2026 Grammy Nominations
By USC Thornton Office of Communications
From USC Thornton alumni and faculty members to Creative Vanguard Artists, our creative community is well represented amongst the 2026 Grammy Award nominees.
This morning, alumni, faculty and Creative Vanguard Artists from the USC Thornton School of Music received 27 nominations for the 68th Grammy Awards, announced Friday, Nov. 7. Our list of honorees includes veterans scoring a repeat trip to the awards, rising talents in the music industry and first-time nominees.
Among the highlights: classical guitarist Mak Grgić (MM ’12, DMA ’16, GCRT ’20) earned his third nomination in five years; jazz super group Yellowjackets was nominated for Best Jazz Instrumental Album for Fasten Up, featuring former Jazz Studies faculty members Bob Mintzer (sax) and Russell Ferrante (piano), along with Will Kennedy, assistant professor of practice in Popular Music and Jazz Studies, on drums; and Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ‘08) joined forces with USC Thornton Creative Vanguard Artist Raphael Saadiq as songwriters on “I Lied to You” from one of the year’s biggest films, Sinners, directed by USC School of Cinematic Arts alum Ryan Coogler.
This partial list represents just a few of the many alumni and faculty who contributed to these nominated recordings. Stay tuned for updates as more information comes in from our Thornton community about these nominated works.
Save the date: The 2026 Grammy Awards ceremony will be held on Sunday, February 1, at Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles.
List of USC Thornton Nominees
We strive to include all nominated current and former students, faculty, staff, and alumni in our write-up. If you or someone you know from the Thornton community should be mentioned, please do not hesitate to contact us so that we might add to our list of nominees.
Album of the Year
CHROMAKOPIA – Tyler, The Creator
Jason Ren (BM ’22), Johnny May (BM ’23), mixing engineers
SWAG – Justin Bieber
Frank Lookinland (BM ’24), engineer
MUTT – Leon Thomas
Peter Lee Johnson (BM ’13), producer, songwriter
Record of the Year
WILDFLOWER – Billie Eilish
Aron Forbes (BM ‘07), mixing engineer
Anxiety – Doechii
Juan Razuri (BS ‘24), immersive mixing engineer
Best R&B Song
YES IT IS – Leon Thomas
Peter Lee Johnson (BM ’13), songwriter
Best Rock Album
I quit – HAIM
Joey Messina-Doerning (BM ’19), Evan Pruett (BM ’24), recording engineers
Best Rap Album
CHROMAKOPIA – Tyler, The Creator
Jason Ren (BM ’22), Johnny May (BM ’23), mixing engineers
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
Ones & Twos – Gerald Clayton (BM ‘07), USC Thornton’s current Artist-in-Residence in Jazz Studies
Best Progressive R&B Album
Love on Digital – Destin Conrad
Charlie Hallock (BM ‘23), songwriter, producer
Access All Areas – FLO
Grant Boutin (BM ‘19), songwriter, producer
Best Dance/Electronic Album
Inhale / Exhale – Rüfüs Du Sol
Brian Malouf (Music Production Faculty Member), Matt Foster (BM ’22), mixing engineers
Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Fasten Up – Yellowjackets
Featuring former Jazz Studies faculty members Bob Mintzer (sax) & Russell Ferrante (piano) and current Assistant Professor of Practice in Popular Music & Jazz Studies, Will Kennedy on drums.
Best Alternative Jazz Album
honey from a winter stone
Ambrose Akinmusire (MM ‘07)
Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant Album
Nomadica
Carla Patullo featuring The Scorchio Quartet & Tonality, led by Alexander Lloyd Blake (DMA ‘19)
Artist-in-Residence in Jazz Studies
Raphael Saadiq
Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media (Includes Film And Television)
Sinners
Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ’08), composer
Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media
Sword of the Sea
Austin Wintory (BM ‘07), composer
Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
F1 the Album
Grant Boutin (BM ‘19), songwriter, producer – “Lose My Mind” (Don Toliver featuring Doja Cat)
Best Song Written For Visual Media
I Lied to You [From “Sinners”]
Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ’08) & Raphael Saadiq (USC Thornton Creative Vanguard Artist), songwriters (Miles Caton)
Pale, Pale Moon [From “Sinners”]
Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ’08) & Brittany Howard, songwriters (Jayme Lawson)
Best Instrumental Composition
“Why You Here / Before The Sun Went Down”
Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ’08), composer (Ludwig Göransson Featuring Miles Caton)
Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals
“Big Fish”
Sara Gazarek (BS ’04), composer
Best Choral Performance
Childs: In The Arms Of The Beloved
Grant Gershon (BM ‘85), conductor; (Billy Childs (BM ‘79), Dan
Chmlellnskl, Christian Euman, Larry Koonse, Lyris Quartet, Anne Akiko Meyers, Carol Robbins & Luciana Souza; Los Angeles Master Chorale)
Ortiz: Yanga
Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Grant Gershon (BM ‘85), chorus
master (Los Angeles Philharmonic & Tambuco Percussion Ensemble; Los Angeles Master Chorale) featuring choral artist alumni Graycen Gardner (MM ‘17) and David Morales (MA ‘20).
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
Slavic Sessions
Mak Grgić (MM ’12, DMA ’16, GCRT ’20) & Mateusz Kowalski
Producer Of The Year, Classical
Dmitriy Lipay for Ortiz: Yanga (Gustavo Dudamel, Alisa Weilerstein & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
Best Contemporary Classical Composition
Ortiz: Dzonot
Gabriela Ortiz, composer (Alisa Weilerstein, Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
Best Orchestral Performance
Stravinsky: Symphony In Three Movements
Esa-Pekka Salonen (honorary doctorate, 2010), conductor (San Francisco Symphony)
All recordings performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic includes several Thornton musicians, among them: faculty members Martin Chalifour (violin), Bing Wang (violin), Ben Hong (cello), Thomas Hooten (trumpet), Catherine Karoly (flute), Marion Arthur Kuszyk (oboe), David Howard (clarinet), Shawn Mouser (bassoon), David Allen Moore (double bass), Joseph Pereira (percussion), James Babor (percussion).
Photo credits from top to bottom: Featured photo courtesy of Tonality; Left to right (1) Courtesy of Juan Razuri; (2) Photo by Mallory Snyder; (3) Photo by Mallory Snyder
