behalf of all fans of Muad’Dib, to do what the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has failed to do and make sure Chalamet does not go home empty-handed that night. When Vogue recently asked if Chalamet would ever return to television, he responded with a simple “No.” That said, an EGOT could still be in his future if Emmy voters agree to revisit his 2012 stint in Homeland and reward him with a retroactive award. (They do that, right?) —WI
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Wengel Gemu, Wisdom Iheanyichukwu, Brandon Leung, Chris Murphy, John Ross, Abigail Sylvor Greenberg, Daniela Tijerina, Erin Vanderhoof, Kase Wickman
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From Ricky Martin to Mariah Carey, Sunday’s annual music awards show made a case for the network’s pivotal role in the 20th century—and less of a case for its relevance in the 21st.
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Erin Vanderhoof
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No record deal, manager, or publicist?
No Gold or Platinum certification from the RIAA?
No music videos on YouTube with 1,000,000,000+ views?
You can still win a Grammy, the most prestigious award in the music industry. Yes, you!
An impressive number of independent musicians win Grammy awards every year, and in this step-by-step guide, I’ll show you how to:
But before we explore the chronological steps you should take to win a Grammy, here are a few big-picture things to keep in mind.
You need to have realistic expectations.
The specific awards you probably think of whenever you hear “Grammys” — Best New Artist, Album of the Year, etc. — yeah, those are likely NOT the awards you’ll be able to win as an independent musician.
The Grammy Awards process is a small industry unto itself, with its own customs and networks of influence. And to put it simply: If it’s an award they announce on TV, that statuette is probably going home with a major label artist.
However, there are many other awards that are given out earlier in the night before the prime-time TV broadcast. Aim for THOSE awards!
There are a lot of reasons you might want a Grammy, or even a Grammy nomination.
Validation. Your friends, family, fans, and the wider industry may take greater notice of your talents and achievements.
A celebration. Of your own hard work, and the support your fans have shared with you.
A resumé-builder that opens new revenue opportunities, better concerts, collaborations, or placements.
But be warned…
Whenever you want your music to gain recognition, you need to get the attention of the right people. That usually takes music marketing.
In the case of the Grammys, you’re trying to convince a different kind of person to love your music. You’re not looking for fans in the traditional sense.
Instead, you want the attention of voting members of the Recording Academy — most of whom are fellow music-makers and industry professionals.
That’s going to take work. In the form of a “For Your Consideration” campaign that I’ll outline later in this article.
There are a lot of details, eligibility timelines, and deadlines. If you want to win a Grammy, you have to follow all the rules in the official rulebook.
One big one: You CANNOT ask someone to vote for you!
Given that the Grammy process involves marketing, networking, and possible advertising or PR expenses, it’s not for everyone. It can take a lot of time and money.
It’s also likely not for artists who are at the start of their careers. “Best New Artist,” of course, goes to a debut act. But when you’re aiming for a more niche, genre-based award, you are more likely to win as an independent artist if you have a resumé of success and a positive reputation among your peers.
Lastly, you should be making great music. A mediocre album is not going to garner the respect (and votes) of Grammy members. So make sure it’s a record you’re extremely proud of, with great songs, arrangements, performances, production, and mixing. Plus a great story. The story is often how you’ll attract initial attention for the music.
What most people know of the Grammys is what they see on TV once a year. But there’s a lot that happens in the year prior, building up to the big night.
The process begins long before the awards show when members of the Recording Academy, media companies, and record labels submit entries — about 20,000 entries per year — during the OEP (online entry process).
According to the Grammy’s website:
Each submission is then screened by The Recording Academy Awards Department to confirm its eligibility.
After that, genre-based screening committees — comprised of 300+ experts — review submissions to place them in the appropriate category.
These groups are not making critical or merit-based judgements at this point; they are simply ensuring the submissions are eligible and properly categorized.
Following that step, there’s the “First Round” ballot. In this first round of voting, members of the Academy in good standing (meaning they’ve paid their dues) go through entries in their respective fields of expertise, helping to determine the five finalists in each category.
These voting members are, according to the Grammys:
Active creative professionals involved in the recording process, such as performers, songwriters, producers, and engineers.
Each voting member can vote in up to ten categories across three genre fields, plus the six categories in the “General Field,” including:
If you’d like to become a voting member of the Recording Academy, go HERE.
