Bad Bunny, Vybz Kartel & Tyla: Our Predictions for the Star-Studded Global, Reggae & African Music Races at the 2026 Grammys

There are 10 categories in the Latin, Global, Reggae & New Age, Ambient or Chant Field at the 2026 Grammys. Below, we assess the state of the race in four of those categories — best global music album, best global music performance, best African music performance and best reggae album.

Best Global Music Album

The Afrobeats “Big 3” are the leading contenders for best global music album this year. Davido (5ive), Burna Boy (No Sign of Weakness) and Wizkid (Morayo) should all make the final line-up of nominees. All three acts have been nominated here previously, and Burna won in 2021 with Twice as Tall. Although Wizkid’s last studio album, More Love, Less Ego, missed out on a nod, it’s safe to bet that Morayo will make the cut thanks to such hit singles as “Kese (Danse)” and the Brent Faiyaz-assisted “Piece of My Heart.” Another name that’s all but guaranteed to show up here on nominations morning on Nov. 7 is Anoushka Shankar (We Return to Light), who boasts seven nominations (but zero wins) in this category.

International jazz fusion ensemble Shakti, the 2024 victor in this category, is back in contention with Shakti: Mind Explosion — 50th Anniversary Tour Live. As are previous nominees Ibrahim Maalouf (Trumpets of Michel-Ange), Femi Kuti (Journey Through Life), and Seun Kuti & Egypt 80′ (Heavier Yet). Last year, Indian singer and flautist Varijashree Venugopal earned a best global music performance nod alongside Shankar and Jacob Collier, and she could turn that into a best global music album nod for her own Vari (The Live Sessions).

There’s also the wild card of Machel Montano (One Degree Hotter). Historically, soca has not fared well in this category, but if there was ever a year to honor the King of Soca, 2025 is it. Not only did Montano play the first-ever soca set for NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series, but he also notched his historic 11th Road March victory for his soca smash “Pardy.” Other names to keep an eye out for include Anitta (Ensaios Da Anitta), Eric Bellinger (It’ll All Make Sense Later), and Jamie Lozano & The Familia (Songs By An Immigrant, Vol. 3).

Our Fearless Forecast

We’re predicting: 5ive (Davido); No Sign of Weakness (Burna Boy); Morayo (Wizkid); We Return to Light (Anoushka Shankar); Journey Through Life (Femi Kuti)

Best Global Music Performance

Honoring “international performers exhibiting ‘non-European, indigenous traditions,’” this category has only four years of history. In that time, Arooj Aftab earned yearly nods, but this year, the Pakistani-American singer does not have a song in contention. Largely considered the frontrunner — whether it ended up in global music performance or African music performance — Moliy, Silent Addy and Disco Neil‘s “Shake It to the Max” (with Shenseea & Skillibeng), does not appear on either ballot. With that in mind, expect some surprises in this category.

Behind Aftab, Angélique Kidjo and Burna Boy are tied with the most nominations in this category, boasting three each. Coincidentally, both acts have top contenders here, with “Jerusalema” and “4 Kampé II” (with Joé Dwèt Filé), respectively. Davido also scored a nod here in 2024 (“Feel”) and his international cross-genre “Awuke” duet with YG Marley could land a nomination as well. That would help the Marley family tree’s Grammy haul inch closer to 30, after Julian Marley’s 2024 best reggae album win brought the count to 28. Shankhar boats two prior nods here, so a “Daybreak” appearance in the final nominee lineup would be unsurprising. Look out for Femi Kuti (“Journey Through Life”), Silvana Estrada (“Dime”), Venugopal (“Ranjani – Live”) and Maalouf (“Timless) as well, considering all four have earned previous nods in this category.

There are also especially buzzy names in contention this year, including Bad Bunny (“EoO”), Rhiannon Giddens (“Swannanoa Tunnel / Steel-Driving Man”), Little Simz (“Lion,” with Obongjayar), Rauw Alejandro (“Carita Linda”), Peso Pluma (“Gervonta”), Natalia Lafourcade (“Cocos en la Playa”) and Julian Marley (“Light & Love,” with A!MS & Antaeus). Realistically, Bad Bunny has the strongest chance of landing a nod out of this crop of contenders. It’s hard to bet against a Super Bowl halftime show headliner, especially after he gave us one of the year’s defining albums (Debí Tirar Más Fotos) and performances (the No Me Quiero Ir de Aquí residency).

Of course, there’s also the breakthrough global soca hit “The Greatest Bend Over,” credited to Full Blown and Yung Bredda. If any soca song can rally Caribbean voters to make the final five, it’s probably this one — and it would be very well-deserved. Speaking of soca, Montano is contending in this category with three different songs: “Pardy,” “Fling It Up” (with Davido), and “Truth & Balance” (with DJ Mac & Ayetian). Unfortunately, the Trinbagonian superstar would probably have been better off focusing his efforts on one submission.

Our Fearless Forecast

We’re predicting: “Jerusalema” (Angélique Kidjo); “4 Kampé II” (Joé Dwèt Filé & Burna Boy); “Journey Through Life” (Femi Kuti); “EoO” (Bad Bunny); “Awuke” (Davido & YG Marley)

Best Reggae Album

It’s beyond time for the Grammys to split this category into best reggae album and best dancehall album. For now, we’ll try to make sense of the race as it currently stands.

