Kendrick Lamar Accepts Record of the Year Grammy After Snafu – Winners List

Kendrick Lamar had a very good night at the 2026 Grammy Awards. The Compton rapper took home a leading five trophies, including the award for Record of the Year.

Last year, Kendrick won in the category for his Drake diss track “Not Like Us.” This time, he shared the honor with SZA for their collaboration on “Luther.”

Before the two learned they had won, there was a bit of a mix-up.

Cher, who presented in the category, opened the envelope to announce the winner. But instead of reading the song title “Luther,” she accidentally announced the late Luther Vandross would take home a Grammy. Cher quickly corrected the mistake, although Vandross trended on social media throughout the night.

The pop music icon wasn’t completely wrong, considering the song is a love letter to Vandross and old school R&B. Kendrick and SZA’s song even samples the late singer’s 1982 duet “If This World Were Mine” with Cheryl Lynn.

Related: Lauryn Hill Leads All-Star Grammys Tribute to D’Angelo and Roberta Flack

On stage, Kendrick and producer Sounwave paid tribute to Vandross.

“First and foremost, let’s give a shoutout to the late, great Luther Vandross,” Sounwave said to applause. “It was very, very, very important to keep the integrity of this record.”

Kendrick thanked Cheryl Lynn and praised Vandross. “To echo what he said, this is what music is about, Luther Vandross.” He turned to Cher and smiled as the audience laughed. The rapper went on to reveal the one stipulation he faced in getting clearance to sample Vandross’ song.

“They granted us the privilege to do our version of it… they said no cursing though,” he explained.

SZA thanked Kendrick “for lifting me up,” before offering a message about the current climate in the country.

“Please don’t fall into despair,” she told the audience. “I know it’s a scary time… but there’s been world wars, there’s been plagues, and we have gone on. We can go on. We need each other.”

Next weekend’s Super Bowl halftime headliner, Bad Bunny, was also a big winner.

The Puerto Rican rapper and singer made history when he picked up the Album of the Year trophy — the night’s top prize. His LP Debí Tirar Más Fotos is the first Spanish-language album to win in the category.

Most of his acceptance speech was in Spanish, although he did tell the audience in English, “I want to dedicate this award to all the people who had to leave their homeland, their country, to follow their dreams.”

Sunday’s awards began with the Grammys “premiere ceremony,” where the winners in 86 of the night’s 95 categories were announced. The early ceremony was held at the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles, which is across the street from the Crypto.com Arena, where the Grammys took place.

Below is the list of winners at the 2026 Grammy Awards:

Album of the Year
Debí Tirar Más Fotos, Bad Bunny

Record of the Year
Luther, Kendrick Lamar with SZA

Song of the Year
Wildflower, Billie Eilish O’Connell & Finneas O’Connell, songwriters

Best New Artist
Olivia Dean

Best Pop Solo Performance
Messy, Lola Young

Best Pop Vocal Album
Mayhem, Lady Gaga

Best Dance/Electronic Recording
End Of Summer, Tame Impala

Best Contemporary Country Album
Beautifully Broken, Jelly Roll

Best Música Urbana Album
Debí Tirar Más Fotos, Bad Bunny

Best Song Written for Visual Media
Golden (From “KPop Demon Hunters”), EJAE & Mark Sonnenblick, songwriters (HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, REI AMI)

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical
Cirkut

Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical
Amy Allen

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Defying Gravity, Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande

Best Dance Pop Recording
Abracadabra, Lady Gaga

Best Dance/Electronic Album
EUSEXUA, FKA twigs

Best Remixed Recording
Abracadabra (Gesaffelstein Remix), Gesaffelstein, remixer (Lady Gaga,
Gesaffelstein)

Best Metal Performance
BIRDS, Turnstile

Best Rock Performance
Changes (Live From Villa Park) Back To The Beginning, YUNGBLUD Featuring Nuno Bettencourt, Frank Bello, Adam Wakeman, II

Best Rock Song
As Alive As You Need Me To Be, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, songwriters (Nine Inch Nails)

