The long-awaited Grammy Awards presented by the Recording Academy took place Sunday. In the wake of the devastating wildfires that swept across Los Angeles this past month, the show was used as an opportunity to raise funds for those impacted by the tragedy and was a beautiful display of the talent that the American music industry has to offer. With show-stopping performances, well-deserved wins and an overall positive energy gracing the room, the night left online users saying “we are so back” after a few years of less than stellar Grammys.
Hosted by comedian Trevor Noah for the fifth year in a row, the show started with a tribute to Los Angeles. Music stars Taylor Goldsmith, Griffin Goldsmith, John Legend, St. Vincent, Brad Paisley, Brittany Howard and Sheryl Crow performed a rendition of Randy Newman’s “I Love L.A.” to help bring awareness to and garner donations for those affected by California wildfires. Sunday night alone saw almost $9 million raised going towards four different organizations to aid in fire relief and give assistance to communities in need. Individuals could donate through QR codes which were dispersed throughout the actual venue and on-screen during the telecast.
This night then proved to be a night of many firsts. In fact, two of the biggest icons of the summer — Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX — both picked up their very first batches of Grammys with two wins for Carpenter and three for Charli XCX. Carpenter nabbed Best Pop Vocal Album for “Short n’ Sweet” and Best Pop Solo Performance for “Espresso,” while Charli XCX won Best Dance/Electronic Album, Best Recording Package for her album “Brat” and Best Dance Pop Recording for her song “Von Dutch.”
One of the most highly anticipated categories of the night was Best New Artist. Previously won by megastars such as The Beatles, Mariah Carey and Adele, Best New Artist often marks a major turning point in the career of the winner. This year’s list of nominees was jam packed with standout stars including Sabrina Carpenter, RAYE, Doechii and Shaboozey, but Chappell Roan snagged the award after a breakout year following the release of her album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.”
After thanking those who continue to inspire and support her, Roan used the end of her speech to call out record labels for failing to prioritize artists’ health by providing them with health care, garnering a great deal of support from the crowd and online onlookers.
“I told myself if I ever won a Grammy and I got to stand up here in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry profiting millions of dollars off of artists would offer a livable wage and health care,” Roan said.
Doechii was another big winner of the night, taking home the Best Rap Album award for her flawless hit album “Alligator Bites Never Heal.” In her tearful speech, Doechii made note that only three women have ever won this award — Ms. Lauryn Hill for “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” in 1999 and Cardi B for “Invasion of Privacy” in 2019 and now Doechii herself.
Kendrick Lamar also had quite the successful Grammys season, taking home two of the biggest awards of the night — Song of the Year, recognizing the songwriters, and Record of the Year, awarding the overall production. Lamar won this duo of awards for his viral sensation “Not Like Us,” a song released during his public feud with famed rapper Drake. This was Lamar’s first win for Record of the Year and brings his overall number of Grammy awards to a whopping 22.
Though Lamar, Roan and others found major successes at the show, the biggest winner of the night was Beyoncé. Queen Bey took home three awards — Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “II Most Wanted” featuring Miley Cyrus, Best Country Album for “Cowboy Carter” and the ever-so-coveted award for Album of the Year.
This win for “Cowboy Carter” marks the first time a Black woman has won Best Country Album and a groundbreaking shift in the genre that has rejected Beyoncé time and time again.
Though Best Country Album is an incredibly important award, Beyoncé’s win for Album of the Year is even more meaningful. As the most Grammy-awarded artist of all time — her 3 wins last night increased her overall total to 35 awards — she had never won the award for Album of the Year until now, despite being nominated unsuccessfully in the category four times. Beyoncé is also the first Black woman to win this award since Ms. Lauryn Hill won for “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” back in 1999.
“I hope we just keep pushing forward, opening doors,” Beyoncé said in her acceptance speech after dedicating her award to Linda Martell.
Martell is a featured artist from “Cowboy Carter” and a pioneer in country music as the first Black woman to break into the country music charts back in 1970.
The performances at the event were also a major highlight of the night, with many stars showing off their hit songs from the year. A standout moment was Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ performance of “California Dreamin.” The duo was then awarded Best Pop Duo/Group Performance award for “Die With A Smile,” and to close out her own successful night, Gaga premiered a new song entitled “Abracadabra” in a surprise commercial break alongside a striking music video. The release garnered a lot of positive buzz, as audiences reveled in the high-energy, religious inspired, beat-heavy “old Gaga” sound that the song seems to harken back to.
The entire night was marked with genuine smiles from artists cheering on their peers, coupled with solidarity amid the ongoing period of recovery for the Los Angeles community. From the memorable vocal and dance performances to the long-awaited recognition of deserving artists, this year’s Grammys capped off a year of music that has revitalized the music world with the release of many groundbreaking hits.
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