After months of buildup, the 2026 Grammy for album of the year was finally awarded Sunday (Feb. 1) to Bad Bunny for Debí Tirar Más Fotos — and he used his speech to pay homage to his roots while giving a message of strength to all who’ve had similar experiences.

In the moments after presenter Harry Styles read off his name, the Puerto Rican superstar needed several seconds to collect himself, covering his eyes with his hand as he stayed seated, visibly emotional, before making his way to the stage. After taking the golden gramophone from the British pop star, Benito delivered an emotional acceptance speech, mostly in Spanish, save for one sentence: “I want to dedicate this award to all the people who had to leave their homeland, their country, to follow their dreams.”

In his native language, the impassioned hitmaker declared, “Puerto Rico, I told you: We are much bigger than 100 by 35 [miles], and there’s nothing we can’t accomplish.”

“Thank God, thank you to the academy, thank you to the people who have believed in me throughout my entire career,” he continued in Spanish. “To everyone who worked on this album. Thank you, Mom, for giving birth to me in Puerto Rico. I love you … To all the people who have lost a loved one and have still moved forward with strength, with so much love, this is for you.”

Though Bunny was visibly at his most emotional while accepting album of the year, it wasn’t the only trophy he took home Sunday night. The star — who will headline the 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show exactly one week after the Grammys — also won best música urbana album for DTMF and best global music performance for “EOO.” Going into the ceremony, he was nominated for a total of six Grammys, tying with Sabrina Carpenter, Leon Thomas and engineer Serban Ghenea for third-most overall.

Bunny’s win in the category with a fully Spanish language album comes at a crucial time in American politics for the Latin American community. When the musician was announced as this year’s Super Bowl performer in September, a wave of backlash from MAGA Republicans ensued, with Turning Point USA advertising an alternate halftime show featuring “anything in English” for entertainment shortly afterward. Elsewhere, immigrant communities across the country have been targeted by ICE, with outrage reaching a high point in January after agents shot and killed civilians on two separate occasions in Minnesota — both of which the Donald Trump administration claimed were the result of officers acting in self-defense, though many Americans think footage taken by eyewitnesses prove otherwise.

When accepting best música urbana album earlier in the night, Bunny made his stance on the matter clear. “Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say: ‘ICE out!’” he said on stage. “We’re not savages, we’re not animals, we are not aliens, we are humans, and we are Americans … The only thing that is more powerful than hate is love.”

The album of the year category was particularly stacked in 2026, with Benito beating out Justin Bieber’s Swag, Sabrina Carpenter’s Man’s Best Friend, Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out, Lady Gaga’s MAYHEM, Kendrick Lamar’s GNX, Leon Thomas’ Mutt and Tyler, the Creator’s Chromakopia. It marks Bunny’s seventh Grammy win to date, taking home best música urbana album for Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va A Pasar Mañana, Un Verano Sin Ti and El Último Tour Del Mundo in previous years, as well as best Latin pop or urban album for YHLQMDLG in 2021.

The win also reflects Bunny’s success on the Billboard charts this past year. Debi Tirar Mas Fotos spent a full month atop the Billboard 200, while single “DTMF” reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Hosted again by Trevor Noah, this year’s Grammys took place at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Reigning 2025 song and record of the year winner Kendrick Lamar went into the ceremony with the most nominations of any artist that night at nine total; Lady Gaga, Jack Antonoff and Cirkut followed closely behind with seven apiece.

Ifunanya Nwangene, a Nigerian singer who appeared on Season 3 of The Voice Nigeria, has died after suffering a snake bite. She was 26.

According to BBC Africa, Nwangene was bitten while asleep at her home in Abuja on Jan. 31 and later died after seeking medical treatment. A collaborator, Hillary Obinna, told the outlet that the bite woke her from her sleep and that two snakes were later discovered in the residence.

Nwangene initially sought care at a nearby clinic, where antivenom was reportedly unavailable, before being transferred to a hospital for further treatment. Music director Sam C. Ezugwu confirmed her death in a statement shared on Facebook, identifying the hospital as Federal Medical Center and describing the passing as sudden.

“A rising star, Ifunanya was on the cusp of sharing her incredible talent with the world,” a statement from Amemuso Choir, where Nwangene sang as a soprano, read. “Her voice and spirit will be deeply missed.”

Born in Enugu and based in Abuja, Nwangene was also an architect. She gained national attention on The Voice Nigeria after turning chairs with her audition performance of Rihanna’s “Take a Bow”, later continuing to share covers and original material online.

Following her death, Nigerian artist Tbrass, who had recently worked with Nwangene, shared a tribute on social media, writing, “An irreplaceable loss to the Abuja music society and Nigeria at large💔.” He added, “The pain of saying goodbye to someone whose voice and energy brought joy, inspiration, and even healing to many is heavy.”

Ezugwu told BBC Africa that Nwangene had been preparing for her first solo concert in 2026. Further details regarding funeral arrangements are expected to be shared through Amemuso Choir’s official channels.

The 2026 Grammys delivered plenty of unforgettable moments on Sunday (Feb. 1) — such as the riveting medley by the best new artist nominees, and a bevy of stars such as Justin Bieber, Joni Mitchell and Billie Eilish wearing “ICE OUT” pins in protest of the agency’s ongoing and violent immigration crackdown. Bad Bunny himself made an impassioned statement during his acceptance speech for best música urbana album, declaring, “Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say ICE out!”