Best Rock Album
NEVER ENOUGH, Turnstile

Best Alternative Music Performance
Alone, The Cure

Best Alternative Music Album
Songs Of A Lost World, The Cure

Best R&B Performance
Folded, Kehlani

Best Traditional R&B Performance
VIBES DON’T LIE, Leon Thomas

Best R&B Song
Folded, Darius Dixson, Andre Harris, Kehlani Parrish, Donovan Knight,
Don Mills, Khris Riddick-Tynes & Dawit Kamal Wilson, songwriters (Kehlani)

Best Progressive R&B Album
BLOOM, Durand Bernarr

Best R&B Album
MUTT, Leon Thomas

Best Rap Performance
Chains & Whips, Clipse, Pusha T & Malice Featuring Kendrick Lamar & Pharrell Williams

Best Melodic Rap Performance
Luther, Kendrick Lamar With SZA

Best Rap Song
tv off, Jack Antonoff, Larry Jayy, Kendrick Lamar, Dijon McFarlane,
Sean Momberger, Mark Anthony Spears & Kamasi Washington, songwriters (Kendrick Lamar Featuring Lefty Gunplay)

Best Rap Album
GNX, Kendrick Lamar

Best Spoken Word Poetry Album
Words For Days Vol. 1., Mad Skillz

Best Jazz Performance
Windows – Live, Chick Corea, Christian McBride & Brian Blade

Best Jazz Vocal Album
Portrait, Samara Joy

Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Southern Nights, Sullivan Fortner Featuring Peter Washington & Marcus
Gilmore

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
Without Further Ado, Vol 1, Christian McBride Big Band

Best Latin Jazz Album
A Tribute to Benny Moré and Nat King Cole, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Yainer
Horta & Joey Calveiro

Best Alternative Jazz Album
LIVE-ACTION, Nate Smith

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
A Matter Of Time, Laufey

Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
Brightside, ARKAI

Best Musical Theater Album
Buena Vista Social Club

Best Country Solo Performance
Bad As I Used To Be [From “F1 The Movie”], Chris Stapleton

Best Country Duo/Group Performance
Amen, Shaboozey & Jelly Roll

Best Country Song
Bitin’ List, Tyler Childers, songwriter (Tyler Childers)

Best Traditional Country Album
Ain’t In It For My Health, Zach Top

Best American Roots Performance
Beautiful Strangers, Mavis Staples

Best Americana Performance
Godspeed, Mavis Staples

Best American Roots Song
Ancient Light, Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O’Donovan & Sara Watkins, songwriters (I’m With Her)

Best Americana Album
BIG MONEY, Jon Batiste

Best Bluegrass Album
Highway Prayers, Billy Strings

Best Traditional Blues Album
Ain’t Done With The Blues, Buddy Guy

Best Contemporary Blues Album
Preacher Kids, Robert Randolph

Best Folk Album
Wild And Clear And Blue, I’m With Her

Best Regional Roots Music Album
A Tribute To The King Of Zydeco, (Various Artists)

Best Gospel Performance/Song
Come Jesus Come. Cece Winans Featuring Shirley Caesar

Best Contemporary Christian Performance/Song

Hard Fought Hallelujah, Brandon Lake With Jelly Roll; Chris Brown, Jason Bradley Deford, Steven Furtick, Benjamin William Hastings & Brandon Lake,
songwriters

Best Gospel Album
Heart Of Mine, Darrel Walls, PJ Morton

Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
Coritos Vol. 1, Israel & New Breed

Best Roots Gospel Album
I Will Not Be Moved (Live), The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir

Best Latin Pop Album
Cancionera, Natalia Lafourcade

Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
PAPOTA, CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso

Best Música Mexicana Album
Palabra De To’s (Seca), Carín León

Best Tropical Latin Album
Raíces, Gloria Estefan

Best Global Music Performance
EoO, Bad Bunny

Best African Music Performance
PUSH 2 START, Tyla

Best Global Music Album
Caetano e Bethania Ao Vivo, Caetano Veloso And Maria Bethania

