One of the most awaited awards Grammy was finally held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It was the 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony that honored the best achievements from the duration of October 1, 2017, to September 30, 2018.
Sunday's wonderfully diverse Grammy Awards offered a lot to celebrate, with women and people of color dominating top categories. These include record and song of the year (both Childish Gambino's "This Is America") and album (Kacey Musgraves' "Golden Hour"). Motown got a high-energy (if somewhat questionable) tribute from Jennifer Lopez and Smokey Robinson, and Latin artists dazzled at the top of the show with a medley from Camila Cabello, Ricky Martin, and J Balvin.
Many big-time artists like Cardi B, Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, and even Michelle Obama made stunning appearances at the Grammy Awards night, but from Queen Bey to BadGal Riri and many more major stars were still absent from the ceremony.
Michelle Obama, the Former First Lady, gave a speech about the unifying power of music alongside Jada Pinkett-Smith, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, and Alicia Keys. She said,
"Whether we like country or rap or rock, music helps us share ourselves, our dignity and sorrows, our hopes and joys. It allows us to hear one another, to invite each other in."Meanwhile, after winning Best Rap Song for “God’s Plan” in the event, Aubrey Drake Graham, a Canadian rapper, used his winner’s speech to encourage musicians to work on their craft regardless of recognition and stated that Grammys don’t matter as much as viral popularity.
He said,
“All my peers that make music from their heart, that do things pure and tell the truth, I wanna let you know we’re playing an opinion-based sport, not a factual-based sport, so it’s not the NBA, where at the end of the year, you’re holding a trophy because you made the right decisions or won the games.”He continued,
“The point is, you’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word, if you’re a hero in your hometown. Look, look, if there’s people who have regular jobs who are coming out in the rain, in the snow, spending their hard-earned money to buy tickets to come to your shows, you don’t need this [award] right here. I promise you, you already won. But –.”However, the producers of the ceremony cut his microphone off at that point and went to commercial.
Childish Gambino won four awards at the event while Country star Musgraves also picked up four awards, including album of the year.
Moreover, Cardi B an American rapper made history as the first solo female to win best rap album.
Further, in the event, Dua Lipa, a British pop star, was named the Best New Artist and paid tribute to the "incredible" line-up of "so many female artists" in the category.
Some Glimpses from Grammy’s Night 2019:
The Complete List of Winners:
Album Of The Year — Golden Hour, Kacey MusgravesRecord Of The Year — “This Is America,” Childish Gambino
Best New Artist — Dua Lipa
Best Rap Album — Invasion Of Privacy, Cardi B
Best R&B Album Winner — H.E.R., H.E.R.
Best Rap Song — “God’s Plan,” Drake
Best Country Album — Golden Hour, Kacey Musgraves
Song Of The Year — “This Is America,” Childish Gambino
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance — “Shallow,” Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical — Pharrell Williams
Best Rap/Sung Performance — “This Is America,” Childish Gambino
Best Rap Performance — King’s Dead, Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Future & James Blake / Bubblin, Anderson .Paak
Best Rock Album — From The Fires, Greta Van Fleet
Best Rock Song — “Masseduction” St. Vincent
Best Metal Performance — Electric Messiah, High On Fire
Best Rock Performance — When Bad Does Good, Chris Cornell
Best Urban Contemporary Album — Everything Is Love, The Carters
Best R&B Song — “Boo’d Up,” Ella Mai
Best Traditional R&B Performance — Bet Ain’t Worth The Hand, Leon Bridges / How Deep Is Your Love, Pj Morton Featuring Yebba
Best R&B Performance — Best Part H.E.R. Featuring Daniel Caesar
Best Latin Jazz Album — Back To The Sunset, Dafnis Prieto Big Band
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album — American Dreamers: Voices Of Hope, Music Of Freedom, John Daversa Big Band Featuring Daca Artists
Best Jazz Instrumental Album — Emanon, The Wayne Shorter Quartet
Best Jazz Vocal Album — The Window, Cécile Mclorin Salvant
Best Improvised Jazz Solo — Don’t Fence Me In, John Daversa
Best Reggae Album — 44/876, Sting & Shaggy