After the First Round voting determines the five finalists in each category, there is a final voting process to decide who wins the Grammy.
Again, members are directed to vote only in categories where they are peers of the nominees and have relevant genre-expertise.
The voting is managed by a firm (Deloitte & Touche LLP) who keeps the results secret until the day of the Grammy Awards, when sealed envelopes are delivered with the names of the winners.
NOTE: Certain “Craft” categories that recognize a very specialised field of expertise have a slightly different voting process, so for all the details, see the Grammy rulebook.
Those envelopes bring us to the final step in the process…
The recording with the most votes wins! In the case of ties (pretty rare), the tied nominees are both considered winners.
Nominees receive a medallion and certificate. Winners are given the Grammy award statuette, as long as they agree to these terms.
The next show — the 67th Annual Grammy Awards — is happening on February 2, 2025 at the Crypto.com Area in LA. It will also air live on CBS.
Most of the awards are presented BEFORE the televised portion, but you can live stream the whole thing on live.grammy.com and YouTube.
Any recording that wins an award in 2025 will have entered the online submission process the prior summer (between July 17, 2024 – August 30, 2024), and will have had a release date between September 16, 2023 and August 30, 2024.
Okay, now that you’re familiar with the process at a high level, let’s give you a chronological action plan.
(24 months before Grammy submission, if possible)
Not only will this help you to later submit your album for Grammy consideration, it’ll also give you an insider’s look at the entire process.
As a voting member, you’ll better understand the timelines and requirements, and you’ll have first-hand knowledge of what gets the attention of voting members. This will empower you to run a more effective “For Your Consideration” campaign a year or two down the line.
(12-24 months before Grammy submission)
(6-18 months before submission)
(6-12 months before submission)
(3-12 months before Grammy submission)
(During the next OEP)
(Once you’ve submitted your music)
Time to make voting members aware of your music, and that you’d like them to listen and take it into consideration as they prepare to cast their first-round ballots. To begin:
It can be public (for convenience), but should NOT be accessible via the top navigation bar. In other words, you want voting members to easily access the page, but it’s not meant for fans.
The page should contain:
The page should NOT:
Read that last one again. You CANNOT ask voting members to vote for you. You can’t bribe them. No gifting. No vote-trading. You can only ask them to CONSIDER your music.
And although this guide gives pretty thorough directions, it’s always advisable to read the latest Grammy rulebook each year, because there may be other stipulations about whether or not you can mention sales numbers or streaming metrics, etc.
(Starting in October)
You want relevant voting members to see your release. If you have an experienced publicist, they’ll be a huge help.
Then it’s time to monitor voting, cross your fingers, and keep getting the FYC word out there!
(November – January)
You’ve been watching for those nominations. Did you receive one? If so, it’s not time to rest. It’s time to step on the gas for your final awareness campaign leading up to the awards show.
(February)
If you can attend the Grammys in person, do it.
If not, there may be Grammy-related events in your area.
But c’mon, if you’re nominated for a Grammy, get to that awards ceremony to represent your work and achievement!
Have a brief speech ready in case you win. Don’t tempt the sound-person to start playing music over your rambling remarks.
Whether you win or not, this moment is worth celebrating.
This checklist only spans two full years. Easy. Haha.
Hopefully it’s been a good overview of everything it takes to qualify for a Grammy.
Cleary you need to plan in advance and be actively engaged in the Recording Academy.
So the best place to begin your Grammy journey is on the Grammy website itself.
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Chris Robley
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The Band Perry burst onto the scene 14 years ago with some of the best country songs of all time. Now, the talented Kimberly Perry plays Rams Head in Annapolis, Maryland on Sunday night.
WTOP’s Jason Fraley previews Kimberly Perry at Rams Head in Annapolis (Part 1)
The Band Perry burst onto the scene 14 years ago with some of the best country songs of all time.
Now, the talented Kimberly Perry brings her first solo tour to Rams Head in Annapolis, Maryland, on Sunday night.
“I was super excited to be invited up to Rams Head,” Perry told WTOP. “We’re kind of weaving this tour and this stop in Maryland as part of the CMT Next Women of Country tour for me, so I’m gonna be playing that set list. It’s a little bit of everything. I got to put out my first body of solo work last October called ‘Superbloom,’ so I’ll be playing songs off ‘Superbloom’ and of course, all the hits from The Band Perry. It would not be a set without those.”
