Taylor Swift wins BIG at iHeartRadio Music Awards 2026 (photo: Skyler Barberio)
The 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards gathered some of the most iconic artists on Thursday, March 26 to celebrate the best in music. Hosted by Ludacris, the event took place at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, aired LIVE on FOX. The event is available to stream on Hulu. The awards show featured performances by Alex Warren, John Mellencamp, Kehlani, Lainey Wilson, Ludacris, RAYE, and performing for the first time together, TLC, Salt-N-Pepa and En Vogue.
iHeartRadio Music Awards featured special appearances by guests including Taylor Swift, the show’s most-nominated artist, who took home seven awards, along with Alysa Liu, NE-YO, Nicole Scherzinger, Nikki Glaser, Shaboozey, sombr, Teddi Mellencamp, Vin Diesel and Weezer.
John Mellencamp was honored with the 2026 iHeartRadio Icon Award, Ludacris received the 2026 iHeartRadio Landmark Award, Miley Cyrus was honored with the 2026 iHeartRadio Innovator Award and Alex Warren received the 2026 iHeartRadio Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award.
Ahead of the iHeartRadio Music Awards at this year’s red carpet Alex Warren, Chase Matthew, JENEVIEVE, Sailor, sombr and Return to Dust all were presented with iHeartRadio On The Verge Awards.
Additional highlights included:
•Ludacris welcomed the audience and viewers to the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards.
•Alex Warren transformed the stage into a New York subway scene to perform his hits “Ordinary” and “Fever Dream” before accepting the 2026 iHeartRadio Breakthrough Artist of the Year award.
•Jason Aldean introduced Lainey Wilson who captivated the crowd with her performance of “Wildflowers and Wild Horses,” “Hang Tight Honey” and “Heart Like A Truck.” After her performance, Lainey Wilson presented Miley Cyrus with the 2026 iHeartRadio Innovator Award, calling her one of her biggest inspirations.
•Performing together for the first time TLC, Salt-N-Pepa and En Vogue had the crowd singing along to a melody of “Hold On,” “Waterfalls,” “Shoop,” “What A Man,” “Scrubs,” “Free Your Mind,” “Push It” and “What About Your Friends,” giving fans a taste of their upcoming tour.
•Shaboozey presented Best New Artist (Country) to Ella Langley, who accepted the award from one of her biggest fans on stage.
•Teddi Mellencamp and her Dad, John Mellencamp shared a heartfelt moment on stage as she presented him with the 2026 iHeartRadio Icon Award. Teddi grew emotional as she talked about how her father has supported her through the years, her cancer battle and how his lyrics always help her. John immediately gave the award back to his daughter, dedicating it to her and reflecting on his 50-year career, wishing new artists enjoy their career just as much as he did.
•After receiving his award, John Mellencamp had the crowd on their feet for a special performance of “Jack and Diane” and “Pink Houses.”
•RAYE presented Taylor Swift with Pop Album of the Year, who thanked her fans and her fiancé Travis Kelce for making every day happy.
•Kehlani performed her hit “Folded” before accepting R&B Song of the Year from NE-YO. She thanked her fans for always being with her throughout the ups and downs of her career, and said her new record feels like a win for them all.
•Weezer’s Brian Bell and Rivers Cuomo presented sombr with iHeartRadio Music Awards Alternative Album of the Year. sombr also took home the iHeartRadio Music Award for Best New Artist (Alternative) and was presented with two iHeartRadio On The Verge Awards while on the red carpet.
•Vin Diesel presented host Ludacris with the 2026 iHeartRadio Landmark Award.
•Donnie Wahlberg and Jenny McCarthy introduced RAYE, who kept the energy up with her hit “Where Is My Husband!”
•Olympic Gold Medalist Alysa Liu presented Taylor Swift with her seventh award of the night, the Artist of the Year Award and recapped her other wins, which were Pop Album of the Year, Album of the Year, Pop Song of the Year, Best Lyrics, Best Music Video and Favorite Tour Style.
•Ludacris performed a melody of his fan favorites “Pull Over,” “Rollout,” “Money Maker,” “My Chick Bad,” “Stand Up” and “Move B****.”
