Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo Celebrate Best Pop Vocal Duo Grammy for ‘Defying Gravity’ Following Oscars Oversight

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande on November 14, 2024 in New York, New York.
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NEED TO KNOW

• Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their “Defying Gravity” duet from Wicked
• The win follows Erivo’s 2017 Grammy for The Color Purple and Grande’s 2019 Grammy for Sweetener
• Their victory comes weeks after the Wicked sequel film, Wicked: For Good, received no Oscar nominations despite the first film’s success

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo have been awarded another Grammy, marking a noteworthy achievement amidst recent recognition snubs. Ahead of the 2026 Grammy Awards telecast on February 1, the stars of Wicked: For Good received the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance award for their rendition of “Defying Gravity” featured in last year’s film adaptation of Wicked.

Grande, 32, and Erivo, 39, faced off against notable competitors including ROSÉ and Bruno Mars for “APT.,” SZA and Kendrick Lamar for “30 dor 30,” KATSEYE’s “Gabriela,” and HUNTR/X’s EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and REI AMI with “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande on November 10, 2025 in London, England.

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The duo’s latest Grammy win follows Erivo’s first Grammy in 2017 for Best Musical Theater Album, acknowledging her contributions to the Broadway revival of The Color Purple. Grande, in turn, earned the Best Pop Vocal Album award in 2019 for Sweetener, alongside a Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Rain on Me” with Lady Gaga in 2021.

However, this victory comes just weeks after the pair received no nominations for the 2026 Oscars, announced on January 22. Wicked: For Good, the sequel to the acclaimed film adaptation, was notably snubbed, unlike its predecessor, which earned ten nominations, including accolades for Erivo and Grande in 2025 as Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress, respectively.

The first Wicked film, despite its earlier success, only managed to win two Academy Awards: Best Production Design and Best Costume Design.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande on November 18, 2024 in London, England.

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Along with their victory for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, the first Wicked film was also nominated for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media but lost to Ludwig Göransson for his score in Sinners.