Perry’s showcase is a fitting grand finale for the third annual Annapolis Songwriters Festival, which will welcome such prolific singer-songwriters as Marc Cohn, Lee Brice and Natalie Hemby throughout the entire weekend.
“Those are some of my very favorite songwriters,” Perry said. “In fact, Natalie Hemby was one of my first co-writes in Nashville when I started writing in the town. The amazing songwriters that come from Nashville, it’s just a special community and anytime we get to break it down on stage, the stories behind the songs and the atmosphere of how we wrote it in the room that day, getting to tell that and then play the song is such a cool experience.”
Born in the country-famous town of Jackson, Mississippi, in 1983, Kimberly grew up listening to the radio and singing around the house with her brothers and future Band Perry members Reid (bass) and Neil (mandolin).
“The very first foundation was we did listen to music a lot as a family,” Perry said. “Every Saturday night, our parents would listen to public radio and in Jackson, Mississippi, every Saturday night they had two hours of bluegrass, so our dad would grill some steaks, our mom would make potato salad and we would all sit around and listen to these two hours of bluegrass together, so that was my first love of country and Americana music.”
The siblings performed everywhere from shrimp boils to birthday parties before eventually moving to East Tennessee. Soon, they were discovered by Garth Brooks’ manager Bob Doyle to sign with Republic Nashville for their self-titled debut album “The Band Perry” (2010), produced by Paul Worley and Nathan Chapman.
The breakthrough album featured the smash No. 1 hit “If I Die Young,” an instant classic of visual storytelling, melancholic mood and turns of phrase as Kimberly belts the stinging chorus, “The sharp knife of a short life, well, I’ve had just enough time,” followed by the haunting coda, “Funny when you’re dead how people start listening.”
“It’s so true, right? So many artists have become massive post their death,” Perry said. “I wrote ‘If I Die Young’ at our home in East Tennessee. For whatever reason that day, I was daydreaming about life and all the things I wanted to come of it, but I also wanted to be content with where things were in that very moment. ‘If I Die Young’ is ironic in its title about making the most of every moment because you never know what’s gonna happen.”
The song won CMA Awards for Single of the Year and New Artist of the Year, while earning a Grammy nomination for Best Country Song (ultimately losing to Lady A’s “Need You Now”). They would return to the Grammys a year later nominated for Best New Artist in a 2012 class that included Nicki Minaj, J. Cole, Skrillex and Bon Iver.
Their second album “Pioneer” (2013) delivered “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely,” “Chainsaw” and a pair of No. 1 hits with “Done” and “Better Dig Two.” The latter was a stomping romp written by Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally and Trevor Rosen with a sassy Old West chorus, “If you go before I do, I’m gonna tell the gravedigger that he better dig two.”
“‘Better Dig Two’ is so cool,” Perry said. “I’ll never forget the first time they played that song for us, inviting us to record it. I was like ‘100%.’ … When we recorded ‘Pioneer,’ we had advanced from playing smaller rooms and theaters to arenas and amphitheaters, so we knew we wanted a bigger-sounding project with more country-rock elements, so ‘Better Dig Two’ felt like the perfect thread between our first album and where we were headed.”
In 2015, The Band Perry won their first ever Grammy for Best Country Duo Performance for their cover of Glen Campbell’s classic “Gentle on My Mind” for the Oscar-nominated documentary “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me.”
“That was such an amazing experience,” Perry said. “They invited us to record ‘Gentle on My Mind,’ which to this day is one of the most beautifully-written lyrics of any song of all time. … We had played it a year before at the Grammys when Glen Campbell got his Lifetime Achievement Award. … We looked out during rehearsal in the front row and Paul McCartney was sitting there recording our rehearsal because he’s a huge fan of Glen Campbell.”
Beyond the early career accolades, one of Perry’s defining experiences came when the band delivered a genre-bending performance on CMT’s “Crossroads” with Fall Out Boy, taking turns playing each other’s hits.
“Honestly, that’s one of my favorite things that we ever got to do,” Perry said. “Those guys are just sweethearts. Before you even see the taping, we got to do two days of rehearsal, just hanging out, learning each other’s music. They had a great love for the country songwriting format, so I love those ‘Crossroads.’ If in the future I ever get to do it again, I just can’t wait. I was such a blast and I think our appetite was wet by that with pop music.”
