Anti-ICE sentiment was the dominant theme of the ceremony. There are debates about how effective it is for celebrities to make political statements at awards shows—some might compare it to stars endorsing presidential candidates, seeing both as having little real impact. At last night’s Grammys, however, musicians didn’t need to convince anyone that ICE’s actions are morally wrong. Yet the sheer intensity and range of their statements were striking, reinforcing that this issue must stay at the forefront, no matter the setting.
Billie Eilish, winning Song of the Year for “Wildflower,” echoed a phrase common at anti-ICE protests: “No one is illegal on stolen land, and it’s just really hard to know what to say and what to do right now.” She added, “I feel really hopeful in this room, and I feel like we just need to keep fighting and speaking up and protesting, and our voices really do matter, and the people matter. ‘Fuck ICE’ is all I want to say, sorry.”
Kehlani, winning the first of two R&B awards for “Folded,” called for unity across the industry: “Together we’re stronger in numbers to speak against all the injustice going on in the world right now … I hope everybody’s inspired to join together as a community of artists, so I’mma leave this and say: fuck ICE.” Olivia Dean, named Best New Artist, stated with the same grace and quiet strength found in her music: “I’m up here as a granddaughter of an immigrant—I’m a product of bravery, and I think those people deserve to be celebrated.”
Bad Bunny’s speech was particularly powerful, filled with clarity and humanity: “ICE out. We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans,” he said. He continued, “The hate gets more powerful with more hate. The only thing that is more powerful than hate is love. Please, we need to be different. If we fight we have to do it with love. We don’t hate them … that’s the way to do it, with love. Don’t forget that, please.” For someone who had to cancel U.S. concerts last year over fears his fans would be targeted by ICE, extending love to the agents themselves is a remarkable example of taking the high road.
While there were a few anti-ICE comments and lapel pins at the Golden Globes from figures like Mark Ruffalo and Wanda Sykes, the Grammys delivered a much more vocal and collective protest. Hopefully, the Oscars will follow with similar energy.
Olivia Dean is being hailed as Britain’s next major pop star. The Best New Artist category has launched legendary British acts over the years—including the Beatles, Tom Jones, Sade, Amy Winehouse, Adele, and Dua Lipa—and based on the songwriting and performance on her breakthrough second album, The Art of Loving, Dean seems to be on a similar path. She was a deserving winner in a strong field, surpassing contenders like Addison Rae, Sombr, and Leon Thomas thanks to her ability to capture the full spectrum of human emotion, with all its unpredictability and wonder. The Art of Loving plays almost like a concept album, giving voice to every kind of love—from playful, teasing flirtation at the start of a relationship to the hurt and disbelief when it ends. That talent, combined with the effortless way she carries it, has propelled her to pop’s top tier. Released in September, the album wasn’t eligible this year, so expect to see her back on stage accepting more awards next February.
Could Kendrick Lamar soon become the greatest Grammy winner ever? The Recording Academy loves artists who blend intellectual musicianship and lyricism with commercial success, and has anyone done that better than Kendrick Lamar in the past decade? He added five more awards last night—allKendrick Lamar won four rap categories—including for his guest appearance on Clipse’s “Chains and Whips”—plus the biggest award of all, Record of the Year, for his Luther Vandross-sampling duet with SZA, “Luther.” That brings Lamar’s total Grammy count to 27, and he’s only 38. He was certainly deserving of every win here, with his album GNX showcasing every facet of his personality, from impish provocateur to ruminative romantic.
The Dalai Lama won his first Grammy for Meditations: The Reflections of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the Best Audiobook category. I’ll never forget one of the trippiest moments at Glastonbury, when Patti Smith brought the Dalai Lama on stage and led the crowd in singing “Happy Birthday” as he cut a cake with an enormous knife—a moment that surely left anyone microdosing mushrooms worried they’d taken too much. After appearing at the world’s greatest music festival, the 90-year-old has now gatecrashed the world’s greatest music awards. If he set his words to a few Goa trance chords, who knows—those New Age or Dance/Electronic categories could be his for the taking in 2027. The win already puts him among the top 10 oldest winners ever, though he still has a way to go to beat 97-year-old bluesman Pinetop Perkins.
On the performance front, Sabrina Carpenter delivered “Manchild” with her usual brilliant high camp, holding a dove while dressed like an airline pilot about to get a message from HR about uniform standards. Bruno Mars and Rosé gave a guitar-heavy stomp through “APT,” and Lady Gaga mashed synths while wearing an exploded wicker hat. There were heartfelt tributes to Ozzy Osbourne, D’Angelo, and Roberta Flack—though only a spoken tribute to Brian Wilson, which seemed to underplay him a bit, even if it came from Bruce Springsteen.
But the performance of the night was by Justin Bieber, performing “Yukon,” one of his greatest songs and a standout from his album Swag. Dressed in just shorts and socks, with a full-length mirror beside him, it looked like he’d just rolled out of bed at 11 a.m.—a confected anti-glamour, but brilliantly done. He built up the song’s riff live on guitar, looped it alongside drum pads, and let it run in the background, freeing him to focus on the vocals. On record they’re tight, but here they were loose and jazzy while keeping the funk.
American jazz fusion pianist Chick Corea, celebrated for his work with Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, and many others, is the most decorated jazz musician at the Grammys. Even after his death in 2021, he has extended his record, now with 29 awards—third only to Georg Solti and Beyoncé overall. His latest win is for Best Jazz Performance, for a live rendition of “Windows” recorded in 2020 and released last year, taken from his final tour with bassist Christian McBride and drummer Brian Blade. “Windows” is a composition from 1966, originally played with Mercer Ellington. More than half a century later, Corea still had the same bird-like inquisitiveness and instinct—making this a gorgeous and deserving winner, far from a sentimental posthumous nod. It was also a good night for sideman Christian McBride: alongside this nimble trio, his Christian McBride Big Band won Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album for Without Further Ado, Vol One, bringing his own winner tally to 11 overall.
