BEYONCE won the Grammy for Album of the Year on Sunday for Cowboy Carter, making her the most nominated and most awarded artist in the show’s history. The win also makes her the first Black woman to take the top prize this century.
Kendrick Lamar dominated the night with five wins, including Record and Song of the Year for Not Like Us. The event, held at Crypto.com Arena, was also a tribute to Los Angeles, which has faced severe wildfires.
Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Doechii, and Sabrina Carpenter were among the night's big winners. Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish did not win any awards.
Beyonce, accepting her award, said, “I just feel very full and very honoured.” She dedicated the win to Linda Martell, a pioneering Black country musician featured on the album. “I hope we just keep pushing forward, opening doors,” she added.
She won three Grammys in total, including Best Country Album and a collaboration with Miley Cyrus. “I really was not expecting this,” she said, adding, “Sometimes genre is a code word to keep us in our place as artists.”
‘Visions’ by Norah Jones won the Grammy award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.
Pakistani-American singer and composer Arooj Aftab's Night Reign missed out on the Grammy award for Best Alternative Jazz Album to No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin by Meshell Ndegeocello.
Lamar and Roan lead the night
Lamar won all five categories he was nominated in, including Record and Song of the Year. His diss track Not Like Us became a major hit and a West Coast rap anthem.
“Nothing more powerful than rap music,” Lamar said while accepting Song of the Year. “We are the culture.”
Chappell Roan won Best New Artist, capping a breakthrough year. In her speech, she spoke about the struggles of being dropped by a label and called for better support for artists. “Record labels need to treat their artists as valuable employees,” she said.
Doechii won Best Rap Album, becoming only the third woman to do so. “Anything is possible,” she said in her speech, addressing Black women and girls. “Don’t allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you.”
Sabrina Carpenter won Best Pop Vocal Album and performed her hits Espresso and Please Please Please. Shakira won Best Latin Pop Album before delivering a performance, and Charli XCX took home three awards, including Best Dance/Electronic Album.
Tribute to Los Angeles
The ceremony included tributes to Los Angeles, with host Trevor Noah announcing that at least $7 million was raised for wildfire relief.
Firefighters presented Beyonce with her award, while students affected by the fires performed We Are The World with Stevie Wonder in tribute to Quincy Jones.
The show opened with a performance of I Love LA by a group including Sheryl Crow and John Legend, while Billie Eilish performed Birds of a Feather wearing an LA Dodgers cap.
“I love you, LA,” Eilish said to cheers.
Key winners:
- Album of the Year: Cowboy Carter - Beyonce
- Record of the Year: Not Like Us - Kendrick Lamar
- Song of the Year: Not Like Us - Kendrick Lamar
- Best New Artist: Chappell Roan
- Best Rap Album: Alligator Bites Never Heal - Doechii
- Best Country Album: Cowboy Carter - Beyonce
- Best Pop Vocal Album: Short n' Sweet - Sabrina Carpenter
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