Harry Types and Lizzo cut up the most important spoils as Beyoncé made historical past — however went dwelling empty-handed within the main classes but once more — on the sixty fifth Grammy Awards Sunday night time.
Types received the most important prize of the night time — Album of the Yr — for Harry’s Home, besting heavy favorites Beyoncé and Adele. Lizzo took dwelling Document of the Yr for “Particular,” and in essentially the most stunning win of the night time, Bonnie Raitt received Tune of the Yr for “Simply Like That.” The winner of the opposite main class, Finest New Artist, was up-and-coming jazz vocalist Samara Pleasure.
These massive winners on the 2023 Grammys have been each considerably wise and considerably stunning (aside from perhaps Raitt, who was simply plain stunning). That’s as a result of up till the ultimate half-hour of the present, the theme of the night time actually did appear to be Beyoncé.
Heading into Sunday, the celebrity was on the verge of changing into essentially the most embellished artist in Grammy historical past — a feat she did obtain. With wins for Finest Dance/Digital Album, Finest R&B Tune, Finest Conventional R&B Efficiency, and Finest Dance/Digital Recording, Beyoncé introduced her complete Grammy tally to 32 as she surpassed Hungarian conductor Georg Solti. Using that wave, it appeared Beyoncé was lastly going to select up one other long-awaited main prize (she’s solely received one, Tune of the Yr in 2010 for “Single Women”), if not all three.
As an alternative, Recording Academy voters proved they’re nonetheless, properly, Recording Academy voters, choosing a pioneering torchbearer and two of pop’s largest younger stars. All three appeared bowled over to a sure diploma, or not less than extraordinarily conscious of whom they’d simply bested. Raitt referred to as the second “unreal” in her speech, whereas Lizzo pointedly thanked Beyoncé, recalling how she skipped faculty to observe her carry out as a child: “You clearly are the artist of our lives,” Lizzo stated.
And Types began his speech with an emphatic, “Shit. Effectively, shit.” He then added, “I’ve been so, so impressed by each artist on this class with me. At a variety of completely different occasions in my life, I’ve listened to everybody on this class after I’m alone. I feel on nights like tonight; it’s clearly so essential to do not forget that there isn’t any such factor as ‘Finest’ in music.”
As for the present itself, there was a lot on the sixty fifth Grammy Awards that felt like a righteous tradition conflict salvo from the left amidst a rising tide of bigoted, regressive payments and speech from conservatives on LGBTQ rights. Brandi Carlile’s tear-the-house-down efficiency of “Damaged Horses” featured an introduction from her spouse, Catherine Shepherd, and their two youngsters. And arguably, essentially the most transferring second of the night time belonged to Kim Petras, who turned the primary trans girl to win Finest Pop Duo/Group Collaboration for her smash with Sam Smith, “Unholy.”
After paying tribute to “transgender legends” who got here earlier than her, like Sophie, in addition to LGBTQ advocates like Madonna, Petras stated, “I grew up subsequent to a freeway in Germany,” she stated. “And my mom believed me that I used to be a lady, and I wouldn’t be right here with out her and her help and everybody who believed in me so far.” (Madonna additionally launched Petras’ and Smith’s delightfully diabolical efficiency of “Unholy” later within the present.)
Even Beyoncé nodded to all this, sharing her massive night time with a group that’s impressed a lot of her music. Upon accepting the award for Finest Dance/Digital Music Album, she stated, “I’d prefer to thank the queer group in your love and for inventing this style.”
(That’s to not say there weren’t some unhealthy vibes lurking someplace: Dave Chappelle received Finest Comedy Album for The Nearer, his controversial Netflix particular, which featured quite a few transphobic jokes. No less than Recording Academy voters didn’t give the award to Louis C.Ok. for the second 12 months in a row, although?)
Presiding over the night for the third 12 months in a row was Trevor Noah, who appeared very a lot relaxed as he sauntered via the group throughout his opening monologue. Amidst jokes about Types and the dearly departed inexperienced M&M, he took the chance to introduce Adele to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and joked that Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” was the rationale he stop The Each day Present.
In some ways, this 12 months’s Grammys have been additionally extraordinarily on-line (even when the winners didn’t all the time line up with the way in which the present introduced itself). Certain the music trade is beginning to query whether or not TikTok is as massive a driver of common music because it was only a few years in the past, however that didn’t cease Noah from quipping in his monologue, “Each music on TikTok that you just hear? There are individuals who made them. That is them!”
