20 superstar musicians who never won a Grammy

Though he’s widely regarded as one of the best rappers of all time, Tupac Shakur never won a Grammy Award. The artist was nominated six times during his career before his tragic death in 1996. In 2015, nearly 20 years later, the Grammy Museum honored the late rapper with an exhibit called All Eyez on Me: The Writings of Tupac Shakur. 

Demi Lovato is known for her stunning and powerful voice but hasn’t yet been honored with a Grammy Award. The former Disney star has been nominated twice, once for Best Pop Vocal Album and once for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. The singer does have a Kids’ Choice Award, though. 

Like their friend Demi Lovato, the Jonas Brothers have been nominated for two Grammys without winning. The band’s first nomination was for Best New Artist, and it lost to Adele. When asked if their band should’ve won over the British singer, all three members agreed Adele deserved the award. 

Despite being one of the most influential musicians of modern times, Lana Del Rey has yet to win a Grammy Award. The exceptional singer-songwriter has been nominated 11 times, with two critically acclaimed albums earning Album of the Year nominations. Del Rey is always writing new music, so hopefully, it's only a matter of time before she takes home some hardware of her own. 

It’s been over 20 years since Jennifer Lopez has been nominated for a Grammy Award. The New York native has only been nominated twice and lost both times. Lopez was, however, honored in 2018 with the Video Vanguard Award, an award that goes to far fewer artists than the Grammys. 

Yes, it’s shocking that ABBA hasn’t won a Grammy Award, but what’s more shocking is that the band wasn’t even nominated until the 64th Grammy Awards, which were held in 2022 and announced in 2021. The cast recording for the original West End production of Mamma Mia!, the musical based on ABBA’s catalog, was nominated for a Grammy before the band itself was. 

Katy Perry has had incredible commercial success as a musician, but her work at the Grammy Awards hasn’t been quite as prolific. Perry has been nominated for a Grammy 13 times, even earning nods in three of the Big Four categories throughout the years, but she has yet to take home a gramophone of her own. 

Though some country artists have taken home a staggering amount of Grammy Awards, like Alison Krauss, who has 27, and Vince Gill, who has 21, most singers from Nashville are in Blake Shelton’s camp with zero. Though there are multiple country-specific categories, Shelton has come up short each of the eight times he’s been nominated. 

Sia is known for her powerful voice and honest songwriting, but neither has earned her a Grammy Award. The Australian artist has written songs for a number of Grammy-winning artists, though, including Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Britney Spears. 

Another Disney darling without a Grammy Award, Selena Gomez, has been nominated twice for her work by the Recording Academy. She’s also been nominated for a Latin Grammy Award and multiple Emmy Awards. Gomez also has 16 Guinness World Records, several of them for the number of followers she has on Instagram. 

Machine Gun Kelly will admit he spent years creating music hoping to be recognized by the Recording Academy. Though he didn’t win, he was nominated at the 65th Awards in the Best Rock Album category for his record Mainstream Sellout . He lost out to rock legend Ozzy Osbourne for his album Patient Number 9.  

Bjork rose to fame by releasing genre-bending music and wearing avian dresses to awards shows (though, to be fair, the latter only happened once). The most famous person to hail from Iceland, Bjork has never won a Grammy Award despite having been nominated 16 times. Her most recent nomination was in 2023. Her record Fossora was up for Best Alternative Music Album.  

Nicki Minaj has 10 total Grammy nominations to her name but no wins. She’s even been nominated in two Big Four categories, including Best New Artist and Best Album, for her work as a featured artist on Rihanna’s Loud. But Minaj is still making music, so there’s a chance she could win one year. 

Snoop Dogg has changed his name more times than he’s won a Grammy Award. The "Gin and Juice" rapper has yet to claim the major award, but he has taken home hardware from other awarding bodies, like Billboard and BET. He’s also got his cookbook and is friends with Martha Stewart, so we don’t feel too bad for Snoop. 

If there’s anything more surprising than the fact that Jimi Hendrix never won a Grammy, it’s the fact that he was only nominated once. The guitarist garnered his only competitive nod for his historic rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner," but he was honored by the Recording Academy several times after his death. 

Although she’s been nominated 13 times, Diana Ross has never won a competitive Grammy Award. Ross did, however, receive two Grammy Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Recording Academy, one for her work as a solo artist and one for her work with the Supremes. She also delivered one of the most iconic Super Bowl Halftime performances of all time, so who’s the real winner?

Bob Marley remains one of the most influential musicians ever to live, proving that a Grammy does not define your artistry or reach. Due to his untimely death, Marley didn’t have as long of a career to create music for Grammy consideration, but it’s reasonable to assume he would have had he lived longer. Marley did receive a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001, the same year he was memorialized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

Perhaps the most surprising entry on this list, Queen has never won a competitive Grammy Award. Despite having massive success in the ‘70s and ‘80s, the Freddie Mercury-led band came up short at the Grammys. The band did, however, receive the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018 for its outstanding contribution to music over its tenure. 

Another country man without a Grammy, Dierks Bentley, has been nominated a whopping 14 times without taking home the award. Bentley has attended the ceremony multiple times, even taking the stage as a performer alongside Grammy winner Miranda Lambert. Still, he has yet to leave music’s biggest night with hardware of his own. 

The Jonas Brothers don’t need to feel too bad. They’re not the only boy band that hasn’t taken home music’s top honor. Despite having been nominated several times, Backstreet Boys don’t have a Grammy. They do have two diamond records under their belt, though, which is more than can be said for most Grammy winners.