Golden and Apt. snag Grammy nominations for Song of the Year, Katseye up for Best New Artist
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(From left) Audrey Nuna, Ejae and Rei Ami – who provide the singing voices of Huntrix from KPop Demon Hunters – at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards in New York on Sept 7.
PHOTO: AFP
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- Kendrick Lamar leads with nine Grammy nods, followed by Lady Gaga with seven; both are nominated for album of the year.
- Bad Bunny made history as the first Latin artist nominated in the major categories: record, song, and album of the year.
- K-pop achieved recognition with Golden and APT. nominated for song of the year and other categories, marking success for the genre.
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LOS ANGELES – Two K-pop songs have landed in the Song of the Year field, an award given to songwriters, at the Grammy Awards 2026.
The nomination list was announced on Nov 7, and the ceremony takes place in February.
They are the chart-topping Golden from the soundtrack of animated hit KPop Demon Hunters, the most-watched movie in the history of Netflix, and Apt. by Rose and Bruno Mars.
Golden received three total nominations, including for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Song Written for Visual Media.
“Never did I imagine this level of success,” said Rei Ami, one of the singing voices behind the fictional K-pop girl group Huntrix. “It’s really hard for all of us to process still.”
Apt. also was nominated for Record of the Year, a trophy given to producers and performers, and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Others on the list included Lady Gaga’s Abracadabra, luther by Kendrick Lamar and SZA, and DtMF by Bad Bunny.
Asian representation was also strong in the Best New Artist category. Rising Los Angeles-based girl group Katseye – comprising members from the Philippines, South Korea, Switzerland and the United States – will compete against Olivia Dean, Leon Thomas, Alex Warren and others. Thomas, an R&B and soul musician, also received an Album of the Year nomination for Mutt.
Girl group Katseye’s members (from left) Sophia, Lara, Manon, Daniela, Megan and Yoonchae at the NRJ Music Awards ceremony in Cannes, France, on Oct 31.
PHOTO: AFP
Rapper Lamar topped the list of Grammy contenders for the second straight year with nine nominations, outpacing the seven nods for pop superstar Lady Gaga in the race for the music industry’s top honours.
Lamar’s GNX and Gaga’s Mayhem will compete for the prestigious Album of the Year trophy. Neither artiste has won the honour despite multiple nominations in the category.
Others nominated in the album field include Bad Bunny for the Spanish-language Debi Tirar Mas Fotos, Justin Bieber for Swag and Sabrina Carpenter for Man’s Best Friend.
Three rap albums are in contention. In addition to GNX, Tyler, the Creator’s Chromakopia and Let God Sort Em Out, from the duo Clipse, were nominated.
The Life Of A Showgirl by Taylor Swift, who has claimed Album of the Year an unmatched four times, was not in the running because it was released after this year’s Grammy eligibility window closed.
Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican musician who will perform at 2026’s Super Bowl half-time show, received six nominations including for Record, Song and Album of the Year. He was the first Latin artiste to be nominated in the three major categories in the same year.
Kendrick Lamar’s GNX and Lady Gaga’s Mayhem will compete for the prestigious Album of the Year trophy at the Grammys in February 2026.
PHOTOS: AFP
For the album prize, “I think it’s between Lady Gaga and Kendrick Lamar”, Billboard awards editor Paul Grein said, adding that he gives the edge to Lamar, who would be the first solo male rap artiste to land the prize.
“I think he’ll do it,” Grein said, “but you can never discount Lady Gaga, who is loved by everyone.”
