Why isn’t Taylor Swift eligible for the 2026 Grammys even though she recently released her album, The Life of a Showgirl?
Taylor Swift is still unable to cross off further Grammy nominations from her wish list. Music lovers may have questioned why Taylor's most recent album, The Life of a Showgirl, was entirely left off of the list of nominees when the 2026 Grammys were revealed on November 7. Do not worry, though; her exclusion was not a snub.
As it happens, she was just ineligible this time.
According to the rule, a project cannot be considered for a Grammy Award nomination unless it is released during the eligibility term. The time frame for this year was August 31, 2024, to August 30, 2025.
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On October 3, 2025, more than a month after the qualifying window ended, Taylor released The Life of a Showgirl. She also decided not to release any singles prior to the album's release, even though she announced the album on August 13. Additionally, she had not released any new music during this year's eligibility period since her April 2024 release of her previous album, The Tortured Poets Department.
The Life of a Showgirl is eligible to be nominated for the 2026 Grammy Awards, therefore there is a chance Taylor might add to her 14 Grammys in 2027 even if her twelfth studio album will not be present.
Rather, with nine nominations overall, including Album of the Year for GNX, her "Bad Blood" co-star Kendrick Lamar lead the field this year. He became the first rapper in history to receive five nominations as a lead artist in that category, especially with that nod.
Bad Bunny and Sabrina Carpenter each received six nods, while Lady Gaga received seven, closely trailing the "Not Like Us" hitmaker's haul.
With ROSÉ and Bruno Mars' nominations for Record of the Year and Song of the Year for their song "APT.," the Grammys this year also made history. The Blackpink singer became the first K-pop artist to be nominated as a main performer for one of the top four Grammy awards, which also include Album of the Year and Best New Artist.
On Sunday, February 1, CBS will broadcast live coverage of the 2026 Grammy Awards from Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena.