After that, The Band Perry began experimenting in crossover pop music, delivering singles like “Live Forever,” “Comeback Kid” and “Stay in the Dark” that would wind up on their digitally-released EP “Coordinates” (2018).
“Creatively we were in a season at that time that felt like, ‘Hey, let’s explore,’” Perry said. “It was never our intention to let go of country, but sometimes on the pop side, you have a lot people interested in growing your sound then sometimes it feels like you’re getting a little too far from home plate. It’s been really cool since 2020, Reid, Neil and I have been individually and collectively writing songs that brought us back home to country.”
In March 2023, The Band Perry announced that it would be taking a “creative break as a group” to “focus on our individual creative pursuits.” This allowed Kimberly to release her first solo EP “Bloom” (2023) that would eventually expand into “Superbloom” (2023), which released last fall with the single “If I Die Young Pt. 2.”
“With my project ‘Superbloom,’ it was really me with my solo voice getting to go like, ‘Hey, I’ve had such an amazing journey, I’ve gotten to explore a lot,’” Perry said. “I’m all for experimentation, there’s a lot of country artists doing it now and vice versa, a lot of pop artists experiencing country, but for me, it’s just always wonderful to know where the pillow is warm and where home is: that’s country music and being a country singer-songwriter.”
WTOP’s Jason Fraley previews Kimberly Perry at Rams Head in Annapolis (Part 2)
Listen to our full conversation on the podcast below:
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© 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
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Jason Fraley
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WTOP caught up with Michael and Tanya Trotter, also known as The War & Treaty, ahead of their big homecoming concert in Downtown D.C. this Thursday.
WTOP’s Jason Fraley previews The War & Treaty at The Hamilton (Part 1)
They began singing in D.C., met in Maryland and got married before becoming Grammy nominees for Best New Artist.
Now, the acclaimed husband-and-wife duo The War & Treaty come home to perform live at The Hamilton on Thursday night.
WTOP caught up with Michael and Tanya Trotter ahead of their big homecoming concert in Downtown D.C.
“We’ve done the Grammys on the Hill there and we really love that event, so we’re really excited to come back with our show,” Tanya Trotter told WTOP.
“It’s always a homecoming. It’s always wonderful to come back home and see family but to see fans too. This is our first time coming home to such a big crowd. We’ve played a lot of places but haven’t even had an opportunity to play Maryland, so we’re very excited to be able to come home.”
Born Tanya Blount in D.C., she attended Morgan State University in Baltimore before starring in the movie “Sister Act 2″ (1993) and recording the solo album “Natural Thing” (1994) with R&B hits like “Through the Rain.” Meanwhile, Michael was born in Cleveland, Ohio, but moved to D.C. as a teenager in the mid-1990s.
“I don’t want to impose or impede on Tanya’s thunder, but I moved to D.C. in 1996. And I went to Shaw Junior High School — one of the greatest marching bands of all time at that moment under the direction of Dr. [Wesley] Hoover,” Michael said. “In fact, I was the 1996 D.C. Futurefest Singing Competition winner that the mayor put on.”
The two met in Prince George’s County, fell in love and got married in 2011, together raising a son named Legend Michael Trotter, named after their famous touring mate John Legend.
“I was doing a back-to-school event for kids in Laurel, Maryland, so we met right there on Laurel Lake,” Tanya said.
“The first song we ever wrote together was making a baby,” Michael said. “That’s our biggest No. 1 hit: Legend.”
After moving to Michigan, they released their first album “Love Affair” (2016) under the name of Trotter & Blount before eventually changing their name to The War & Treaty to brilliantly capture war and peace all in one name.
“We were arguing about changing the name,” Michael said. “The treaty was that we won’t do that again.”
Their first album under The War & Treaty banner was “Healing Tide” (2018), which catapulted them to win Emerging Artist of the Year at 2019 Americana Music Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
“It’s crazy because not even a year before that, we went to the award show, we didn’t have anything, we didn’t have any money, we were broke just sitting in the audience, someone had given us tickets, and we looked at each other to hold each other’s hands and we were like, ‘Man, do you think one day we could actually be on this stage?’ And it happened for us, so when we ended up winning the award, I was crying like a baby.”
