There was less talk about snubs when the 2026 Grammy nominations were announced on Friday (Nov. 7) and more discussion about the sheer number of nominations secured by Black artists in total.
Kendrick Lamar leads all artists with nine nominations, including Album of the Year and Rap Album of the Year for “GNX.” Doechii, who won Best Rap Album and Best New Artist at the 2025 ceremony in February, is up for five awards, mainly behind her breakthrough single “Anxiety,” which was originally recorded in 2019 and then later re-recorded. SZA, the Clipse and Tyler, the Creator also have five nominations.
The voting committee for the awards also highlighted hip-hop in the general categories. Kendrick’s “GNX,” Clipse’s “Let God Sort ‘Em Out” and Tyler, the Creator’s “CHROMAKOPIA” are all up for Album of the Year, the first time three rap albums have been up for music’s top prize since 2019 when the “Black Panther” soundtrack, Cardi B’s “Invasion of Privacy” and Drake’s “Scorpion” all vied for the award.
Kendrick’s nine nominations continue an all-time run for the Compton rapper. Last year, his “Not Like Us” single, viewed by many as the finishing shot in his spring beef with Drake, swept all the categories it was nominated for, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. This time, all the nominations are focused on “GNX,” his November 2024 album, which was released after the nomination period for the 2025 awards had closed. This year’s eligibility period focused on releases of albums and songs between August 31, 2024 and August 30, 2025.
Should Kendrick take home four Grammy trophies next February, he will pass Jay-Z as the most awarded rapper in Grammy history.
Joining Kendrick, Clipse and Tyler in the Album of the Year race is rising R&B star Leon Thomas. Thanks to “MUTT,” his top 10 hit single and album, Thomas is not only up for Best New Artist and Best R&B Album but also for Best R&B Song (“Yes It Is”) and Best R&B Performance, along with the aforementioned AOTY nom.
Other Black artists making waves with nominations include Kehlani, Kaytranada, Anderson .Paak, FKA twigs, Chris Brown, Summer Walker, Durand Bernarr, Ledisi, Lalah Hathaway, Bilal, Destin Conrad, Terrace Martin & Kenyon Dixon, Coco Jones, and many more.
See the complete list of nominees here. The 68th Grammy Awards air on February 1, 2026, on CBS.
