NEED TO KNOW
Lady Gaga performed a rock version of her hit song "Abracadabra" at the annual awards show on Sunday, Feb. 1
But according to the Grammys' executive producer Ben Winston, the team behind the show wasn't sure she'd ultimately be able to take the stage
He spoke to the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast about how Gaga's performance came together
Lady Gaga's2026 Grammy Awardsperformance almost didn't happen.
The pop superstar, 39, performed a rock version of her hit song "Abracadabra" at the annual awards show on Sunday, Feb. 1, where shetook home two trophies. But according to the Grammys' executive producer Ben Winston, the team behind the show wasn't sure she'd ultimately be able to take the stage.
"There was one point a few weeks before the show that we thought we might have to lose her from the show because she just was like, 'I just don't see how I can,'" Winston told theRolling Stone Music Nowpodcast on Tuesday, Feb. 3.
The 2026 Grammy Awards went down just two days after Gaga wrapped a string of shows in Japan as part of her ongoing Mayhem Ball tour, and it was unclear if she'd have enough time to rehearse the "Abracadabra" performance.
"Unlike everybody else who had time to rehearse offsite or with their dancers or band or creative team, she couldn't," explained Winston. "She was literally on stage."
In order to make the performance come to fruition, Gaga and her team chose to opt for a rock version of theMayhemsingle centered around Mother Monster playing piano rather than "a hundred dancers and this big thing," Winston told the outlet. "It was so different, so original, so spectacular."
The fresh take on "Abracadabra" was produced by Andrew Watt, whoalso worked on the original song. Winston recalled receiving the new version "in the middle of the night a couple of weeks ago" from Watt.
"I was still awake, but my wife Meredith was asleep. He said, 'You gotta listen.' I crept into the toilet and got my AirPods on and sat on the loo listening to this thing," said Winston. "And I was like, 'Oh man, this has taken this track to an incredible level.'"
Following the performance, partly filmed using a camera mounted on a pre-programmed robot arm, Winston said the production crew was "high-fiving and celebrating" its success.
Kevin Winter/Getty
He reflected, "What's funny is circumstance drives you to a certain creative, but when you nail the creative, if you could go back in time and not have those restrictions, you'd still choose that creative."
Gaga attended the 2026 Grammys with her fiancéMichael Polansky. She won two awards at the ceremony: Best Dance Pop Recording for "Abracadabra" and Best Pop Vocal Album forMayhem.
The Mayhem Ball continues with a second North American leg from February through April.
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