Welcome to MXDWN’s official 2026 Grammy Awards live blog! The 68th annual Grammy Award ceremony is here and we are dedicated to bringing you quality Grammys coverage, with consistent updates throughout the preshow and ceremony. So keep up with MXDWN, if you don’t want to miss a thing when it comes to the 2026 Grammy Awards.

This year’s Grammys will take place at the Crypto Arena in Los Angeles and be the last iteration hosted by Trevor Noah. Including this year, Noah has taken on the hosting role for the Grammy Awards every year since 2020. The ceremony starts at 5 pm PST, but there’s more fun to be had ahead of the main event, during the pre-ceremony and carpet, which will begin at 12:30 pm PST. Multiple fashion icons and trendsetters are expected to make their appearance on the carpet, including Doechii, Chappell Roan, Zara Larsson, Lola Young, the Katseye girls and more! 

There will also be multiple performances during the pre-ceremony, which will be hosted by Glee star Darren Criss. Criss will also perform with his Maybe Happy Ending costar Helen J Shen. In addition to that duo, during the pre-ceremony we will see live performances from Grace Potter, Israel Houghton, Lila Iké, Maggie Rose and Trombone Shorty. Heavy hitting metal band Spiritbox will also take the stage. Perhaps their performance will make for another viral moment, like when they went viral last year for their lead singer, Courtney LaPlante, going along with being mistaken for her contemporary, Poppy. And, summer isn’t over yet, because Zara Larsson is sure to dazzle the preshow stage with a song from her beloved album Midnight Sun. 

Performances during the main event are sure to impress fans. Sabrina Carpenter will be returning to the stage this year, as she’s nominated in several categories, including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Music Video, and Best Pop Solo Performance with her song “Manchild”. Her latest album Man’s Best Friend is also nominated for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album. Lady Gaga will also be performing tonight, and if her Mayhem tour says anything, she’s sure to captivate viewers with an epic set. Ahead of his Coachella set in April, Justin Bieber is also set to perform at this year’s Grammys ceremony. This marks Bieber’s first performance at the event since he performed “Peaches” with Daniel Caesar and Giveon in 2022. Rose of the Kpop group Blackpink will also perform tonight as a solo act, likely alongside Bruno Mars for “APT”. This year, Rose became the first Kpop soloist to be nominated for a Grammy! You can also look forward to performances from every nominee for Best New Artist, which includes Addison Rae, Alex Warren, Katseye, Leon Thomas, Lola Young, Olivia Dean, Sombr, and The Marias. Each nominee for Best New Artist will have a 2-minutes long performance slot. 

Every year, the Grammys pay tribute to the artists who passed away that year with in memoriam performances. One of those performances expected to impress is Post Malone’s tribute to the late music icon Ozzy Osbourne, who sadly died last July. Posty will be joined by Slash and Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses, and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith and Andrew Watt. Lauryn Hill will also pay tribute to the late D’Angelo and Roberta Flack. 

Watch alongside us! The 2026 Grammys will air on CBS and live on Paramount+ for users with the Showtime add-on. The show will also be available on multiple Live TV streaming services including Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, YouTube TV and more.

LIVE UPDATES

12:30 pm: The Grammys Premiere Ceremony has begun! The show kicked off with a live performance with a full live band with nominee Israel Houghton on lead vocals and guitar. They performed Shining Star by 6-time Grammy winning and 18-time nominated band Earth Wind & Fire. Midway through the performance, Houghton was joined by fellow nominees Grace Potter, Lila Ike, Maggie Rose. Trombone Shorty accompanied them with an energetic trombone solo. The performance brought the energy, starting the Grammys off strong.

12:35 pm: Harvey Mason Jr., the CEO of The Recording Academy, gave his opening speech, praising the performers. He claimed their performance made a statement and described it using the words “joy”, “resilience” and “brilliance”. During his speech, he stated, “creativity is not a luxury, it’s essential,” and vowed to protect the music industry and advocate for fairness. He also emphasized that the event is not just to celebrate wins, but artistry. He ended his speech by introducing Dr. Chelsey Green, the Recording Academy’s Chair of the Board of Trustees.

12:38 pm: Dr. Chelsey Green took the stage, beginning by speaking about her newly elected role in the academy. She then continued her speech by talking about the reach and impact of music itself, and how it contributes to advocacy, community, and connection. Then, she thanked artists for their contributions that remind us of “music’s power”. She wrapped up her speech, then introduced the host of tonight’s Grammy Premiere Ceremony, Darren Criss.

12:44 pm: Criss graced the stage in a black suit with gold glitter, an understated yet flashy look. In his opening speech, he spoke about the magic of music, before talking about Grammy Camp and Musicares. Criss also confirmed that there are 86 awards to give out, and reminded winners to keep their speeches brief, clarifying they’ll have 45 seconds for their speeches. He also told winners that no substitute acceptors should go on stage during the ceremony. 

12:48 pm: The Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance was given to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. The song is from last year’s hit musical adaptation movie, Wicked. 

12:50 pm: The Grammy for Best Dance Electronic Recording was awarded to Tame Impala for “End Of Summer”. They played an instrumental of “Sweet Escape” by Gwen Stefani while presenting him with his award. 

12:52 pm: FKA Twigs was awarded the Grammy for Best Dance Electronic Album with her project Eusexua. Criss thought she wasn’t present, but then she appeared in the crowd with red hair and a nude-colored flowy dress. During her speech, she explained that she didn’t expect to win, and was just thankful to be nominated. She thanked her boyfriend for his help with music videos, along with Atlantic Records for believing in her. She then encouraged artists to trust their visions. 

12:56 pm: The Best Remixed Recording Grammy was awarded to Gesaffelstein for his remix of Abracadabra, performed by Lady Gaga. He showed up wearing a black glittery cast over his face, hair and hands. It was an interesting and avant garde look. For his speech, he simply took a bow, before walking off stage. 

12:56 pm: The Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album was awarded to Natalia Lafourcade for her album Cancionera. Lafourcade was not present at the ceremony.

12:58 pm: Papota by CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso wins the Grammy for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album. They accepted their award by giving a speech in Spanish. 

1:00 pm: The Best Musica Mexicana Album Grammy was awarded to Carin Leon for her recent album Palabra De To’s.

1:00 pm: The winner of the Grammy for Best Topical Latin Album goes to Gloria Stefan for her album Raices. She accepted her award on stage with her producer, who she called her “biggest inspiration”. They wrapped up the acceptance speech by proclaiming their Latin pride.