When Charli xcx shared on the Nicky at Night podcast that she was apathetic about whether or not her new album “Music, Fashion, Film” would flop, most business-oriented music listeners, executives, and labels would raise an eyebrow.

The cycle for the 2025-2026 music is about to close in August with nominations being officially released in November 2026. I’ve selected each of my nomination predictions based on each song and artist’s likability within the industry, progression and narrative as an artist, the exploration of their songs, and cultural relevance. Please enjoy!

When we think of Western pop and rock music, the first things that come to mind are catchy riffs and melodies, references to having a good time, and whatnot, but hidden within the discographies of a surprising number of Western artists, are songs sampling Sanskrit verses composed thousands of years ago as part of an oral tradition to preserve and pass down sacred knowledge across generations. Quite the tonal whiplash if you’d ask me. 

Olivia Rodrigo’s third studio LP, “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love”, released on June 12, 2026, via Geffen Records, stands as her most mature, experimental and commercially dominant work. It’s an album that doesn't just propel her career: it completely rewrites the rules for modern alternative pop.

Most songs explore romance, but Type O Negative does not merely explore it, it wallows in it. The four-member band that started in 1989 has a plethora of songs within their discography that explores this phenomenon. The clearest example is “October Rust” (1996): an album both provocative and poetic, horny and sincere, and most importantly, an album built on contradictions.