Last week, Billboard’s R&B/hip-hop team shared our nominee predictions in three of the five R&B categories for the 68th annual Grammy Awards: best R&B performance, best traditional R&B performance and best R&B song. Here, we’re going to forecast which projects are most likely to make the cut in the best R&B album category.
Recent best R&B album winners include Jazmine Sullivan (Heaux Tales, 2022), Robert Glasper (Black Radio III, 2023), Victoria Monét (Jaguar II, 2024) and Chris Brown (11:11 [Deluxe], 2025). Before we predict the five nominees for the 2026 Grammy derby, which will be presented Feb. 1, here’s a quick refresher regarding the Recording Academy’s category definition for best R&B album.
It’s been four years since the Grammys’ best contemporary R&B album category was discontinued and its name changed to best R&B album. The revamped category brought together albums featuring infusions of contemporary hip-hop and those featuring more traditional R&B leanings under one roof. According to the academy’s current rulebook, best R&B album — vocal or instrumental — “recognizes artistic excellence in albums of R&B music.”
This year’s crop of R&B albums represents a diverse range of styles, long-anticipated returns and breakthroughs by a mix of established and rising stars — including several prior Grammy winners and nominees.
Among the long-anticipated returns is that of Teyana Taylor. Winning raves for her role in the Leonardo DiCaprio thriller One Battle After Another, she elicited strong buzz this summer for her BET Awards performance of “Fire Girl” and “Long Time.” Those songs plus the single “Bed of Roses” are from her anticipated first new album in five years Escape Room.
Another long-awaited moment arrived this year with the release of Justin Bieber’s seventh studio album SWAG. While one of its notable tracks, “Yukon,” is entered in the R&B category, the album is instead among the pop vocal album entries. This calls to mind the 2020 Grammys when Bieber questioned his Changes album being placed in the pop category versus R&B.
On the breakthrough front, one of this year’s heralded arrivals was Ravyn Lenae with the R&B/pop crossover lead single “Love Me Not,” alongside another popular track “Love Is Blind” — both from her critically acclaimed sophomore set Bird’s Eye. Her album, however, isn’t eligible for a nod as it was released Aug. 9, 2024, and the eligibility period for the 68th annual Grammys was Aug. 31, 2024-Aug. 30, 2025.
Additional artists who received attention this year include Alex Isley (WHEN), Thee Sacred Souls (Got a Story to Tell) and Eric Benét (The Co-Star).
So now let’s have a drumroll, please, as we share our fearless forecast of who will comprise the five slots when the best R&B album nominations are revealed on Nov. 7.
-
Leon Thomas, Mutt
Trending on Billboard
if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) {
pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() {
pmcCnx({
settings: {
plugins: {
pmcAtlasMG: {
iabPlcmt: 2,
}
}
},
playerId: ‘4057afa6-846b-4276-bc63-a9cf3a8aa1ed’,
playlistId: ‘b7dab6e5-7a62-4df1-b1f4-3cfa99eea709’,
}).render(“connatix_contextual_player_div”);
});
} else {
// This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it’s event time.
window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer();
}One sure shot is Leon Thomas. A two-time Grammy nominee, the singer-songwriter-musician-producer won his first golden statuette in 2024 for co-writing SZA’s best R&B song winner “Snooze.” In the year since then, Thomas not only solidified his status as a solo artist, but also raised the bar for R&B with his breakthrough sophomore album Mutt. The double-platinum outing spun off the same-titled single, which nuzzled its way into fans’ hearts on the Billboard Hot 100 (No. 12) and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (his first No. 1) as well as several global charts — not to mention his NPR Tiny Desk session, which has garnered more than 3.5 million views.
-
GIVĒON, Beloved
Trending on Billboard
if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) {
pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() {
pmcCnx({
settings: {
plugins: {
pmcAtlasMG: {
iabPlcmt: 2,
}
}
},
playerId: ‘4057afa6-846b-4276-bc63-a9cf3a8aa1ed’,
playlistId: ‘b7dab6e5-7a62-4df1-b1f4-3cfa99eea709’,
}).render(“connatix_contextual_player_div”);
});
} else {
// This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it’s event time.
window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer();
}Another formidable contender is GIVĒON. He returned this year after a three-year break with sophomore studio album Beloved, featuring the singles “Twenties” and “Rather Be.” Further fueling his aural visibility this year was his duet turn on Teddy Swims’ “Are You Even Real.” Currently packing venues on his Dear Beloved tour, GIVĒON is a seven-time Grammy nominee whose prior nods include best R&B album (Take Time) and song of the year (Justin Bieber’s “Peaches” on which he guests with Daniel Caesar).
-
Coco Jones, Why Not More?
Trending on Billboard
if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) {
pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() {
pmcCnx({
settings: {
plugins: {
pmcAtlasMG: {
iabPlcmt: 2,
}
}
},
playerId: ‘4057afa6-846b-4276-bc63-a9cf3a8aa1ed’,
playlistId: ‘b7dab6e5-7a62-4df1-b1f4-3cfa99eea709’,
}).render(“connatix_contextual_player_div”);
});
} else {
// This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it’s event time.
window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer();
}Coco Jones is another returning Grammy winner with a strong chance to land one of the category’s five nomination slots. Praised for power-packed vocals, vulnerability and versatility, her career ascension over the last two years netted the singer-songwriter a 2024 best R&B performance statuette for “ICU.” The seven-time nominee has since followed up her 2022 EP What I Didn’t Tell You (plus its 2023 deluxe edition) with the April release of her debut studio album, Why Not More? The four singles the project has spun off are “Here We Go (Uh Oh),” “Most Beautiful Design,” “Taste”and the RIAA gold-certified “On Sight.”
-
Mariah the Scientist, Hearts Sold Separately
Trending on Billboard
if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) {
pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() {
pmcCnx({
settings: {
plugins: {
pmcAtlasMG: {
iabPlcmt: 2,
}
}
},
playerId: ‘4057afa6-846b-4276-bc63-a9cf3a8aa1ed’,
playlistId: ‘b7dab6e5-7a62-4df1-b1f4-3cfa99eea709’,
}).render(“connatix_contextual_player_div”);
});
} else {
// This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it’s event time.
window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer();
}Another R&B artist experiencing a major breakthrough this year is Mariah the Scientist. Hearts Sold Separately, her fourth studio album, is resonating on the popular front due to her first Hot 100 hit “Burning Blue” (No. 29), which peaked at No. 7 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The singer-songwriter, who counts influences such as Michael Jackson, Prince and Whitney Houston, also notched two more Hot 100 entries to earn a first-time career trifecta on that chart: “Is It a Crime” with Kali Uchis and “Sacrifice.”
-
Ledisi, The Crown
Trending on Billboard
if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) {
pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() {
pmcCnx({
settings: {
plugins: {
pmcAtlasMG: {
iabPlcmt: 2,
}
}
},
playerId: ‘4057afa6-846b-4276-bc63-a9cf3a8aa1ed’,
playlistId: ‘b7dab6e5-7a62-4df1-b1f4-3cfa99eea709’,
}).render(“connatix_contextual_player_div”);
});
} else {
// This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it’s event time.
window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer();
}Ledisi took home the best traditional R&B performance gramophone in 2021 and is a 14-time nominee. The Crown, the singer-songwriter’s 12th studio album, features the singles “Love You Too” and “BLKWMN.” Ledisi’s performance of the latter empowerment anthem at the 2025 BET Awards was one of that show’s highlights. Earlier this year, she also gained heightened recognition for her vocal range and expressive delivery when she sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing” during the pregame show for Super Bowl LIX in her native New Orleans.