The Grammys have positively been trending youthful in recent times, particularly because the departure of longtime producer Ken Ehrlich after the 2020 present. (That’s to not say there wasn’t a bit of cringe alongside the way in which, just like the superfluous roundtable dialogue with “actual followers” peppered all through.) However to the present’s credit score, even the traditional “Grammys second”-style performances had their charms, like Stevie Marvel and Smokey Robinson enjoying their traditional hits with Chris Stapleton or the towering tribute to hip-hop that featured a improbable mixture of pioneers (Rakim, Chuck D, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah) and modern stars (Glorilla, Lil Child).
However earlier than all that, there was Dangerous Bunny. Arguably the most important star on this planet proper now was tasked with opening up the present, and he did so with a vibrant ode to Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic with renditions of “El Apagón” and “Después de la Playa.” As Dangerous Bunny carried out, the stage and seat aisles have been full of plena dancers and musicians, in addition to cabezudos (characters with giant paper maché heads often seen at festivals) representing a plethora of Puerto Rican legends, from rapper Tego Calderón to poet Lola Rodríguez de Tió to Felisa Rincón de, the previous mayor of San Juan and the primary girl mayor elected in a capital metropolis of the Americas.
Although Dangerous Bunny set the bar excessive, the night time featured loads of different blockbuster performances. Lizzo tore via a few of her most up-to-date hits, together with “About Rattling Time” and a gospel-tinged rendition of “Particular.” And DJ Khaled managed to corral your complete “God Did” crew — Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, John Legend, and Fridayy — to shut out the present with a suitably epic out of doors efficiency of their posse minimize.
Elsewhere, the “In Memoriam” part featured Kacey Musgraves honoring Loretta Lynn with a rendition of “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” whereas Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood, and Bonnie Raitt gathered to pay tribute to Christine McVie with “Songbird.” However essentially the most poignant second got here when Quavo took the stage with the gospel group/worship collective Maverick Metropolis Music to honor his late nephew and Migos bandmate Takeoff with a efficiency of “With out You.”
As for the precise awards, Kendrick Lamar dominated the Rap classes this 12 months, successful Finest Rap Tune and Efficiency for “The Coronary heart Half 5,” in addition to Finest Rap Album for Mr. Morale and the Massive Steppers. Types additionally received Finest Pop Vocal Album for Harry’s Home, Willie Nelson was awarded Finest Nation Album for A Stunning Time (the legend additionally took dwelling Finest Nation Solo Efficiency for “Stay Ceaselessly”), and Adele picked up Finest Pop Solo Efficiency for “Simple on Me.”
The majority of the awards, in fact, have been handed out within the hours earlier than the televised present started. Rosalía — who was arguably snubbed in a number of the larger classes — did win one of many two prizes she was nominated for, Finest Latin Rock or Various Album for Motomami. In the meantime, British upstarts Moist Leg bested indie and alt vets like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Björk, Arctic Monkeys, and Florence and the Machine to win their first Grammys, Finest Various Music Album (Moist Leg) and Various Efficiency (“Chaise Longue”).
Different first-time winners included Steve Lacy (Finest Progressive R&B Album for Gemini Rights), Muni Lengthy (Finest R&B Efficiency for “Hrs and Hrs”), and Cody Johnson (Finest Nation Tune for “‘Until You Can’t”). Longtime nation favourite Ashley McBryde lastly received her first Grammy as properly, sharing Finest Nation Duo/Group Efficiency for “By no means Wished to Be That Woman” with one other first-time winner, Carly Pearce. And Nigerian star Tems picked up her first Grammy, sharing Finest Melodic Rap Efficiency with Future and Drake (who can’t escape the Grammys irrespective of how arduous he tries) for “Look forward to U.”
Simply essentially the most notable first-time winner of 2023, nonetheless, was Viola Davis. The legendary performer formally accomplished her EGOT with a Grammy for Finest Audio E book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording for her memoir, Discovering Me.
Within the rock and metallic classes, Brandi Carlile and Ozzy Osbourne cut up the spoils, with the previous successful Finest Rock Tune and Efficiency (“Damaged Horses”) and the latter successful Finest Rock Album (Affected person Quantity 9) and Steel Efficiency (for “Degradation Guidelines,” together with his previous Black Sabbath bandmate Tony Iommi).
And, in fact, “Music’s Greatest Night time” wouldn’t be full and not using a little little bit of Taylor Swift. The celebrity was up for 4 awards Sunday, together with Tune of the Yr for “All Too Effectively (10 Minute Model).” However whereas that didn’t go her manner, Swift is now in a position to name herself an “award-winning director” after All Too Effectively: The Quick Movie took dwelling Finest Music Video. Absolutely we’ll be seeing much more of Swift on the 2024 Grammys when Midnights might be eligible.