Grammy Awards 2026: A Big Night for Bad Bunny and Kendrick Lamar

IT was a repugn of Super trough halftime performers: The rapper Kendrick Lamar faced away against badness bunny girl for the biggest awards at the Grammys on Sunday.Lamar’s hit “Luther,” which includes a sample of the soul great Luther Vandross, won record of the year. He now has more Grammys than any other rapper and is one of the most decorated artists of all time. Bad Bunny took home the album of the year trophy, presented by Harry Styles, for “Debí Tirar Más Fotos”—marking the first time that an all-Spanish language album has won the top honor.Lamar paid tribute to Vandross in his acceptance speech, calling the singer “one of my favorite artists.” Bad Bunny dedicated his trophy “to all the people who had to leave their homeland, their country, to follow their dreams.”Billie Eilish was also awarded song of the year for “Wildflower,” while the U.K. Singer Olivia Dean won best new artist.Bad Bunny dominated the screen throughout the evening. He sparked one of the loudest cheers when he spoke out against ICE while accepting the award for best música urbana album.Because Bad Bunny is set for the Big Game next Sunday, he could not perform at the Grammys, and host Trevor Noah turned this into a running joke, repeatedly trying to convince the star to play one of his hits. Eventually Noah started singing Bad Bunny’s “DTMF,” finally getting him to belt a bit of the chorus as a brass section joined in. The final half-hour of the show was unexpectedly chaotic: When an amusingly muddled Cher presented the award for record of the year, which was supposed to go to Lamar, she said “the Grammy goes to Luther Vandross!”“I love live television,” Noah joked later.Here, highlights from the evening:Trevor Noah took his final bow as Grammys hostSunday marked Noah’s last time hosting the Grammys after six consecutive appearances. He steered the ceremony with a light touch, making cracks about the vast number of awards—“they’ve even got a category for best voicemail from your grandmother”—and the importance of live shows: “Without concerts, how would we find out which CEOs are having affairs on the jumbotron?”Noah often cheers on the stars in the crowd rather than making jokes at their expense. “I actually thought about writing a few jokes roasting you,” he told Lamar, setting up a quip about his 2024 rap-battle victory over Drake: “Then I remembered what you can do to light-skinned dudes from other countries.” Bad Bunny, Billie Eilish and other stars criticized ICEJustin Bieber, Billie Eilish, Kehlani and others wore black-and-white pins reading “ICE Out” on the red carpet, following a similar campaign in January at the Golden Globes. But Bad Bunny went a step further when he accepted the award for best música urbana album: “Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say ICE out,” he told the crowd, which cheered heartily in response.“We’re not savage,” Bad Bunny continued. “We’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.” When Eilish took the stage later in the night, she said, “no one is illegal on stolen land,” earning more cheers. And while the U.K. Singer Olivia Dean did not mention ICE during her acceptance speech, she also spoke out in defense of immigrants after being named best new artist.“I’m up here as the granddaughter of an immigrant,” Dean said. “I think those people deserved to be celebrated.”Justin Bieber returned to the Grammys stage in shiny boxersBieber’s first Grammys performance in four years was casual and bare-bones—at odds with the elaborate song-and-dance numbers that typically dominate awards shows. He took the stage without a band, shirtless in boxers, and opened by walking in a circle, strumming his guitar like he was practicing alone in his basement. He sang “Yukon,” from his Grammy-nominated “Swag” album, at times with his hands lodged in his armpits, as if he was hugging himself for warmth. When he finished, he simply wandered into the darkness offstage.Ozzy Osbourne, D’Angelo and Roberta Flack were memorialized in celebratory tributesAll-star lineups paid homage to Ozzy Osbourne, D’Angelo and Roberta Flack, all of whom died in 2025. Post Malone performed a thunderous version of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” with help from Slash and the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith. After all the gnashing riffs, Lauryn Hill sang a snatch of “Nothing Even Matters,” her tender 1998 duet with D’Angelo, the neo-soul savant who died in October. A flurry of guests, including Raphael Saadiq and Bilal, joined her to revisit other D’Angelo hits, and then another crop of powerhouse vocalists—Chaka Khan, John Legend, Lalah Hathaway—hit the stage to sing Roberta Flack classics.Hill’s comment at the start of the tribute was quietly wrenching: “D and I never got to do this on stage together,” she said.Here is a list of winners:Record of the YearWINNER: “Luther,” Kendrick Lamar, SZA“DTMF,” Bad Bunny“Manchild,” Sabrina Carpenter“Anxiety,” Doechii“Wildflower,” Billie Eilish“Abracadabra,” Lady Gaga“The Subway,” Chappell Roan“APT.,” Rosé and Bruno MarsAlbum of the YearWINNER: “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” Bad Bunny“Swag,” Justin Bieber“Man’s Best Friend,” Sabrina Carpenter“Let God Sort Em Out,” Clipse, Pusha T, Malice“Mayhem,” Lady Gaga“GNX,” Kendrick Lamar“Mutt,” Leon Thomas“Chromakopia,” Tyler, The CreatorSong of the YearWINNER: “Wildflower,” Billie Eilish“Abracadabra,” Lady Gaga“Anxiety,” Doechii“APT.,” Rosé and Bruno Mars“DTMF,” Bad Bunny“Golden [From “KPop Demon Hunters”],” HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami“Luther,” Kendrick Lamar, SZA“Manchild,” Sabrina CarpenterBest New ArtistWINNER: Olivia DeanKatseyeThe MaríasAddison RaeSombrLeon ThomasAlex WarrenLola YoungProducer of the Year, Non-classicalWINNER: CirkutDan AuerbachDijonBlake MillsSounwaveBest Pop Vocal AlbumWINNER: “Mayhem,” Lady Gaga“Swag,” Justin Bieber“Man’s Best Friend,” Sabrina Carpenter“Something Beautiful,” Miley Cyrus“I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 2),” Teddy SwimsBest R&B PerformanceWINNER: “Folded,” Kehlani“Yukon,” Justin Bieber“It Depends,” Chris Brown, Bryson Tiller“Mutt (Live From NPR’s Tiny Desk),” Leon Thomas“Heart Of A Woman,” Summer WalkerBest Country Solo PerformanceWINNER: “Bad As I Used To Be [From “F1 The Movie”],” Chris Stapleton“Nose On The Grindstone,” Tyler Childers“Good News,” Shaboozey“I Never Lie,” Zach Top“Somewhere Over Laredo,” Lainey WilsonBest Rap AlbumWINNER: “GNX,” Kendrick Lamar“Let God Sort Em Out,” Clipse, Pusha T, Malice“Glorious,” Glorilla“God Does Like Ugly,” JID“Chromakopia,” Tyler, The CreatorBest Latin Pop AlbumWINNER: “Cancionera,” Natalia Lafourcade“Cosa Nuestra,” Rauw Alejandro“Bogotá (Deluxe),” Andrés Cepeda“Tropicoqueta,” Karol G“¿Y Ahora Qué?,” Alejandro Sanz