The 2026 Grammy Awards — a Night of Emotion, Hope, and Big Performances

Though always a spectacle, the 2026 Grammy Awards went down as an exceptionally memorable night this year. The evening kicked off with a bold and beautiful turnout on this year’s red carpet, where Grammy alum and newcomers arrived on the carpet in creative and composed fits. On one end of the spectrum, Pharrell’s fab fitted pink velvet suit ditched a tie in favour of a dramatic necklace. Meanwhile, Sombr arrived in a reflective silver sequin suit that — whether intentional or not — couldn’t help but remind the elder millenials and Gen X in the room of some of Elton John’s iconic stage looks. Sombr would swap from this to a mirrored disco-ball suit in time for his performance alongside his fellow Best New Artist nominees. Despite Sombr’s captivating appearance, the Best New Artist title landed in the hands of Olivia Dean.

This carpet look was perhaps our first hint at the nostalgia vibe of the night, which was made clear as Sabrina Carpenter opened the awards with a retro-air-travel-themed performance of “Manchild”. This throwback energy continued to echo throughout the night, especially on the performance stage. Lady Gaga, John Legend, Bruno Mars, and Pharrell Williams (alongside Clipse) returned to the grammy stage in 2026, but the most memorable appearance was easily Canada’s own Justin Bieber. Delivering a stripped-down performance of his hit “Yukon”, Bieber ditched the oversized Balenciaga suit he’d worn on the red carpet, and took to the stage wearing only boxers, socks, and his guitar. Ignoring the sensationalism of this choice, the performance itself was raw, and almost haunting. For all the speculation that’s been floating around in recent years, it feels like Bieber is poised to make 2026 a strong year on stage.

Tyler The Creator also provided a memorable moment (or two) on the 2026 Grammy Awards stage, performing both “Thought I Was Dead” and “Sugar on My Tongue” in one of the more theatrical productions of the night. This came on the heels of his win of an all-new award at the Grammys: the award for Best Album Cover, given for his album Chromakopia.

Kendrick Lamar closed out the night with a strong showing, winning Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance (on Clipse’s song “Chains & Whips”), Best Rap Song, and Best Melodic Rap Performance. Album of The Year slipped through Lamar’s hands despite his other successes, landing with Bad Bunny for DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS as the 2026 Grammy Awards came to a close.

History has proven that musicians are consistently more vocal about the state of society and culture, and as artist after artist took to the stage to claim their respective awards, this remained especially true in 2026. Unlike this year’s Golden Globes, where most winners shied away from the state of the world, musicians consistently made their perspectives clear. That said, the real takeaway from these statements was not one of anger and despair, but rather one of unity, one of love, and one of hope. Bad Bunny, during his acceptance speech for Best Música Urbana Album, reminded us all that hate only makes hate stronger, and the only thing that can fight hate is love and unity. As Jelly Roll arrived to accept his award for Best Country Album, his thanks went to his faith, saying that he remembered being locked in his jail cell having only having a radio and a bible to keep him sane, and without both of those things he wouldn’t have survived.

These and other statements throughout the night provided a reminder to those at home that optimism is alive and well, and no matter one’s background or beliefs, that there is strength in us all. Music is with us through the highs and the lows, and by the sound of things, our beloved music scene is as strong as it’s ever been.

Feature Image: Tyler, The Creator performs onstage during the 68th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 01, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

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