1 of 3 | This combination of photos show Grammy nominees for best new artist, top row from left, Olivia Dean; Addison Rae; sombr, ottom row from left, Leon Thomas; Alex Warren; and Lola Young. (AP Photo)
LOS ANGELES (AP) Leon Thomas and Olivia Dean brought soul, global girl group Katseye and Addison Rae performed electric pop and Lola Young made a triumphant return to the stage.
Those acts, alongside The Maras, sombr and Alex Warren, make up the 2026 Grammys best new artist nominees and were the headliners of Spotifys annual pre-Grammy party Thursday night in Los Angeles.
The event at the Lot at Formosa in West Hollywood spotlighted up-and-coming talent across genres and backgrounds. Each act ran through three to four songs, introducing themselves to an audience of new listeners and dedicated fans in seemingly equal measure.
To hasten the transitions, the stage rotated to reveal another backline, leaving the audience to guess who would emerge next.
First up was Thomas. It was sensuality and swagger from the jump as he worked through three of his hits, ending with the ubiquitous Mutt. Consider it an amuse-bouche of tracks from an artist Ty Dolla $ign previously described to The Associated Press as the future of R&B.
I love yall so much, Thomas told the crowd as he began to leave. And then, a reminder: My name is Leon Thomas.
When the stage turned a few minutes after, a trepidatious Lola Young was standing in front of a set of chintzy, fringe lamps like those found in a vintage living room. It gave her four-song set a feeling of intimacy, which was amplified by the performance being her first since Sept. 27, when she fainted on stage at the All Things Go Festival in New York.
Im back and feeling better, she told the crowd. Thank you to everybody here.
Her vocal delivery was fierce and full-throated, though she opted not to perform Messy, the single that launched her career into the mainstream.
Take care of yourselves, she said as she exited the stage, a simple message with layered meaning.
The rest of the performances arrived fast and furious. The Maras brought their Mazzy Star-indebted, bilingual dream pop. They were followed by Ordinary singer Alex Warrens anthemic radio pop .
Everything became gnarly from there as Katseye commanded the room as if it were their own stadium. Where other acts opted for complex sets, they stripped the stage bare. Instead, their hyperactive pop and athletic choreography filled space.
Sombrs pop-rock pulled from a mlange of nostalgic genres for the TikTok generation.
I couldnt get into this party last year, he joked from the stage.
Spotify did not host the annual event in 2025 following the devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires that shaped a very different kind of Grammy Awards .
In the end, there were two: Addison Rae and Olivia Dean. Rae brought her sensual, hypnotic pop in a medley of In the Rain, High Fashion and Diet Pepsi. She described the latter song as starting so much for me.
Dean, an old soul with a timeless voice, was a fitting closer.
The pair further confirmed what was already evident in this years best new artist class: an inventive vision and a diversity of sound can take you far.
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The 68th Grammy Awards will be held Feb. 1 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The show will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+. For more coverage of this years Grammy Awards visit: www.apnews.com/hub/grammy-awards
洛杉矶（美联社）——莱昂·托马斯（Leon Thomas）和奥利维亚·迪恩（Olivia Dean）带来了灵魂乐表演，全球女子组合Katseye与艾迪生·雷（Addison Rae）献上动感流行乐，而罗拉·杨（Lola Young）则以胜利之姿重返舞台。
这些艺人，连同The Marías、Sombr和亚历克斯·沃伦（Alex Warren），共同入围了2026年格莱美最佳新人奖提名，并成为周四晚在洛杉矶举行的Spotify年度格莱美预热派对的压轴表演嘉宾。
在西好莱坞福尔摩沙广场举行的这场活动，聚焦了来自不同流派和背景的新锐人才。每位表演者演绎了三到四首歌曲，向现场观众——包括新听众和忠实乐迷——进行了自我介绍，两者比例看似相当。
为加快转场节奏，舞台旋转露出另一组背景，让观众猜测下一位登场者会是谁。
首先登场的是托马斯（Thomas）。从开场起，他的表演就充满性感与张扬，接连演绎了三首热门单曲，最后以那首无处不在的《Mutt》收尾。这堪称泰·多拉·赛恩（Ty Dolla $ign）曾向美联社形容为‘未来节奏布鲁斯之星’的艺术家奉上的一份音乐开胃小点。
“我太爱你们了，”托马斯在离开前对人群说道。随后他又提醒了一句：“我叫利昂·托马斯。”
几分钟后舞台旋转变换，忐忑不安的萝拉·杨（Lola Young）站在一组俗气的流苏灯前，这些灯饰让人联想到复古客厅的摆设。这场仅包含四首曲目的演出因此平添了几分亲密感，而由于这是她自9月27日在纽约All Things Go音乐节舞台上晕倒后的首次公开表演，这种氛围更显浓烈。
“我回来了，感觉好多了，”她对人群说道，“感谢在场的每一个人。”
她的演唱充满力量且情感饱满，但并未选择表演那首让她跻身主流的单曲《Messy》。
“照顾好自己。”她离场时说道，这句简单的话语蕴含着多层深意。
随后的演出接踵而至，精彩纷呈。The Marías乐队带来了受Mazzy Star影响的双语梦幻流行乐。紧接着，《Ordinary》的演唱者亚历克斯·沃伦（Alex Warren）献上了朗朗上口的电台流行金曲。
从那一刻起，场面变得**狂野**起来——凯特赛（Katseye）掌控全场的气势宛如置身专属体育馆。当其他表演者选择复杂布景时，她们反其道而行之，将舞台彻底清空。取而代之的是，她们用充满活力的流行乐风与运动型编舞填满了整个空间。
Sombrs乐队的流行摇滚乐从怀旧风格的大杂烩中汲取灵感，专为TikTok世代打造。
“去年我可没资格参加这个派对，”他在台上开玩笑说道。
由于洛杉矶地区爆发毁灭性山火，导致格莱美奖以截然不同的形式呈现，Spotify因此未能在2025年举办年度盛典。
最终有两位歌手脱颖而出：艾迪森·雷（Addison Rae）与奥利维亚·迪恩（Olivia Dean）。雷以充满魅惑力的迷幻流行曲风串烧了《雨中》《高级时尚》和《健怡可乐》三首作品，并形容最后一首歌对她而言‘意义非凡’。
迪恩——这位嗓音永恒、气质古典的歌手，堪称完美的压轴人选。
这对组合进一步印证了今年最佳新人奖项中已显而易见的事实：富有创意的视野和多元化的音乐风格能让他们走得更远。
第68届格莱美奖颁奖典礼将于2月1日在洛杉矶Crypto.com体育馆举行。颁奖盛典将通过CBS电视台播出，并同步在Paramount+平台流媒体直播。欲了解更多本届格莱美奖的报道，请访问：www.apnews.com/hub/grammy-awards