The following year, they won Artist of the Year by Folk Alliance International thanks to their second album “Hearts Town” (2020), including the powerful song “Five More Minutes” based on Michael’s PTSD as an Iraq War veteran.
“We ended up getting services at the V.A. in Maryland and when we went to Michigan he started therapy again,” Tanya said.
“One day at home he was having a hard time, I noticed he wasn’t himself, and I looked at him [and said], ‘Give me five more minutes to change your mind.’ I didn’t know he was contemplating suicide. … He gave himself five more minutes and that story has changed a lot of lives. As he’d say, he’s still living in that five more minutes.”
In 2021, they performed U2’s “Pride (In the Name of Love)” with Dierks Bentley at Academy of Country Music Awards, paving the way for their third album “Lover’s Game” (2023) with the song “That’s How Love Is Made.”
The album earned the duo two Grammys nominations, including Best American Roots Song for “Blank Page” and Best New Artist, nominated alongside such rising stars as Ice Spice, Jelly Roll and Victoria Monét.
“That album afforded us into rooms and conversations that we only dreamed of,” Michael said.
“It also put us in a room where we could be discovered by Zach Bryan for this collaboration ‘Hey Driver.’ That’s been awesome. … We’ve been in writing rooms with Miranda Lambert, it’s just been a wonderful time for us and it’s been a wonderful time in country music to be able to be accepted and embraced as country music artists and stars.”
Indeed, The War & Treaty recently became the first Black act to ever be nominated for Duo of the Year by both the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music Association as the genre continues to evolve.
“Everything is changing all around us,” Tanya said. “The internet is changing, country music is changing, Americana is changing. We’re just happy to be a part of the journey and the people setting trends and changing genres.”
Next, Hollywood is knocking on their door with an upcoming biopic in the works.
“I’ll tell you this much, within four weeks now we should be going into casting,” Michael said.
WTOP’s Jason Fraley previews The War & Treaty at The Hamilton (Part 2)
Listen to our full conversation on the podcast below:
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© 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
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Jason Fraley
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The music community, specifically fans of gospel music, are mourning the tragic loss of some of their own.
On Friday afternoon, three members of The Nelons, a Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame quartet, were killed in a plane crash in Wyoming.
In a statement, family member Autumn Nelon Streetman, whose parents and sister were victims of the crash, and who is pregnant with a baby son, shared: “As many of you have heard by now, my father and mother, Jason and Kelly Nelon Clark, along with my sister, Amber and brother-in-law, Nathan, as well as our dear friends Melodi Hodges, Larry and Melissa Haynie were involved in a tragic plane crash on Friday,” adding: “Thank you for the prayers that have been extended already to me, my husband, Jamie, and our soon-to-be-born baby boy, as well as Jason’s parents, Dan and Linda Clark.”
“We appreciate your continued prayers, love and support as we navigate the coming days.”
Here’s what we know so far.
The three members of The Nelons killed were co-founder Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband Jason Nelon Clark, and their daughter, Amber Nelon Kistler.
There were a total of seven passengers, none of whom survived; in addition to the three Nelon family members, the other passengers included pilot Larry Haynie, his wife Melissa Haynie, assistant of the band and family friend Melodi Hodges, and Amber’s husband, Nathan Kistler.
© InstagramLarry was piloting a single engine turboprop Pilatus PC-12/47E, and the crash happened at around 1pm local time in Campbell County, Wyoming, near Gillette. They were on their way to Alaska to join the Gaither Homecoming Cruise.
MORE: Clint Eastwood’s partner Christina Sandera’s cause of death at 61 revealed
A team of investigators was set to visit the site by Saturday. The National Transportation Safety Board spokesperson Keith Holloway said: “The aircraft is in a remote location and once they gain access, they will begin documenting the scene, examining the aircraft,” after which it will be recovered and “taken to a secure facility for further evaluation.”
© InstagramMORE: Clint Eastwood’s partner Christina Sandera’s cause of death at 61 revealed
He further shared that while a preliminary report on the crash is expected in about a month, a complete report with the probable cause of the crash could take up to two years to finalize. After Kobe Bryant, along with his daughter Gianna Bryant and seven other people, died in a helicopter crash near Calabasas, California in January 2020, it wasn’t until February of the following year that an investigation came to an end, which found the pilot at fault for the crash after he flew into clouds in violation of federal rules.
