GHOST have once again claimed Sweden's most prestigious music honor, winning the "Best Hard Rock/Metal" award at the 2026 Swedish GRAMMIS for their album Skeletá. The award marks the fifth time the occult rock outfit has taken home the hard rock and metal prize — a feat unmatched in the award's history.
The ceremony saw mastermind Tobias Forge accepting alongside his creative collaborators: producers Max Grahn, Vincent Pontare, and Salem Al Fakir. The award was presented by Joey Tempest of EUROPE. GHOST faced stiff competition in the category, seeing off SABATON, SARCATOR, THE HAUNTED, and THE HELLACOPTERS to clinch the win.
Skeletá has been one of the defining metal albums of the past year. Released in May 2025, it debuted at #1 on the US Billboard 200 with 86,000 equivalent album units in its first week — making it the first hard rock album to top the chart since AC/DC's Power Up in 2020. First-week vinyl sales alone exceeded 44,000 copies.
The band received six GRAMMIS nominations in total this year. GHOST's previous wins in the hard rock/metal category came for Infestissumam, Meliora, the Popestar EP, and Impera. Forge accepted the award with his signature dry humor, joking that he hoped Skeletá would endure "even after I've stood here rambling through this speech without notes."