Lady Gaga seems to have given Bad Bunny some meaningful words of encouragement moments before he took home Album of the Year at last night's Grammys ... and the sweet moment was caught on camera.

Benito was quietly sitting at his table ahead of the big announcement during a break in the show ... when Gaga approached him from behind, tapped his right shoulder and startled him nearly out of his seat.

While the video doesn't capture any audio ... she was seen leaning in and whispering something in his ear before giving him a gentle hug. He lets out a deep sigh of relief, as she heads back to her seat.

Moments later ... BB was in tears after "DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS" (Or, in English, "I Should Have Taken More Photos") was announced as the winner -- marking the first time a Spanish-language album has ever won the award.

Gaga was clearly thrilled, jumping to her feet and cheering loudly when his name was called.

After the awards show ... Gaga spoke about how proud she was of him, saying she knows how much he means to people and praising him for speaking out against ICE after winning Best Música Urbana Album -- adding, "We're so lucky to have leaders like him that are speaking up for what is true and what is right."