Nominees for the 2026 Grammy Awards have been unveiled, and two of the world's biggest stars, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Taylor Swift, are not among them.

The award show is set to take place Feb. 1 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, and nominations were announced Nov. 7. Despite their splashy, record-breaking albums, Beyoncé and Swift are missing from this year’s lineup, though the reason isn't controversial.

Why Taylor Swift and Beyoncé aren't 2026 Grammy nominees

Neither of the singers released new music within the eligibility period for the upcoming award show. The 2026 music awards will honor the best recordings, compositions and artists from Aug. 31, 2024, to Aug. 30, 2025.

Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter' released ahead of Grammy eligibility period

Beyoncé released her eighth studio album "Cowboy Carter" March 29, 2024. The album became a catalyst for the renewed spotlight on Black country artists and the genre’s Black roots. "Cowboy Carter" also challenged music industry norms and sparked important conversations pertaining to the intersection of race and country music.

The history-making project broke several records and earned Beyoncé multiple accolades. She was the leading nominee at the 2025 Grammy Awards with a total of 11 nods.

She took home multiple awards including album of the year and best country album, presented by Swift. It was the first time a Black woman was nominated and won in the category. That same year, Swift received a total of six nods though she did not take home any awards.

In July, Beyoncé closed out her 32-stop Cowboy Carter and Rodeo Chitlin' Circuit Tour, and it became the highest grossing country tour of all time. Since the tour, fans have begun anticipating her next "Act III" album, which she has yet to announce.

Taylor Swift's 'Life of a Showgirl' released after Grammy eligibility period

Swift announced her 12th album "The Life of a Showgirl" in a promo for fiancé Travis Kelce's podcast "New Heights" 12 minutes after midnight on Aug. 12. However, the album wasn't released until Oct. 3, about a month after the August deadline for the upcoming award show.

The 12-track project has already had a historic run. Shortly after its debut, "The Life of a Showgirl" broke the modern-era record for the most albums sold in a week in the United States, selling over 3.4 million units in pure album sales. It became the largest sales week for an album since Luminate began recording data in 1991.

Swift also released a corresponding movie "The Official Release Party of a Showgirl" on Oct. 3. The film came in at No. 1 at the North American box office that same weekend with $33 million, according to estimates from Comscore. That meant Swift had the No. 1 album and No. 1 movie on the same weekend, a feat not even Prince accomplished with the release of "Purple Rain" in 1984, Deadline noted.

Swift's "The Life of a Showgirl" album will be eligible for the 2027 Grammys.

Follow Caché McClay, the USA TODAY Network's Beyoncé Knowles-Carter reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @cachemcclay.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why aren't Taylor Swift and Beyoncé on the 2026 Grammy nominees list?

Reporting by Caché McClay, USA TODAY NETWORK / Nashville Tennessean

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