by Anoushka Roshan (’24) | March 29, 2021

In case you missed it, the 63rd annual Grammys award ceremony was held last Sunday. While it was one of the lowest-rated Grammys in history and was surrounded by a lot of controversy, such as the snub of The Weeknd’s nomination for Song of the Year for “Blinding Lights,” the show was still entertaining. Trevor Noah, from The Daily Show, hosted the award ceremony, which took place across the street from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. 

The show started with a long line of performances, kicked off by Harry Styles, who opened with a performance of his hit song “Watermelon Sugar.” Later that night, he took home the award for Best Pop Solo Performance for the same song. 

Next on the long list of performances was Billie Eilish, with a beautiful rendition of “everything i wanted” sung on top of a half-sunken car. She received the coveted Record of the Year award for “everything i wanted,” beating out solid contenders such as Beyonce’s “Black Parade,” Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage (Remix),” and Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now.” 

Later that night, Taylor Swift stunned by performing a medley of her hits from her two albums, Folklore and Evermore. She won one of the most sought-after awards of the night, Album of the Year for Folklore, making her the first female artist to win Album of the Year three times. 

H.E.R won Song of the Year for “I Can’t Breathe,” a beautiful song about the Black Lives Matter movement.

Megan Thee Stallion won three awards—Best New Artist, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap Performance—and deservedly so, considering her long list of hits, including “Savage” and “WAP.” Speaking of “WAP,” Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion put on a spectacular performance of their songs, including “Savage,” “Body,” and “WAP,” which was one of the most entertaining performances of the night. 

Later came Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga who both had a shocking win for Best Pop Duo for “Rain on Me,” defeating more likely winners such as BTS’s “Dynamite” or Taylor Swift and Bon Iver’s “Exile.” 

Dua Lipa put forth a bedazzling performance of “Levitating” with DaBaby and “Don’t Start Now.” Although she was nominated in three categories, including Album of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance, she only won the award for Best Pop Vocal Album for Future Nostalgia. 

Beyonce won twice on Grammy night, breaking the record for most Grammys ever won by  a female artist, with 28 Grammy wins total. She won Best R&B Performance for “Black Parade” and Best Rap Performance for her collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion on “Savage.” 

The night was filled with even more performances, like BTS’s “Dynamite,” which was performed live from Seoul, DaBaby’s “Rockstar” which featured a violinist and a choir, Doja Cat’s futuristic take on “Say So,” and Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s soulful performance of “Leave the Door Open.” This year’s Grammys wasn’t perfect, but it certainly was one of the best shows in recent years.