Taylor Swift, Kendrick LamarAnd Sam Smith were among the winners of the 2023 Grammys last night (February 5) when they returned to Los Angeles.
The ceremony took place at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with the first ceremony taking place beforehand at the nearby Microsoft Theater.
At both events, Taylor Swift won Best Music Video for “All Too Well: The Short Film,” while Madison Cunningham won Best Folk Album for Developer.
Kendrick Lamar won a hat trick of trophies with Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance for “The Heart Part 5” and Best Rap Album for Mr. Morale and Big Steps. In his acceptance speech for the latter, he described the album as “one of my hardest records to make” and thanked “the culture for allowing me to evolve to make a song like ‘ Mother I’m Sober'”.
Sam Smith and Kim Petras were victorious in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category for their worldwide hit “Impious.” The victory made Petras the first transgender woman to win the award and she thanked those who came before her for opening doors for her. She cited the late DJ and producer SOPHIE, in particular, as a big inspiration, and Madonna “to fight for LGBT rights.” Later, Madonna presented a spirited performance by Petras and Smith, asking the audience, “Are you ready for a little controversy?”
Elsewhere, Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde won Best Country Duo/Group Performance for ‘Never Wanted To Be That Girl’, while Robert Glasper won Best R&B Album for Black Radio III. Muni Long was named the winner in the Best R&B Performance category for “Hrs & Hrs,” and Samara Joy took home the hotly contested Best New Artist trophy.
Shania Twain was present at the main ceremony to present the best country album, which went to Willie Nelson for a beautiful momentwhile Dr.Dre received the first Dr. Dre Global Impact Award from LL Cool J. Bonnie Raitt, meanwhile, beat stiff competition to win Song of the Year for “Just Like That.”
Other performances came from Stevie Wonder, who was joined by Boyz II Men’s Wanya Morris for a Motown medley before Chris Stapleton joined him to perform “Superstition.” Kacey Musgraves starred in the In Memoriam segment, honoring Loretta Lynn with a version of “Coal Miner’s Daughter”, before Migos’ Quavo paid tribute to his late bandmate and nephew Takeoff.
The Grammys hosted a celebration of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary, which began with DJ Cool Herc playing the break beats that started a global music revolution. Missy Elliott, Queen Latifah, RUN-DMC, Lil Wayne, Big Boi, Grandmaster Flash, Method Man, Public Enemy, Salt-N-Pepa and Spinderella and Busta Rhymes were among those who took part in the star tribute, which has was produced by Questlove, who also served as musical director. Music was provided by The Roots, with narration by Black Thought.
Beyoncé made history at the 2023 Grammys by becoming the artist with the most wins at the ceremony of all time with 32. However, she could not land album of the year this time, the prize being instead awarded to Harry Styles for Harry’s house.
The ceremony ended with the camera panning over the street outside the arena, where lil wayne performed “Love Me Or Hate Me”, before joining John Legend, Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, Jay Zand Fridayy to perform “God Did” at a The last supper– inspired banquet.
Visit The Recording Academy’s official website for a complete list of Grammy Award winners.