•Nikki Glaser presented Alex Warren with Song of the Year, for his hit “Ordinary.” In addition to the Song of the Year and the 2026 iHeartRadio Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award, Alex also took home iHeartRadio Music Awards for Best New Artist (Pop) and Favorite Debut Album, and on the red carpet he was presented with the iHeartRadio On The Verge Award.
Category winners are:
Song of the Year:
“Ordinary” – Alex Warren
Artist of the Year:
Taylor Swift
Album of the Year:
“The Life of a Showgirl” – Taylor Swift
Duo/Group of the Year:
The Singing Voices of HUNTR/X: EJAE, AUDREY NUNA, REI AMI
Best Collaboration:
“APT.” – ROSÉ & Bruno Mars
Pop Artist of the Year:
Sabrina Carpenter
Pop Song of the Year:
“The Fate of Ophelia” – Taylor Swift
Pop Album of the Year:
“The Life of a Showgirl”- Taylor Swift
Best New Artist (Pop):
Alex Warren
Alternative Artist of the Year:
twenty one pilots
Alternative Song of the Year:
“Ensenada” – Sublime
Alternative Album of the Year:
“I Barely Know Her” – sombr
Best New Artist (Alternative):
sombr
Rock Artist of the Year:
Shinedown
Rock Song of the Year:
“Heavy Is the Crown” – Linkin Park
Best New Artist (Rock):
Sleep Theory
Country Artist of the Year:
Morgan Wallen
Country Song of the Year:
“Good News” – Shaboozey
Country Album of the Year:
“I’m The Problem” – Morgan Wallen
Best New Artist (Country):
Ella Langley
Dance Artist of the Year:
David Guetta
Dance Song of the Year:
“No Broke Boys” – Disco Lines & Tinashe
Dance Album of the Year:
“MAYHEM” – Lady Gaga
K-pop Artist of the Year:
ROSÉ
K-pop Group of the Year:
Stray Kids
K-pop Song of the Year:
“Golden” – The Singing Voice of HUNTR/X: EJAE, AUDREY NUNA, REI AMI
K-pop Album of the Year:
“Ruby” – Jennie
Best New Artist (K-pop):
Cortis
Hip-Hop Artist of the Year:
Kendrick Lamar
Hip-Hop Song of the Year:
“luther” – Kendrick Lamar and SZA
Hip-Hop Album of the Year:
“GNX”– Kendrick Lamar
Best New Artist (Hip-Hop):
MOLIY
R&B Artist of the Year:
Chris Brown
R&B Song of the Year:
“Folded” – Kehlani
R&B Album of the Year:
“PHOLKS”- Leon Thomas
Best New Artist (R&B):
Leon Thomas
World Artist of the Year:
MOLIY
Latin Pop/Urban Artist of the Year:
Bad Bunny
Latin Pop/Urban Song of the Year:
“DtMF” – Bad Bunny
Latin Pop/Urban Album of the Year:
“Debí Tirar Más Fotos”- Bad Bunny
Best New Artist (Latin Pop/Urban):
Beéle
Songwriter of the Year:
Amy Allen
Label of the Year:
Interscope Capitol
Tour of the Year:
The Weeknd
Best Lyrics: *Socially Voted Category
“The Fate of Ophelia” – Taylor Swift
Best Music Video: *Socially Voted Category
“The Fate of Ophelia” – Taylor Swift
Favorite On Screen: *Socially Voted Category
Jimin and Jungkook, “Are You Sure?!”
Favorite Soundtrack: *Socially Voted Category
“KPop Demon Hunters”
Favorite Tour Style: *Socially Voted Category
Taylor Swift, “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour”
(New for 2026) Favorite TikTok Dance: *Socially Voted Category
“MONA LISA” – j-hope
Favorite Tour Tradition: *Socially Voted Category
Coldplay, Crowd cam
(New for 2026) Favorite K-pop Collab: *Socially Voted Category
“Sweet Dreams (feat. Miguel)” – j-hope, Miguel
Favorite Broadway Debut: *Socially Voted Category
Tom Felton, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”
(New for 2026) Favorite Debut Album: *Socially Voted Category
Alex Warren, “You’ll Be Alright, Kid”
