Gospel music will be front and center at the 2026 GRAMMY Awards, as celebrated worship leaders Israel Houghton and Tasha Cobbs Leonard have been officially tapped to perform during the Premiere Ceremony.
The Premiere Ceremony will stream live at 3:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. PT on the Recording Academy's official YouTube channel and via live.GRAMMY.com, offering fans worldwide a front-row seat to the celebration of music's top honors.
Both Houghton and Cobbs Leonard enter the ceremony as GRAMMY nominees, further elevating the significance of their performances. Known for their powerful vocals, genre-spanning artistry, and global influence in contemporary gospel and worship music, their inclusion reflects the Recording Academy's continued recognition of gospel's artistic and cultural impact.
Joining them on the Premiere Ceremony stage is a diverse lineup of performers representing multiple genres and musical traditions, including Grace Potter, Lila Iké, Maggie Rose, Trombone Shorty, and Darren Criss, among others. The lineup underscores the Premiere Ceremony's role as a vibrant showcase of musical excellence across styles and communities.
The Premiere Ceremony precedes the main telecast and is where the majority of GRAMMY Awards are presented, honoring technical, genre-specific, and artistic achievements that shape the sound of modern music.
Following the Premiere Ceremony, the 66th Annual GRAMMY Awards will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET, with live and on-demand streaming available on Paramount+.
For gospel fans, the moment marks another milestone in the genre's expanding visibility on one of music's most prestigious stages-celebrating faith-rooted artistry alongside the world's biggest musical voices.
