New York, United States (AFP)—Rapper Kendrick Lamar leads the nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards, music’s highest honors, with nine, the Recording Academy announced Friday — fresh off winning five golden gramophones at the last gala.

Lady Gaga ranked second among performers with seven nods for her “Mayhem” album, followed by a trio of artists tied at six — Bad Bunny, pop princess Sabrina Carpenter and R&B singer-songwriter Leon Thomas.

Lamar will vie for album, record and song of the year honors at the 68th Grammys, which will take place in Los Angeles on February 1.

Also competing for the coveted best album award are: Gaga; Bad Bunny; Carpenter; Thomas; Tyler the Creator; hip-hop duo Clipse (Pusha T and Malice); and pop superstar Justin Bieber — with his first studio effort in four years.

Lamar, 38, dominated the Grammys in February with five awards for the wildly infectious “Not Like Us,” his viral diss track targeting fellow rapper Drake.

A week later, the Pulitzer Prize winner commanded one of the world’s most high-profile stages as the Super Bowl’s halftime show headliner, performing a string of classics — including the knockout blow in his battle with his Canadian rival.

But the song did not feature on his most recent album “GNX” — the source of his nominated material this time out.

Lady Gaga, 39, made a splashy comeback to touring with “Mayhem,” her collection of full-on pop bangers with a dark edge that embraces her dramatic side.

She also will compete for album, record and song of the year, as will Bad Bunny.

The 31-year-old superstar, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, also has a pile of nods for next week’s Latin Grammys and will headline the next Super Bowl halftime show in February.

He completed a three-month residency in his native Puerto Rico this year and hosted the season opener of “Saturday Night Live.”

He is set to open a world tour in support of “Debi Tirar Mas Fotos” (I Should Have Taken More Photos) later this month in the Dominican Republic.

Among notable nominations, “Golden,” the massive hit song from Netflix’s animated smash “KPop Demon Hunters,” earned three Grammy nods — including one for song of the year.

– More diverse? –
Industry watchers will be dissecting the full list of nominees in all 95 categories to see if changes made by the Recording Academy, which hands out the awards, have addressed concerns about diversity.

More than 3,800 new members were admitted to the academy, greatly expanding the number of eligible Grammy voters.

Half of those new members are age 39 or younger, and 58 percent of them are people of color, the academy announced earlier this week.

Invitations were also offered to all members of the Latin Recording Academy, which will hand out the Latin Grammys next week in Las Vegas.

“This year’s class reflects the vibrancy of today’s diverse music landscape,” Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr said in a statement.

So why is Taylor Swift not in the Grammys mix? After all, Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” has been ubiquitous since its release in October.

But it is not eligible for the 2026 Grammys — the window closed on August 30.

Look for the pop princess to be front and center in the 2027 edition.