Since the dawn of humanity, music has existed to serve a variety of purposes- to worship religious symbols, to express feelings, to tell stories; the list goes on. Fast forward to the present day, where not only is music still alive and kicking, but people are able to make careers off of it. It is to recognize those musicians that the Grammy Awards exist. Feb. 1, 2026 marks the 68th time that the Grammys will be handed out, and it’s all happening in Los Angeles. Since I decided to share some of my Game Awards predictions a while back, I figured I’d give the Grammys a shot and make some predictions.
This year’s field is full of talent being recognized, with a massive 497 nominations across 95 categories, filtered into 12 fields based on genre. While I plan on making predictions for all categories, I have my eyes on the “Big Four,” which are the four biggest categories not just in the General Field, but at the ceremony as a whole. Leading off is Record of the Year, which honors a song’s team and the impact it left. Kendrick Lamar currently holds the title with “Not Like Us,” and he’s in the running again with “luther,” a collaboration with SZA. This time, however, I think someone else is taking the award; that someone being Lady Gaga with “Abracadabra.” The song blends 2000s pop with today’s issues for a musical battle cry against creative pressure and one’s inner critics. On top of that, with a team composed of three Grammy nominated producers (Lady Gaga included), a team of mixers with 40+ years of combined experience, and the legendary Randy Merill as a mastering engineer, I think this Grammy is going home with Gaga.
My next prediction is for the category of Song of the Year, which doesn’t focus on impact, but on the songwriter(s) and the composition of the song. This is a title that Kendrick Lamar also holds with “Not Like Us,” and he’s also in it with “luther,” but so is “Abracadabra.” In fact, every song from the Record of the Year are in the lineup, with one exception. “The Subway” by Chappell Roan was replaced in this category with “Golden” by HUNTR/X. HUNTR/X is a band from Netflix’s summer smash hit, KPop Demon Hunters, that features the singing voices of Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami. Coincidentally, “Golden” is also what I think has the best shot to win this. The movie’s success is a moot point here, but the song’s overall flow is very smooth, the lyrics are easy to understand the meanings of regardless of if you’ve seen the movie, the rhythm is catchy and the list goes on. HUNTR/X may be fiction, but the talent is very much real, and the Hunters will surely shine in the City of Angels.
Zooming out now, we have Album of the Year, which celebrates the best album that was released within the period of eligibility. Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” is currently the titleholder, but Queen B has no nominations to her name this year, guaranteeing a new winner for the category. And that winner, to me, is none other than Kendrick Lamar’s “GNX.” It seems to be a heavy favorite, and I can see why. “luther” is in the album, which is a close second to me in Song of the Year, but other hits like the rallying “tv off,” the much-anticipated “squabble up” and “peekaboo,” are all in the mix. Alongside that, some of the songs were written by Lamar himself, as well as one Mark Anthony Spears, better known as Sounwave, who has some nominations himself this year, and it’s all polished by Ruairi O’Flaherty, an LA-based audio master on the rise whose Grammy nominations span back to the 66th awards in 2024. I truly think that K-Dot will finally get to taste AOTY glory after losing his other six nominations.
To round out this article, I’m taking a look at the Best New Artist, which celebrates new artists on the rise within the eligibility period, a title currently held by Chappell Roan. With so many fresh faces coming out of the woodwork, each with their own unique talents, it was hard to make a pick for me, but I feel like Leon Thomas will walk away with this one. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because you may recognize him as Andre from the 2010s Nickelodeon show “Victorious.” A Brooklyn native, Thomas also did a lot of Broadway shows as a kid, as well as TV and music. He has worked as a songwriter, even earning himself a Grammy as one in 2024 for helping with SZA’s “Snooze,” which won Best R&B song. Thomas has two works on display this year- his album “MUTT” and his song “YES IT IS” are nominated, and with his multiple talents and creative history, the sky is beyond the limit for what Leon Thomas can do.
This article is just a slice of what you can expect to see at this year’s Grammys. Comedian Trevor Noah will host Music’s Biggest Night at the Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 1, at 7 P.M. Central over on CBS and on streaming platforms. With almost 500 nominations being cast and talent from all over the world coming together, one question remains- who will the Academy sing their praises to? Tune in to find out.