Brent Hinds was left out of the In Memoriam segment at the 2026 Grammy Awards.
The late Mastodon guitarist didn’t make the cut for the In Memoriam segment, despite being a Grammy winner and six-time nominee thanks to his work with Mastodon.
Fans and observers took to social media to express their disapproval at Hinds’ omission.
“BIG party foul Grammys for forgetting the MIGHTY Brent Hinds in the In Memoriam,” former Mastodon tour musician Mike Inez wrote on Instagram. Mastodon drummer Brann Dailor agreed with his statement in the replies with a series of fire emojis.
As noted by Revolver, Hinds actually features in the In Memoriam section on the official Grammy website, which makes his ceremony omission even stranger.
Mastodon earned five nominations for Best Metal Performance at the Grammys between 2007 and 2022. They won in 2018 for “Sultan’s Curse”.
The 2026 Grammys ceremony paid tribute to other notable musicians including Ozzy Osbourne, with Post Malone, Slash, Duff McKagan, Chad Smith, and Andrew Watt joining forces for an all-star tribute.
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Hinds passed away last year at the age of 51 in a motorcycle accident.
Mastodon paid tribute to Hinds during a subsequent show in Alaska.
Drummer Dailor addressed the crowd at the end of their set, saying: “We lost somebody very special to us yesterday. Brent Hinds, 25 years with us as our guitar player, one of the most creative, beautiful people that we’ve ever come across in this world, tragically left us.
“We loved him so, so, so very much. And we had the ups and downs of a 25-year relationship, you know what I mean? It’s not always perfect, it’s not always amazing, but we were brothers to the end.”
Hinds co-founded Mastodon in 2000 alongside bassist Troy Sanders, guitarist Bill Kelliher, and Dailor.
The band achieved significant commercial and critical success over their 25-year collaboration. Their 2004 release Leviathan earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time, while single “Blood and Thunder” was included in the publication’s 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time.