© InstagramThe Nelons were a Grammy-nominated gospel group, who were inducted into the Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame in 2016. Jason, Kelly, Autumn and Amber comprised the group, Amber now being the only surviving member of the band.
They had over 50 upcoming scheduled concerts and performances, through January of next year, the nearest being a performance on Sunday, August 4 in Carrollton, Georgia.
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Beatriz Colon
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Charlie Colin, a founding member and former bassist of the band Train, has died at age 58, his sister confirmed to CBS News.
Paul Hawthorne via Getty
The details surrounding his death were scarce, but TMZ reported the musician slipped in the shower and fell while housesitting in Brussels, Belgium. At the time of his death, his social media profile said he was living in Belgium.
“He was THE sweetest guy and what a handsome chap,” Train said on social media. Let’s make a band that’s the only reasonable thing to do. His unique bass playing a beautiful guitar work helped get folks to notice us in SF and beyond. I’ll always have a warm place for him in my heart. I always tried to pull him closer but he had a vision of his own. You’re a legend, Charlie. Go charm the pants off those angels.”
Founded in San Francisco in 1993 by charismatic frontman Pat Monahan, Rob Hotchkiss, Jimmy Stafford and Scott Underwood, Train shot to stardom in 2001 with their album and single “Drops of Jupiter.” The song and album garnered the band Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Best Rock Performance.
Colin left the band in 2003 due to substance abuse, according to Variety, but continued to perform in other bands, including with former bandmates Hotchkiss and Underwood.
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It seems like there’s a new “emerging artist” every day. TikTok viral hits become international earworms overnight, propelling artists to instant, but fleeting, fame. It makes sense then, that artists with staying power have often toiled away for years before achieving mainstream success.
It’s easy to believe that, these days, the music industry values virality above all. But the artists shaping music as we know it rarely emerge from nowhere.
Just look at the
2024 Grammy Award Winner for Best New Artist, Victoria Monét. Monét released five EPs before her debut studio album, Jaguar II (2023), and its lead single, “On My Mama,” gave her commercial success. But before Monét’s solo career took off, she was a frequent collaborator of Ariana Grande. She’s also worked on songs and albums for artists like Nas, Travis Scott, Blackpink, Fifth Harmony, T.I., Lupe Fiasco, Chrisette Michele, Brandy, Coco Jones, Chloe x Halle, and more. Over a decade in the industry prepared her to become the verifiable star she is now.
Some of our other
artists to watch for 2024 have experienced similar tenures in the industry before finally garnering long-term success. Sabrina Carpenter started her career with Disney and has finally become the popstar she was born to be with Emails I Can’t Send — her fifth studio album. Same with queer trailblazer Renee Rapp, who starred in Mean Girls: The Musical on Broadway before landing the role in the film adaptation and bursting onto the music scene with her debut album Snow Angel.
What sets these artists apart from the bright but brief flames sparked on TikTok is their dedication to their artistry and self-image. Years of learning how to perform, sharpen their sound, and crafting their public persona prime them for impact and longevity. It takes time to hone lasting talent. And time makes it more satisfying when a musician or a band finally punches through to the mainstream.
Many artists thrive in niche subcultures playing to curated crowds. Those are some of my favorites — there’s nothing like a basement show packed shoulder-to-shoulder with a small group of people who share your private music obsession. But the artists that shape music as we know it today are coming from all genres. They manage to transcend their niches and add to the collective conversation in a fresh way. But how do they do it? And how do we know which artists are changing music in real-time?
Everyone fancies themselves a music critic these days. I’m not immune to this. I watch deep dives on my favorite artists on TikTok, curate my
Spotify playlists like they’re museums, and wax poetic about why my favorite albums deserved Grammys.
Here at Popdust, we know a thing or two about emerging artists. Which is why we went down South to Austin, Texas for SXSW to catch some of this year’s most exciting acts in person.
SXSW 2024 was bigger and better than ever. Its crowning jewel is the Rolling Stone Future of Music Showcase, which brings together the buzziest and best music acts across genres. The four-night event caps off each evening at SX, bringing an array of artists and audiences together in Austin, Texas.