But amid the powerful displays of solidarity and pro-immigration resistance, there were lighthearted moments, too, including a seemingly unrehearsed and hilarious musical exchange between Bad Bunny and host Trevor Noah.

Acknowledging the impact of Bunny’s bold speech, host Noah first told the singer, “Hey, by the way, that was beautiful. I saw you up there, I heard what you said. It was really impactful.” The host then jokingly asked, “I know you can’t contractually sing, but we’re gonna see you at the Super Bowl, and you can’t perform anywhere else before? Don’t you get jealous seeing everyone else?”

Smiling, Bad Bunny responded, “Maybe a little bit.”

“Whenever I get drunk, I just hope someone helps me,” Noah unassumingly quoted Bunny’s Grammy-nominated “DtMF” in English.

Quick to capitalize on the moment, Bad Bunny quipped, “That’s how my song sounds in English?” before transitioning into the actual lyrics: “Y si hoy me emborracho, pues, que me ayuden.” The moment became even more endearing when a big brass band backed the pair from Bunny’s table.

With six noms this year, the “Baile Inolvidable” hitmaker was one of the most nominated acts, following Kendrick Lamar with nine nods and Lady Gaga with seven.

Billie Eilish was not one of the leading nominees going into the Grammy Awards on Sunday (Feb. 1), but when she came out on top in the song of the year category for “Wildflower” from her 2024 album Hit Me Hard and Soft, the 24-year-old singer added an 11th golden gramophone to her already groaning prize shelf, as well as launching another pointed dart at the Trump administration.

She had way more to say than the usual thank yous to her producer, label, the Recording Academy and God. Taking the stage with her writing partner and musical foil, brother Finneas, Eilish humbly accepted the award from songwriting legend Carole King.

Giving props to the other nominees in the category, Eilish, who has been a loud and frequent critic of the Trump administration’s anti-immigration tactics, said, “As grateful as I feel, I honestly don’t feel like I need to say anything but that … no one is illegal on stolen land,” as fellow nominees Sabrina Carpenter and the members of KPop Demon Hunters band HUNTR/X clapped in support of Eilish’s message of unity.

“And, yeah it’s just really hard to know what to say and what to do right now,” continued Eilish, who, like many in the audience at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, was wearing an “ICE Out” pin as part of a protest against Trump’s immigration enforcement surge, which in January resulted in the killing of two American citizens by immigration enforcement agents.

“I feel really hopeful in this room, and I feel like we just need to keep fighting and speaking up and protesting. Our voices really do matter and the people matter,” Eilish continued. “And f–k ICE is all I wanna say, sorry,” she added.

The singer-songwriter has spent the past month and a half speaking out loudly about the Trump administration’s immigration actions, calling ICE a “terrorist group” after its killing of 37-year-old poet and mother of three Renée Nicole Good, and blasting the organization’s Minnesota operation while accepting the MLK Jr. Environmental Justice award in January.

While Eilish has been on an unbeatable Grammy run over the past few years, she came into Sunday night’s show with just two nominations, winning the songwriter-centered song of the year award over a stacked deck that included Lady Gaga’s “Abracadabra,” ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.,” Doechii’s “Anxiety,” Bad Bunny’s “DtMF,” HUNTR/X’s “Golden,” Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “Luther” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild.”

“Wildflower” was also up for record of the year.

Lady Gaga never half-steps her awards show performances, and Sunday night’s (Feb. 1) outré run through her hit 2025 smash “Abracadabra” at the Grammy Awards was no exception. Shouting, “Grammy Awards, put your paws up!” in a call to arms to Little Monsters in the house at L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena and at home, Gaga kicked things off with peak energy while wearing one of her one-of-a-kind costumes, this one consisting of a black, basketlike helmet with red strings shooting out of the caged opening in front.

Positioned at a set of keyboards, Gaga sang from beneath the woven headdress, looking down into the camera while holding a black cane, her torso wrapped in black and red feathers above a long black leather skirt. “Like a poem said by a lady in red/ You hear the last few words of your life/ With a haunting dance, now you’re both in a trance/ It’s time to case your spell on the night,” she sang ominously as she tossed the cane away, attacked the keyboard and recited the song’s refrain, “Abracadabra/ Amor oo na na/ Abra ca da bra/ Morta oo gaga.”

Halfway through, she stumbled out from behind the keys and pointed the cane at the audience, then did a series of excited, stabby hand gestures as she repeated the chorus and a plume of smoke filled the stage behind her while she busted into an operatic wail.

The spirited, strobe-lit performance ended with Gaga yowling “death or love tonight” as the song lurched to a chaotic, gunshot-like conclusion.

The single from her MAYHEM LP peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 20 weeks on the chart. In addition, MAYHEM peaked at the top of the Billboard 200 following its March release, becoming her fifth solo album to top the tally; it also spent 37 weeks at No. 1 on the Top Dance Albums chart.

Gaga came into Sunday night’s 2026 Grammy Awards with seven nominations for MAYHEM — her highest one-year total to date — including album of the year and best pop vocal album, record/song of the year and best dance pop recording for “Abracadabra,” and best pop solo performance (“Disease) as well as best traditional pop vocal album (Harlequin); she took home the best pop vocal album award shortly after her performance.

She won earlier in the evening, with a Grammy for best dance pop recording for “Abracadabra,” which brought her win total to date up to 15 on an eye-popping 45 nominations.