Grammy winners will be chosen by the roughly 15,000 voting members of the Recording Academy and announced at a red-carpet ceremony in Los Angeles on Feb 1. REUTERS
Key nominees for the 2026 Grammy Awards
Album of the Year
Debi Tirar Mas Fotos – Bad Bunny
Swag – Justin Bieber
Man’s Best Friend – Sabrina Carpenter
Let God Sort Em Out – Clipse (Pusha T & Malice)
Mayhem – Lady Gaga
GNX – Kendrick Lamar
Mutt – Leon Thomas
Chromakopia – Tyler, The Creator
Record of the Year, recognising overall performance on a song
DtMF – Bad Bunny
Manchild – Sabrina Carpenter
Anxiety – Doechii
Wildflower – Billie Eilish
Abracadabra – Lady Gaga
luther – Kendrick Lamar with SZA
The Subway – Chappell Roan
APT. – Rose and Bruno Mars
Song of the Year, recognising songwriting
Abracadabra – Lady Gaga, Henry Walter & Andrew Watt, songwriters (Lady Gaga)
Anxiety – Jaylah Hickmon, songwriter (Doechii)
APT. – Amy Allen, Christopher Brody Brown, Roget Chahayed, Omer Fedi, Philip Lawrence, Bruno Mars, Chae Young Park, Theron Thomas & Henry Walter, songwriters (Rose, Bruno Mars)
DtMF – Marco Daniel Borrero, Scott Dittrich, Benjamin Falik, Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, Hugo Rene Sencion Sanabria, Tyler Thomas Spry & Roberto Jose Rosado Torres, songwriters (Bad Bunny)
Golden (from KPop Demon Hunters) – Ejae & Mark Sonnenblick, songwriters (Huntrix: Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami)
luther – Jack Antonoff, Roshwita Larisha Bacha, Matthew Bernard, Scott Bridgeway, Sam Dew, Ink, Kendrick Lamar, Solana Rowe, Mark Anthony Spears & Kamasi Washington, songwriters (Kendrick Lamar with SZA)
Manchild – Amy Allen, Jack Antonoff & Sabrina Carpenter, songwriters (Sabrina Carpenter)
Wildflower – Billie Eilish O’Connell & Finneas O’Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
Best New Artist
Olivia Dean
Katseye
The Marias
Addison Rae
sombr
Leon Thomas
Alex Warren
Lola Young
Best Pop Solo Performance
Daisies – Justin Bieber
Manchild – Sabrina Carpenter
Disease – Lady Gaga
The Subway – Chappell Roan
Messy – Lola Young
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Defying Gravity – Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande
Golden (from KPop Demon Hunters) – Huntrix: Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami
Gabriela – Katseye
APT. – Rose, Bruno Mars
30 For 30 – SZA with Kendrick Lamar
Best Pop Vocal Album
Swag – Justin Bieber
Man’s Best Friend – Sabrina Carpenter
Something Beautiful – Miley Cyrus
Mayhem – Lady Gaga
I’ve Tried Everything but Therapy (Part 2) – Teddy Swims
Best Rap Album
Let God Sort Em Out – Clipse (Pusha T & Malice)
Glorious – GloRilla
God Does Like Ugly – JID
GNX – Kendrick Lamar
Chromakopia – Tyler, The Creator
Best Rap Performance
Outside – Cardi B
Chains & Whips – Clipse (Pusha T & Malice), featuring Kendrick Lamar & Pharrell Williams
Anxiety – Doechii
tv off – Kendrick Lamar featuring Lefty Gunplay
Darling, I – Tyler, The Creator Featuring Teezo Touchdown
Best Music Video
Manchild – Sabrina Carpenter
So Be It – Clipse
Anxiety – Doechii
Love – OK Go
Young Lion – Sade
Best Global Music Album
Sounds Of Kumbha – Siddhant Bhatia
No Sign Of Weakness – Burna Boy
Eclairer le monde – Light The World – Youssou N’Dour
Mind Explosion (50th Anniversary Tour Live) – Shakti
Chapter III: We Return To Light – Anoushka Shankar featuring Alam Khan & Sarathy Korwar
Caetano e Bethania Ao Vivo – Caetano Veloso and Maria Bethania
Artists with most nominations
Kendrick Lamar – 9
Lady Gaga – 7
Bad Bunny – 6
Leon Thomas – 6
Sabrina Carpenter – 6
AFP
