Grammys 2026: here are all the favorites, from Kendrick Lamar to Sombr, from Lady Gaga to Tyler, The Creator

The 2026 Grammy Awards are approaching with a fairly well-defined field of favourites, one in which the weight of nominations, artistic continuity and centrality to the past year's musical conversation seem to count for more than simple commercial success. On Sunday 1 February, with Trevor Noah hosting the ceremony at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, most of the attention will be on those arriving at the night already carrying serious momentum.

Topping the predictions is inevitably Kendrick Lamar, who leads the nominations list with nine nods. His has been a year of across-the-board dominance: from the symbolic consecration of the Super Bowl 2025 Halftime Show to the massive reach of the Grand National Tour with SZA, Lamar has reaffirmed a position of leadership that goes beyond rap, becoming a central figure in the US music industry. The Grammys, historically responsive to this kind of artistic authority, could reward him significantly once again.

Behind her looms Lady Gaga, riding seven nominations and a career that the Grammys have already amply legitimized. The album "Mayhem", released in 2025 roughly five years after "Chromatica", marked an ambitious, carefully calibrated comeback, able to blend pop experimentation with sheer spectacle. With fourteen statuettes already on her shelf, Gaga remains a structural presence at the ceremony, and her name still carries significant weight in the major categories.

Another closely watched name is Doechii, who embodies the generational drive of contemporary rap. After winning Best Rap Album in 2025 with "Alligator Bites Never Heal", the artist arrives at the 2026 Grammys with high expectations and growing critical attention. Her nomination reflects well the Academy's attempt to embrace new voices that are already established, rather than mere up-and-comers.

On the pop and dance front, Zara Larsson could finally find room for a first Grammy win. "Midnight Sun", competing for Best Dance Pop Recording, arrives at a favourable moment for the Swedish singer, who currently has three songs on the US Hot 100 simultaneously. A win would also carry symbolic value, recognising a career that has often been more appreciated by the public than by award bodies.

Sabrina Carpenter instead comes across as one of the most solid artists in her category, buoyed by the success she achieved at last year's ceremony, when she won Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album. Her six nominations for 2026 confirm a continuity that the Grammys tend to reward, especially when backed by commercial results and consistent artistic growth.

Among the possible surprises, Sombr stands out, born in 2005 and tipped by many as the favorite for Best New Artist. The success of the album "I Barely Know Her", driven by tracks like "Back To Friends" and "12 To 12", has quickly established him as one of the most credible emerging names of the past year, with numbers and visibility that are hard for the Academy to overlook.

2026 also marks the return to the spotlight of Justin Bieber, announced among the evening's performers. With twenty-seven career nominations overall and two wins already under his belt, Bieber remains a cross-genre figure, equally at home in pop, dance and electronic music. His presence strengthens the ceremony's mainstream profile, though his chances of winning will depend on how fragmented the categories he's competing in turn out to be.

Finally, Tyler, The Creator continues to be a sure thing in the rap-alternative field. After the successes of "Igor" and "Call Me If You Get Lost", both winners of Best Rap Album, his new work "Chromakopia" puts him back in the running with six nominations. His ability to reinvent himself without losing recognizability remains one of the qualities the Academy appreciates most.

Overall, the 2026 Grammy Awards look set to balance established heavyweights with new breakthroughs, with Kendrick Lamar and Lady Gaga as the dominant poles, flanked by a generation demanding space and recognition. The final outcome will depend, as is often the case, on the balance between artistic merit, the narrative of the musical year and the Academy's cultural strategy.

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