From For You Page to Grammy Stage: The Tiktok Generation Takes Over
The 2026 Grammys’ Best New Artist Category is feeling more like a scroll through your TikTok “For You” page than previous years. When the Recording Academy announced the nominees for best new artist — Olivia Dean, KATSEYE, The Marías, Addison Rae, Sombr, Leon Thomas, Alex Warren and Lola Young — it was an indicator that the Grammy pipeline now runs straight through TikTok. In a world where 15-second clips can launch a career, the Grammys are acknowledging that virality now matters just as much as talent.
Although they were both a part of the TikTok “Hype House”, Addison Rae and Alex Warren represent two sides of the TikTok-to-Grammy pipeline. Rae, who cultivated her following through dance videos, leveraged her online success by releasing her debut album “Addison,” which includes hit tracks “Diet Pepsi” and “Fame is a Gun.” The album’s success shows how social media influence, when used intentionally, can turn into a mainstream music career.
Warren, on the other hand, became massive with his song “Ordinary,” which went viral on TikTok and dominated the charts throughout 2025, but the rest of his music barely made a ripple. One viral song can make someone famous overnight, but it also can expose a thin foundation without a full and cohesive album supporting it, which Warren fell flat on.
Both artists rely heavily on social media to fuel their music careers, but to me, Rae made the smarter pivot. She intentionally rebranded herself from Tiktok influencer to credible pop artist, while Warren seems to depend on lightning striking twice, which almost never works. TikTok isn’t a substitute for artistic range.
This divide shows up across the best new artist lineup. KATSEYE, a global girl group who only debuted in June of 2024, exploded online after releasing their first single “Touch,” and more recently with dance trends being created to some of their songs like “Gnarly” and "Gabriella." Similarly, Sombr’s “back to friends” and “12 to 12” have become popular TikTok sounds to use for breakup videos and edits of movies or shows. These artists represent TikTok’s fast, algorithm-driven rise, where virality happens before an artist can fully develop.
In contrast, both Olivia Dean and The Marías built followings through albums and touring before Tiktok boosted songs like Dean’s “Man I Need” and The Marías “No One Noticed.”
Dean earned early praise for her debut studio album “Messy” in 2023, gaining support throughout the U.K. and E.U. The Marías built a dedicated indie following through touring and albums like “CINEMA” and “Un Verano Sin Ti,” which were both beautiful and cohesive works that mixed dream pop and jazz with Latin influences. Rather than being the foundation of their success, TikTok acted as an amplifier for their music.
The platform’s impact on music and the charts is undeniable at this point. According to the 2023 TikTok Music Impact Report conducted by Luminate, TikTok users in the U.S. are 70% more likely to discover new music on TikTok compared to the average user of other social media or short-form video platforms, and compared to average consumers, TikTok users are significantly more likely to stream music. “Roughly 9 out of 10 TikTok users in each of the markets included in this study use at least one music streaming service,” the report states.
Tiktok is rewriting how hits form, but that doesn’t automatically make every viral artist award-worthy. In my opinion, the distinction between the algorithmic era of music discovery and growth through craft and consistency, matters, especially for an award meant to recognize long-term potential, not just short-term visibility.
So who should win? To me, Leon Thomas is a clear frontrunner as the only nominee in the Best New Artist category also nominated for album of the year, one of the Grammy’s “big three” awards. Thomas, already an accomplished songwriter and producer, won a Grammy last year for best R&B song for “Snooze” with SZA which he co-produced. His album “Mutt” blends neo-soul, R&B and rock in a way that shows off his songwriting and vocal-range.
Most known for playing Andre on “Victorious,” Thomas’ first album “Genesis” was released in 2018. His critical acclaim and longevity in the music space prove that he’s left behind his Nickelodeon days and is building a clear artistic identity, making him my choice for best new artist. The one complaint I’ve seen across different comment sections and videos is that Thomas isn’t really a “new” artist, as he’s been writing and producing for some of the biggest names in the industry for well over a decade now.
On the Grammy’s website, the major requirements for Best New Artist are that “eligible artists must have achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and impacted the musical landscape during the year's eligibility period,” and who also have completed a full album or five singles or tracks. When they say “new,” they don’t necessarily mean new to music, but that the music is new to the general public. Changing the category name to “best breakthrough artist” would be more accurate to what qualifies an artist for the award.
Meanwhile, some of the year’s strongest new artists didn’t even make the cut for a nomination: Ravyn Lenae, whose single “Love Me Not” made waves across the charts and online, and Role Model, who has steadily built his fanbase through festival appearances and opening on tour for singer Gracie Abrams, who was nominated in the Best New Artist category in 2024.
From TikTok stars to full-fledged musicians, the 2026 Best New Artist race reflects a shift in the way the Recording Academy picks their nominees. Virality and artistry are now competing for the same spotlight, and with the line between the two becoming increasingly blurred, the winner will say a lot about what the Recording Academy has chosen to prioritize. If the Grammys want to honor artists who will still matter five years from now, they should choose someone whose music holds up outside of a 15-second clip.