The Best, Worst, and Most Memorable Moments of the 2026 Grammys

The 68th Grammy Awards have officially kicked off, live from the Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles. Hosted for the last time by Trevor Noah, who has MC’d the ceremony every year since 2021, the Grammys are bidding farewell to longtime network host CBS, which has platformed the show for more than 50 years. Next year, The Recording Academy will begin a new broadcast partnership as the Grammys head to ABC, Hulu, and Disney+.

Leading this year’s nominations are Kendrick Lamar, with a total of nine nods, followed by Lady Gaga and superproducers Cirkut and Jack Antonoff with seven, and Super Bowl headliner Bad Bunny and pop powerhouse Sabrina Carpenter with six nods apiece.

While the vast majority of The Recording Academy’s Grammy Awards were distributed during the pre-telecast premiere ceremony, this year’s televised portion will feature a handful of major trophies (Album, Record, and Song of the Year, Best New Artist), which will be presented by previous winners Doechii and Harry Styles, the latter of whom very recently announced his forthcoming album, Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally, and a month-long residency at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Additional big-name presenters include Carole King, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Jeff Goldblum, KAROL G, Lainey Wilson, SNL’s Marcello Hernández, Nikki Glaser, Q-Tip, Queen Latifah, and One Battle After Another star Teyana Taylor.

Meanwhile, the show is set to feature standout performances by Lady Gaga, Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber, and hip-hop duo Clipse with Pharrell Williams. The Grammys performance roster also includes Tyler, The Creator, ROSÉ, Bruno Mars, Andrew Watt, Brandy Clark, Chad Smith, Duff McKagan, Leon Thomas, Lola Young, Lukas Nelson, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Post Malone, Reba McEntire, and Slash, plus a special Best New Artist medley featuring nominees Addison Rae, KATSEYE, Olivia Dean, Alex Warren, Leon Thomas, The Marías, and sombr.

Check out the best, worst, and most memorable moments from the 2026 Grammy Awards.

Best Avril Lavigne tie: Rosé

As the ceremony kicked off, New Zealand-South Korean singer Rosé joined Bruno Mars to perform their twice-nominated pop-punk hit “APT.” It was a fittingly energetic way to start Music’s Biggest Night, with Mars ripping on lead guitar and Rosé jumping up and down in a cropped white tank top and loose tie. Very Avril Lavigne circa 2001, and very reminiscent of Halsey’s 2024 Grammys performance of “Ego.” We’ll take either any day.

Best hosting victory lap: Trevor Noah

This is Trevor Noah’s last time hosting the Grammys, so it stands to reason that he had nothing to lose by slipping a few political jabs into what is typically a pretty inoffensive MC gig. In Noah’s opening monologue, he threw shade at onetime Grammy favorite Nicki Minaj, noting that the rapper’s “not here tonight, she’s still at the White House with Donald Trump.” (Minaj dubbed herself Donald Trump’s “number one fan” this past week while attending a U.S. Treasury event, sparking angry discourse online.)

Best simulated airport experience: Sabrina Carpenter

Sabrina Carpenter can always be counted on for a performance with a bit of camp, and she more than delivered during her rendition of Man’s Best Friend single “Manchild,” which took on a midcentury airport theme. Wearing a captain’s hat and white hot pants, Carpenter romped around the stage, flanked by dancers dressed as flight attendants, baggage handlers, and other airport employees. Adding to the “in flight” motif, Sabrina even held up what appeared to be a white dove as she climbed into an onstage plane. The whole thing was giving TWA Hotel at JFK—and made us wish real airport experiences could be anywhere near as pleasant as this.

With so much talent packed into the Best New Artist category this year, it kind of makes sense that the Recording Academy would want to showcase them all at once. That said, we’re talking about some very different artists with different aesthetics and sounds, so the execution didn’t quite land. The Marías opened the segment with a dreamy rendition of “No One Noticed,” but they were soon piled on by the pop blast of Addison Rae (“Fame Is A Gun”) and KATSEYE (“Gnarly”). Things got sleepy with R&B scion Leon Thomas (“Vibes Don’t Lie”), TikTok homegrown Alex Warren (“Ordinary”), and Lola Young (“Messy”), who does deserve credit for turning out a moving performance after collapsing at All Things Go in September and subsequently canceling the rest of her tour. Olivia Dean (who ended up winning the category) woke us up with an upbeat and jazzy rendition of “Man I Need,” and Sombr was giving lanky, shirtless disco ball (or Finn Wolfhard impersonating Benson Boone) while singing “12 To 12.” Interesting concept, getting all of the nominees up on stage, but the viewing experience ultimately felt like nodding off after a morning caffeine high.

In his introduction, Trevor Noah reminded us that it’s been 15 years since Justin Bieber first performed at the Grammys, which is wild for those of us who have been following Biebs since his early side-swept bangs days. Bieber sincerely took our breath away when he stepped onstage to perform “YUKON” from his nominated album SWAG. Redefining the term “stripped down,” Bieber wore only sparkly boxers and socks while carrying a purple guitar, which he looped with pedals and a controller. The only other item onstage with him was a floor-length mirror, giving the impression that the artist wanted us to sit with him as much as he wanted to sit with himself.

Very generally speaking, the Grammys tend to be less overtly political than other award shows. However, the mood was different this year, with numerous attendees wearing “ICE OUT” pins and multiple acceptance speeches including calls to end ICE’s aggressive and violent tactics under the Trump administration. Accepting the award for Best Música Urbana Album, upcoming Super Bowl Halftime Show performer Bad Bunny had some especially strong words: “ICE OUT… We’re not savage. We’re not animals. We’re not aliens. We are humans, and we are Americans.” Likewise, Best New Artist winner Olivia Dean said in her acceptance speech: “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.”