What an ideal compliment to the dive bar shows and daytime music showcases. But this high-octane event is more than just a flashy festival. It’s a great predictor of the artists who will prove themselves influential in the coming years. “Artists of tomorrow,” as
Rolling Stone likes to call them.
Last year’s performers included artists like Coco Jones, Remi Wolf, Chlöe Bailey, Blondshell, and others who have only become even bigger stars over the past year.
After this year’s lineup, wiill
Rolling Stone’s penchant for successful predictions be proven again? Given the record-level excitement for the event, all signs point to yes.
With 40,000 fans RSVP’ing for the ACL Live event, Austin’s iconic Moody Theater was packed. Each night, fans lined up for hours for a chance to make it into the venue — some for over 14 hours — with the line for Música Mexicana superstar Peso Pluma stretching for blocks and blocks. Sponsors like StockX, ~Pourri, and Bacardi also put on activations and events to celebrate the music and the fans.
With this much fan excitement, the lineup simply
had to deliver. Genres included urbano, Southern rock, Afrobeats, hip-hop, amapiano, soul, funk, and good old indie-alt.
Here is each day’s lineup:
Take note — you’ll be seeing these names everywhere soon.
While all of the artists highlighted at this year’s
Rolling Stone Future of Music Showcase are sure to be somewhat influential, we’re most excited to see the trajectory of the headliners who are changing the game right now.
Here’s a recap of their performances and why, if you’re not already a fan, you will be soon.
Texas’s own Teezo Touchdown headlined opening night. You’ve probably heard him on “RunItUp” by Tyler, the Creator; “Modern Jam” by Travis Scott; or “Amen” by Drake. After years of high-level features, he finally released his debut album
How Do You Sleep at Night? in September 2023. On stage at SXSW, it’s clear that Teezo’s experience opening for Tyler, the Creator in 2022, and Travis Scott last year has contributed mightily to his magnetic stage presence. Running across the stage brandishing a microphone wrapped in a flower bouquet, Teezo’s energy was infectious. And the crowd ate it up.
His blend of rock, rap, and pop music is telling of his generation — one who resists genres and embraces the fluidity of form. He also shared a heartwarming story about how he busked at SXSW in 2018. Look at him now! He recently announced a single “MASC” with Doja Cat and A$AP Rocky for Doja’s
Scarlet 2 Claude Deluxe album. Touchdown’s only getting hotter and hotter.
Mexico’s favorite rockstar headlined Night 2. After earning the longest lines in SXSW history, his performance proved well worth the wait. Peso Pluma’s signature brand of “música mexicana,” took the crowd to exciting heights. His youthful energy filled the theater — especially when he joined the audience in the pit. It was a sight to behold.
Dubbed the “Mexican Mick Jagger,” the Gen Z star will release his new album this summer. His undeniable charisma is embedded in his music, earning him a fanatic base of loyal listeners and a chokehold on the music scene. Just wait, he’ll soon transcend boundaries beyond Latinx Pop and hit everyone’s speakers this summer.
Flo Milli had a lot to celebrate as she headlined Night 3 literally as her second album dropped. Iconic behavior. She took the crowd through familiar favorites, her new songs, and premiered a new remix featuring Cardi B and SZA — not bad co-signs for an emerging artist.
I saw Flo Milli perform in 2020, and watching her on the giant Moody Theater stage was like watching her come alive on a whole new level. After her song “Never Lose Me” got massive attention last year, Flo Milli is poised to be one of music’s next It-Girls. Her versatility is thrilling and admirable, so is her personality and signature tag — if you know, you know.
Like Flo Milli, I’ve seen Faye Webster before. Not once, not twice, but three times. The first was in 2017 — how can it be six and a half years ago? My penchant for “sad girl music” drew me to Webster’s artfully whiny voice and nostalgic yearning. But the Atlanta native is more than another girl whining about her breakups (even though, from Taylor Swift to Olivia Rodrigo, I eat them all up).
Webster was signed to a rap label and takes lyrical influence from hip-hop and blues artists. She has an energetic stage presence that matches her quirky sound that kept the crowd moving all throughout her set.
From the sultry sweetness of her TikTok viral hit “Kingston” to the high kicks and guitar riffs pulled off during songs like “I Think I’m Funny Ha Ha” and “In A Good Way,” Faye proves herself to be music’s ultimate cool girl. Rockstar and cry-inducing crooner in one? It’s giving Billie Eilish.
