The 64th Annual Grammy Awards, one of the biggest nights for the global music industry, just happened and as expected, it was a night filled with moments we’d all be talking about for months to come. Held in Las Vegas, the night saw new records being made with Jon Batiste becoming the first African-American artist in 14 years to win the ‘Album of the Year’ for his 2021 studio album ‘WE ARE’. The Foo Fighters, who were slated to perform but backed out in the shadow of their drummer Taylor Hawkins’ untimely passing, won all the three awards they were nominated for, including ‘Best Rock Album’, ‘Best Rock Performance’, and ‘Best Rock Song’. R&B superduo Silk Sonic, comprising of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, won the ‘Record of The Year’ and ‘Song of the Year’ for ‘Leave the Door Open’, and Olivia Rodrigo made her Grammy debut and won two awards, ‘Best New Artist’ and ‘Best Pop Solo Performance’. Doja Cat and Sza won the ‘Best Pop Duo/Group performance for their single ‘Kiss Me More’ and their acceptance speech was equal parts touching and hilarious, especially when Doja Cat explained where she was when their award was announced!
Pakistani singer Arooj Aftab became the first Pakistani to win a Grammy with her ‘Best Global Musical Performance Award’, while Indian-American singer Falguni Shah won the award for ‘Best Children’s Music Album’.
Aside from these notable wins, Billie Eilish shone a spotlight on Hawkins and Lady Gaga delivered a powerful tribute to her past collaborator Tony Bennett, who retired from public performances last year.
From a celebration of outstanding talent to powerful performances, here are all the top highlights from the 2022 Grammy Awards…
BTS at the Grammys
Despite being snubbed for the second time in a row, Korean band BTS was everything anyone could talk about after the awards. The global sensations turned up at the red carpet looking sharp in their Louis Vuitton ensembles and breezed through the interviews with their effortless charm, sending the hordes of ARMY watching online into a tizzy. Later, the group stole the show with a supercharged, James Bond-inspired, performance of their nominated single ‘Butter’, easily stealing the show. The skit, preceding the performance had member V smoothly chatting up Olivia Rodrigo, causing the hashtag ‘WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING’ to immediately trend worldwide on Twitter! It’s no wonder that after the performance, celebrities lined up to take photos with the group, including Megan Thee Stallion which gave the fans the MegTan reunion they’ve been waiting for!
Billie Eilish’s heartfelt tribute for Taylor Hawkins
Billie Eilish delivered a powerful performance with a rock-powered version of the titular track from her album ‘Happier Than Ever’. Eilish wore an oversized T-shirt emblazoned with the image of Taylor Hawkins, the drummer for The Foo Fighters who passed away a few weeks ago.
Dua Lipa, Megan Thee Stallion, and Donatella Versace’s recreation of an iconic moment onstage
Dua Lipa and Megan Thee Stallion recreated the iconic Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston moment when the two divas wore identical brown gowns at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards. Both the divas shared a laugh before Carey yanked off the lower portion of her outfit, revealing a miniskirt underneath, with Houston following suit. Back in the present time, the two singers appeared onstage in similar Versace outfits to present the ‘Best New Artist’ Grammy. After the duo playfully argued about wearing the same outfit, legendary designer Donatella Versace joined them on-stage and announced “Ladies, don’t fight,” in Italian, as she whipped off part of their dresses, thus paying homage to the historical pop culture moment.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky’s virtual plea for support
In between celebration of outstanding talent and musical performances, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky used the platform to emphasize on the importance of the world’s attention on what’s happening in Ukraine right now. Through a pre-recorded video, Zelensky said, “Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded. Russia brings horrible silence with its bombs. Fill the silence with your music.” This was followed by a poignant performance by John Legend and several Ukrainian artists, including singer Mika Newton and poet Lyuba Yakimchuk.
Jon Batiste’s acceptance speech
The biggest winner of the night, Jon Batiste won five awards from the 11 he was nominated for. The musician’s acceptance speech for the ‘Best Album of the Year’ award, however, left the biggest impact of the night. He said, “I believe this to my core: there is no ‘best’ musician… No best artist, best dancer, best actor. The creative arts are subjective…It’s like a song or an album is made and it has a radar to find a person when they need it the most.”
Justin Bieber-Hailey Bieber and other couples who made us feel single and alone
Celebrity couples did what celebrity couples do: look fabulous on the red carpet and make us feel every inch of our single, Monday-cursing, future cat-ladies being. The offenders include Justin Bieber and Hailey Bieber, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Ben Platt and Noah Galvin, Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker, and Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher.