Last year’s biggest story was Vybz Kartel finally earning his first Grammy nomination. This year, Worl’ Boss is contending with Heart & Soul, which lacks both a standout hit single and the immediate glow of his release from prison. Then again, it’s not like Party With Me, which earned him a nod here last year, had a massive hit either, but it’s hard to deny the magnitude of Kartel’s name. Other notable dancehall albums submitted for consideration in this category include Prove Them Wrong (Valiant), International (Skillibeng), Pool Party (Konshens), Time Is Now (Likkle Addi), From Ding Dong to the World Ding (Ding Dong), Hate Being Famous (Squash), Pieces of Me (450) and Ups & Downs (DJ Mac). Of this crop of contenders, Valiant and Skillibeng probably have the best shots at Grammy recognition. The former landed a spot on Billboard staff’s mid-year Best Albums of 2025 list, and the latter boasts the backing of RCA Records and the recent glow of “Shake It to the Max.”

Back to reggae, additional leading contenders in that style include Treasure Self Love (Lila Iké), Jamaica Love (Mojo Morgan) and Blxxd & Fyah (Keznamdi). All three acts are gunning for their first individual Grammy nod — Mojo has earned one win from two nominations as a part of Morgan Heritage — and it’s not unlikely that they all make the final five. Iké boasts a Protoje co-sign and years of goodwill thanks to the extended lifespan of her 2020 The ExPerience EP, Mojo is mounting a strong campaign and his album features several generation-bridging collaborations, and Keznamdi’s LP has lots of grassroots support. Bob Marley: One Love stars Hector Roots Lewis and Aston Barrett Jr. are also in contention this year. The former is competing alongside Johnny Cosmic with Cosmic Love, and the latter is gunning for a nod with the Israel Vibration-assisted Reggae Music Never Dies. Also keep an eye out for two reggae legends, King Jammy (King Jammy Unites the Nation with Dub) and Niney the Observer (Niney the Observer), both of whom could earn their first Grammy nods.

Notably, an AI-assisted album is also seeking a nomination. Adrian Donsome Hanson’s Dem Can’t Stop My Joy (Rastafari Forever), a collaboration with AI-generated band Forever Rootz Band, is looking to write the next chapter in the Grammys’ relationship with AI. In 2023, Ghostwriter’s “Heart on My Sleeve,” an AI-generated song inspired by Drake and The Weeknd, was deemed ineligible for Grammy consideration. At the most recent Grammys ceremony in February, The Beatles’ “Now and Then,” which used AI to “[clean] up some existing recordings,” won best rock performance.

“I do about 90% of the work myself – building the riddim, writing the lyrics, shaping the melodies, and even recording demo vocals,” Hanson explained to Jamaica Gleaner. “I also worked with Shan Blair to provide the female vocals [and] ad-libs. Then, I use AI for maybe 10% of the process – mostly to experiment with sound textures or to adjust how a vocal feels. So it’s not a fully AI-driven album; it’s human-led from start to finish, with AI only supporting my vision. I control the process, and that human direction is what gives the album its soul.”

Additional contending reggae albums include Spain Root (Royal Blu), Nirvana (Jahmiel), Find Me Here (Sherwin Gardner), No Place Like Home (Jesse Royal), Sherlock (Cham), and Island Waves, Vol. 2 (Loud City & ZJ Sparks).

Our Fearless Forecast

We’re counting on: Jamaica Love (Mojo Morgan); No Place Like Home (Jesse Royal); Treasure Self Love (Lila Iké); Heart & Soul (Vybz Kartel); Blxxd and Fyah (Keznamdi)

Best African Music Performance

There are only two years of data for this young Grammy category, and the only decipherable trend thus far is that women are the big winners; Tyla’s “Water” was the inaugural winner in 2024 and Tems‘ “Love Me Jeje” followed in 2025.

This year, Tyla is back in contention with “Push 2 Start,” and she’s likely the frontrunner to win. In fact, it’s possible the entire inaugural lineup of best African music performance nominees (Tyla, Asake, Burna Boy, Davido and Ayra Starr) repeats this year. “With You” (Davido & Omah Lay), “Love” (Burna Boy), “Why Love” (Asake) and “Gimme Dat” (Wizkid & Ayra Starr) are all leading contenders. Wizkid is also competing with his Brent Faiyaz-assisted “Piece of My Heart,” which could result in some unfortunate vote-splitting. In 2024, Rema’s historic “Calm Down” missed out on a Grammy nod because both the original song and its Selena Gomez-assisted remix were released outside of the eligibility period. This year, he could earn his first nod in this category with “Baby (Is It a Crime?)” Finally, Kidjo is one of the most successful artists in the Grammys’ global field, and she could reap her first bid in this category with “Police” (with Kizz Daniel & Johnny Drille).

For all of the seismic international Afrobeats that we’ve gotten over the years, those songs by non-African performers don’t do too well at the Grammys. Chris Brown (“Sensational”) is the only non-African performer to land a nod in this category, and Ciara could join him if her Diamond Platnumz-assisted “Low” earns enough votes.

Other songs to look out for include “Mwah” (Lojay & Odeal), “Zenzele” (Uncle Waffles, et al.), “Emi Aluta (Zamrock Remix)” (Seun Kuti & Egypt 80’), “So It Goes” (Black Sherif & Fireboy DML), “Pity This Boy” (Odumodublvck & Victony) and “Shaolin” (Seyi Vibez).

Our Fearless Forecast

We’re predicting: “Push 2 Start” (Tyla); “Love” (Burna Boy); “Gimme Dat” (Wizkid & Ayra Starr); “With You” (Davido & Omah Lay); “Baby (Is It a Crime?) (Rema)