Best Dance/Electronic Album — Woman Worldwide, Justice
Best Dance Recording — Electricity, Silk City & Dua Lipa Featuring Diplo & Mark Ronson
Best Contemporary Classical Composition — Kernis: Violin Concerto, James Ehnes, Ludovic Morlot & Seattle Symphony
Best Classical Compendium — Fuchs: Piano Concerto ‘Spiritualist’; Poems Of Life; Glacier; Rush, Joann Falletta
Best Classical Solo Vocal Album — Songs Of Orpheus - Monteverdi, Caccini, D’india & Landi, Karim Sulayman
Best Classical Instrumental Solo — Kernis: Violin Concerto, James Ehnes
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance — Anderson, Laurie: Landfall, Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet
Best Choral Performance — McLoskey: Zealot Canticles, Donald Nally
Best Opera Recording — Bates: The (R)Evolution Of Steve Jobs, Michael Christie, Garrett Sorenson, Wei Wu, Sasha Cooke, Edward Parks & Jessica E. Jones
Best Orchestral Performance — Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 11, Andris Nelsons
Producer Of The Year, Classical — Blanton Alspaugh
Best Engineered Album, Classical — Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 11, Andris Nelsons & Boston Symphony Orchestra
Best Pop Vocal Album — Sweetener, Ariana Grande
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album — My Way, Willie Nelson
Best Pop Solo Performance — Joanne (Where Do You Think You’re Goin’?), Lady Gaga
Best Country Song — “Space Cowboy,” Kacey Musgraves
Best Country Duo/Group Performance — Tequila, Dan + Shay
Best Country Solo Performance — “Butterflies,” Kacey Musgraves
Best Music Film — Quincy, Quincy Jones
Best Music Video — “This Is America,” Childish Gambino
Best Regional Roots Music Album — No ‘Ane’I, Kalani Pe’a
Best Tropical Latin Album — Anniversary, Spanish Harlem Orchestra
Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano) — ¡México Por Siempre!, Luis Miguel
Best Latin Rock, Urban Or Alternative Album — Aztlán, Zoé
Best Latin Pop Album — Sincera, Claudia Brant
Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling) — Faith - A Journey For All, Jimmy Carter
Best Children’s Album — All The Sounds, Lucy Kalantari & The Jazz Cats
Best Folk Album — All Ashore, Punch Brothers
Best Contemporary Blues Album — Please Don’t Be Dead, Fantastic Negrito
Best Traditional Blues Album — The Blues Is Alive And Well, Buddy Guy
Best Bluegrass Album — The Travelin’ Mccourys, The Travelin’ Mccourys
Best Americana Album — By The Way, I Forgive You, Brandi Carlile
Best American Roots Song — The Joke, Brandi Carlile
Best American Roots Performance — The Joke, Brandi Carlile
Best New Age Album — Opium Moon, Opium Moon
Best Song Written For Visual Media — “Shallow,” Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media — Black Panther, Ludwig Göransson
Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media — The Greatest Showman, Hugh Jackman (& Various Artists)
Best World Music Album — Freedom, Soweto Gospel Choir
Best Roots Gospel Album — Unexpected, Jason Crabb
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album — Look Up Child, Lauren Daigle
Best Gospel Album — Hiding Place, Tori Kelly
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song — “You Say,” Lauren Daigle
Best Gospel Performance/Song — “Never Alone,” Tori Kelly Featuring Kirk Franklin
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album — Steve Gadd Band, Steve Gadd Band
Best Immersive Audio Album — Eye In The Sky - 35th Anniversary Edition, The Alan Parsons Project
Best Remixed Recording — “Walking Away (Mura Masa Remix),” Haim
Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical — Colors, Beck
Best Historical Album — Voices Of Mississippi: Artists And Musicians Documented By William Ferris
Best Album Notes — Voices Of Mississippi: Artists And Musicians Documented By William Ferris
Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package — Squeeze Box: The Complete Works Of “Weird Al” Yankovic, Weird Al Yankovic
Best Recording Package — Masseduction, St. Vincent
Best Arrangement, Instruments And Vocals — “Spiderman Theme,” Randy Waldman Featuring Take 6 & Chris Potter
Best Arrangement, Instrumental Or A Cappella — “Stars And Stripes Forever,” John Daversa Big Band Featuring Daca Artists
Best Instrumental Composition — Blut Und Boden (Blood And Soil), Terence Blanchard
Best Alternative Music Album — “Colors,” Beck
Best Musical Theater Album — The Band’s Visit, Original Broadway Cast
Best Comedy Album — Equanimity & The Bird Revelation, Dave Chappelle
Congratulations to All Winners!