In my pre-Grammy predictions, I thought Chris Stapleton just couldn’t end up winning Best Country Performance again—especially with a one-off song for the F1 movie that didn’t even chart on country or Hot 100 lists. Plus, its wild-eyed,The lyrics seem at odds with his reputation for emotional depth: “No one’s accusin’ me of sanity / I ain’t everybody’s cup of tea,” he sings, even though he sounds perfectly composed at the moment. Yet, here we are: that marks wins in four of the last five years for Stapleton, bringing his total Grammy count to 12.
The Cure won their first Grammy—and their second. While their albums Wish (1992) and Bloodflowers (2000) were each nominated for best alternative music album, the band had never won a Grammy until this year, when they took home two awards: Songs of a Lost World won best alternative music album, and Alone won best alternative music performance. These wins are richly deserved for an album and song with a somber, valedictory tone, bidding farewell to love, life, and an entire chapter of human history. The band missed the ceremony to attend the funeral of their multi-instrumentalist Perry Bamonte, who recently passed away at 65.
While there were no British nominees in the main four categories—record, song, or album of the year—other Brits performed well in other categories. Most excitingly, Lola Young beat out Justin Bieber, Sabrina Carpenter, Lady Gaga, and Chappell Roan to win best pop solo performance with Messy. Pop has long focused on relatable struggles, but Young reinvigorated this theme with a song that captures the frantic feeling of life slipping out of control. FKA twigs won best dance/electronic album, Cynthia Erivo won best pop duo/group performance with Ariana Grande for Wicked‘s Defying Gravity, and Yungblud won best rock performance for his live cover of Ozzy Osbourne’s Changes. While paying a heartfelt tribute to Ozzy alongside a tearful Sharon Osbourne, he declared, “Rock music’s coming back, watch out pop music, we’re gonna fucking get yer!” Raye also received a special award for social change for Ice Cream Man, her song about experiencing sexual harassment from a record producer.
Vampires defeated demons. The Recording Academy and the Oscars-deciding Academy sometimes align on best score awards, particularly with Ludwig Göransson, who achieved the double for both Black Panther and Oppenheimer and could do the same for Sinners after last night’s triumph. However, it was surprising to see Sinners win best compilation soundtrack for visual media, as KPop Demon Hunters—which produced two of last year’s biggest pop groups, Huntr/x and Saja Boys—seemed the surefire bet. But in a music industry wary of AI and keen to emphasize human-made music, perhaps it’s not surprising that the Academy rejected an animated performance, even if the vocal performances were brilliantly done. Huntr/x also lost out to Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in the best pop duo/group performance category.
Is Cirkut pop’s new superproducer? Cirkut, the Canadian musician Henry Walter, won his first producer of the year award, joining the (notoriously all-male) ranks of modern pop architects like Greg Kurstin, Max Martin, and Jack Antonoff. A protégé of Martin and Dr. Luke, he worked on hits such as Katy Perry’s Part of Me and Rihanna’s You Da One, played a key role in the Weeknd’s early career, and co-crafted his two Daft Punk collaborations. He went on to co-produce massive hits like Miley Cyrus’s Wrecking Ball but gradually distanced himself from his mentors. Initially, his sound was fairly generic and served the singers (such as Ava Max), but tracks like Sam Smith and Kim Petras’s Unholy embraced a trashy neo-electroclash aesthetic. This likely caught Lady Gaga’s attention, leading him to produce the entirety of the excellent Mayhem, which also won best pop album last night.He co-produced three tracks on Charli XCX’s “Brat,” skillfully bridging the gap between pop’s edgier artists and the mainstream. While there’s a risk of softening their distinctive raw qualities, this success offers him a greater opportunity to develop his own signature production style.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about the top 10 moments from the 2026 Grammys framed as questions a real person might ask
FAQs Top 10 Moments of the 2026 Grammys
1 What were the AntiICE protests at the Grammys about
A group of artists and activists used their red carpet interviews and acceptance speeches to call for the abolition of ICE protesting its policies and highlighting the experiences of immigrant families
2 Why was Justin Biebers performance considered a standout
Bieber delivered a raw emotionally charged medley that transitioned from his early pop hits to tracks from his critically acclaimed more mature album Reflections The strippeddown staging and his vocal delivery were praised as a powerful comeback moment
3 Who is the Dalai Lama and what was his first Grammy win for
The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism He won his first Grammy for an audiobook of his teachings on compassion and mindfulness titled A Path to Peace
4 Did the political protests overshadow the music at the 2026 Grammys
While the protests were a major talking point most reviews noted a balance The night was celebrated for both its strong musical performances and for artists using the platform for activism reflecting the industrys broader social role
5 Was Justin Biebers performance a sign of a new musical direction
Yes analysts and fans saw it as a definitive pivot The performance emphasized songwriting and vocal skill over production signaling his evolution from teen pop star to a respected adult contemporary artist
6 What was controversial about the Dalai Lama winning a Grammy
While celebrated by many the win drew diplomatic criticism from the Chinese government which views the Dalai Lama as a separatist It sparked discussions about the intersection of art spirituality and international politics
7 How did the AntiICE protests actually work during the show
Artists wore symbolic pins made direct statements in interviews and several winners dedicated their speeches to the cause ensuring the message was heard during live broadcasts
8 What other moments rounded out the top 10 list
The list typically included a stunning tribute to a legacy artist a