Best Reggae Album
BLXXD & FYAH, Keznamdi

Best New Age, Ambient or Chant Album
NOMADICA, Carla Patullo Featuring The Scorchio Quartet & Tonality

Best Children’s Music Album
Harmony, FYÜTCH & Aura V

Best Comedy Album
Your Friend, Nate Bargatze, Nate Bargatze

Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording
Meditations: The Reflections Of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Dalai Lama

Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (Includes Film and Television)
Sinners, Ludwig Goransson, composer

Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media
Sword of the Sea, Austin Wintory, composer

Best Music Video
Anxiety, Doechii, James Mackel, video director; Pablo Feldman, Jolene
Mendes & Sophia Sabella, video producers

Best Music Film
Music By John Williams, John Williams, Laurent Bouzereau, video
director; Sara Bernstein, Laurent Bouzereau, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Meredith Kaulfers, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Steven Spielberg & Justin Wilkes, video producers

Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
Sinners, (Various Artists)

Best Recording Package
Tracks II: The Lost Albums, Meghan Foley & Michelle Holme, art
directors (Bruce Springsteen)

Best Album Cover
CHROMAKOPIA, Shaun Llewellyn & Luis `Panch’ Perez, art directors
(Tyler, The Creator)

Best Album Notes
Miles ’55: The Prestige Recordings, Ashley Kahn, album notes writer
(Miles Davis)

Best Historical Album
Joni Mitchell Archives – Volume 4: The Asylum Years (1976-1980), Patrick Milligan & Joni Mitchell, compilation producers; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer (Joni Mitchell)

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
That Wasn’t A Dream, Joseph Lorge & Blake Mills, engineers; Patricia
Sullivan, mastering engineer (Pino Palladino, Blake Mills)

Best Engineered Album, Classical
Cerrone: Don’t Look Down, Mike Tierney, engineer; Alan Silverman,
mastering engineer (Sandbox Percussion)

Producer of the Year, Classical
Elaine Martone

Best Immersive Audio Album
Immersed, Justin Gray, immersive mix engineer; Michael Romanowski,
immersive mastering engineer; Justin Gray, Drew Jurecka & Morten Lindberg,
immersive producers (Justin Gray)

Best Instrumental Composition
First Snow, Remy Le Boeuf, composer (Nordkraft Big Band, Remy Le Boeuf
& Danielle Wertz)

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
Super Mario Praise Break, Bryan Carter, Charlie Rosen & Matthew Whitaker, arrangers (The 8-Bit Big Band)

Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals
Big Fish, Erin Bentlage, Sara Gazarek, Johnaye Kendrick, Nate Smith &
Amanda Taylor, arrangers (Nate Smith Featuring saje)

Best Orchestral Performance
Messiaen: Turangalila-Symphonie, Andris Nelsons, conductor (Boston
Symphony Orchestra)

Best Opera Recording
Heggie: Intelligence, Kwamé Ryan, conductor; Jamie Barton, J’Nai
Bridges & Janai Brugger; Blanton Alspaugh, producer (Houston Grand Opera; Gene Scheer)

Best Choral Performance
Ortiz: Yanga, Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Grant Gershon, chorus master
(Los Angeles Philharmonic; Los Angeles Master Chorale)

Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
Dennehy: Land Of Winter, Alan Pierson & Alarm Will Sound

Best Classical Instrumental Solo
Shostakovich: The Cello Concertos, Yo-Yo Ma; Andris Nelsons, conductor
(Boston Symphony Orchestra)

Best Classical Solo Vocal Album
Telemann: Ino – Opera Arias For Soprano, Amanda Forsythe, soloist; Robert Mealy, Paul O’Dette & Stephen Stubbs, conductors (Boston Early Music
Festival Orchestra)

Best Classical Compendium
Ortiz: Yanga, Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Dmitriy Lipay, producer

Best Contemporary Classical Composition
Ortiz: Dzonot, Gabriela Ortiz, composer (Alisa Weilerstein, Gustavo
Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)