Getty Images (4) Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment The table is set. As the final round of voting for the 2026 Grammy Awards opened Dec. 12, Music's Biggest Night is now in the Academy's hands before the big winners will finally be revealed Feb. 1. Barring any left-field surprises - which are always a possibility with the Grammys - the general field is starting to look like a three-way race, with Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar and Lady Gaga picking up much of the chatter across the album, record and song of the year categories since the nominations were revealed in November. Check out THR's cheat sheet on the big questions and storylines to follow as the votes come in. Related Stories Movies Oscar Shortlists Analysis: 'Sinners' and 'Wicked: For Good' Lead Field, But Look Out for 'Sirât' and Female-Directed Doc and International Features Movies Tessa Thompson Doesn't Need You to Like Her Latest Character, Hedda, But She Does Want Her to Be Understood Can Bad Bunny Make History With Album of the Year? It was a historic 2022 for Bad Bunny when his landmark Un Verano Sin Ti became the first Spanish-language album to earn a Grammy nomination for album of the year. Three years later, the global superstar once again has a shot at the record books as Debí Tirar Más Fotos vies to take home the gold this time. Benito's sixth album was both critically lauded and an absolute commercial smash, spending a month atop Billboard's albums chart. Buzz around the project has only grown since Bad Bunny was announced as the 2026 Super Bowl headliner. A loss for Debí Tirar Más Fotos this year begs the question: What else would it take for a foreign-language album to ever win here? Will Kendrick Lamar Go Back-to-Back? Lamar comes into this year hoping to leverage the momentum of last year's "Not Like Us" record and song of the year wins to finally take home an album of the year after previously scoring nominations in the category for all of his records since 2011's To Pimp a Butterfly. GNX was a victory lap for Lamar over the past year and represents his strongest shot at album of the year since Damn. Outside of the album race, Lamar seems most competitive in record of the year. Major hits like KPop Demon Hunters' smash "Golden" and Alex Warren's "Ordinary" were excluded from the record category this year, which could very much narrow the field in favor of Lamar and SZA's "Luther." That song was the biggest record in the U.S. among this year's nominees, with just over three consecutive months atop the Hot 100 this spring. If Lamar wins in record of the year, he'd be the first to take the category in back-to-back years since Billie Eilish did it in 2020 and 2021. Will Lady Gaga Finally Win a Big Four Award? However improbably, through 14 wins on 45 nominations since 2009, Lady Gaga has never won a Grammy in any of the major four categories. With Mayhem and "Abracadabra" contending for album, record and song, she's now up to five all-time nominations for album of the year and six in both record and song of the year. Neither the album nor the single had the commercial juice Bad Bunny and Lamar had this year, but her lauded Mayhem Ball arena tour turned the music into a cultural moment itself. If there's a year when Gaga could finally end her drought, it could be now, as for once she isn't competing against fellow pop legends like Taylor Swift, Beyoncé or Adele. Is This Finally K-pop's Year? With "APT" and "Golden" in the running for song of the year, 2025 could be the year that K-pop breaks into the Grammy mainstream. "Golden" very well might come out on top, but Rosé's collaboration with Grammy darling Bruno Mars stands a good chance to throw a fun plot twist into the season's storyline. However, "Abracadabra," Bad Bunny's "DTMF" and "Luther" shouldn't be underestimated. Lady Gaga's return to form is Gaga at her peak - a reminder of why she became a massive pop star in the first place. Lamar and SZA's "Luther" was a true hit. "DTMF" was a true cultural moment worthy of praise, and it's a damn catchy song to top it all off. Did the Best New Artist Race Just Completely Change? When the Grammy nominations were announced, best new artist seemed like Leon Thomas' race to lose. Over the past month, Olivia Dean's star has risen to new heights, making this category a bit more interesting. Despite solid years from all nominees, there's little chance the race comes down to any artist but Thomas and Dean -though any could snag a surprise win and still be worthy. This story appeared in the Dec. 17 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe. THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Subscribe Sign Up Wicked: For Good Ludwig Göransson, Stephen Schwartz Lead Nominees for Society of Composers and Lyricists Awar