The future of music, according to Rolling Stone, is genre-fluid, youthful, and packed with energy. It also has one important factor: the ability to connect to an audience. Whether it’s on stage of through headphones, all the emerging artists have managed to connect with their ideal audiences and stay there thanks to their dedicated artistry and unique perspectives.
I’m excited to see what all these acts have in store for us next. And for
Rolling Stone Future of Music Showcase at SXSW 2025!
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Jai Phillips
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There’s the insufferable worker: has a classic novel folded as they lean against the subway rails, barely cognizant of the fact that they could be launched onto their neighbor at any moment. Yes, they’re waiting for someone to ask them if they truly enjoy the discourse of the Charles Dickens book they’re toting.
Then there’s the head down, hating-the-world commuter who just needs to get to their destination in one piece. Do not make eye contact, you’ll turn to stone.
…And then there’s me: the off-duty DJ. At any moment, I’m hoping someone stops and asks me what song I’m listening to for their TikTok’s. I’m bobbing my head, there’s a little skip to my step, and I’m rocking out at all times. I like to think of myself as the pedestrian version of Baby Driver.
Music gets me out of bed and helps me hype myself up for work. It’s the background noise as I get ready to go out each weekend. It’s also part of my job. I should have a black card Spotify membership at this point.
So, as we know, I spend the week gathering up all the new music that’s released every Friday and compiling a playlist that is so irresistible you’ll spend the weekend replaying it. If you’re looking for new music, well, you’ve come to the right place.
We’ve got another week filled with fresh tracks you won’t wanna miss. Without further ado, let’s get listening!
“Saturn” – SZA
GRAMMY award winner, SZA, is fresh off her SOS album: a thrilling sophomore addition to her no-skips, no-miss collection of music. She’s gearing up to release the deluxe reissue of the album titled, Lana, and “Saturn” is her first submission. It’s your classic, dreamy SZA sound with ethereal beats and longing vocals.
Singing about how she doesn’t belong on this planet, how life is better on Saturn – where none of this matters. It’s about the sheer feeling of escapism that overwhelms you from time to time…and it gets us excited for what comes next.
“Planet” – Aidan Bissett
Aidan Bissett has a unique way of combining rock and pop to create an earworm-worthy single. Alongside his EP, Supernova, Bissett releases “Planet” – a song about finding inspiration in the most unlikely places. Written after being ghosted, he touches on real-life experience to produce yet another banger in his already impressive discography.
Begging for someone to “come back down to this earth”, Bissett bursts into the chorus lamenting how he’s wasting his time and unable to understand his partner…so she must be from another planet. It’s a softer edge to Bissett that works just as well as his upbeat songs.
“Proud” – SERGIO
When interviewing SERGIO a while ago, you could tell he was someone who had two things figured out: his sound, and how he wants to stay true to making music he loves. You can see this reflected in his new song, “Proud”, which emphasizes all the hard work he has put in to get to where he is now.
SERGIO’s voice is smooth, clean-cut, and soothing, gently guiding you throughout the song filled with catchy pop sounds and passionate lyrics. “Proud” is a perfect example of how SERGIO can make a song both relatable and unique all in one.
“All I Want” – Simi
Simi is a star in her own right: an actress, a songwriter, a singer, and a performer. She owns her own label, Studio Brat, which is where she’s releasing her next single, “All I Want” – and it’s every bit as fulfilling as the rest. An upbeat, encouraging song that is dedicated to finding love, Simi makes it all feel possible with this new single.
“All I Want” is her follow up to last year’s ballad, “Stranger”, which is an exemplification of her vocal range and songwriting ability. It’s rare to have someone who can do it all, but Simi seemingly does it with ease.
“Believe” – USHER
Fresh off a Super Bowl Halftime performance, USHER has had himself a year. An extended Vegas residency that draws A-list crowds (my roommate sat next to the Kardashian’s table), and now new music as the cherry on top of it all. “Believe” is everything you love about USHER: his traditional R&B sound, littered with vocal runs and sensual sounds.
“Believe” is your reminder that USHER isn’t going anywhere, any time soon. He looks as good as he did when he was performing “Somebody To Love” with Justin Bieber, and he sounds even better.
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