Charli XCX, Beyonce, Taylor Swift – the Grammy moments everyone is talking about | Ents & Arts News

It was a long-awaited win for Beyonce – already the most awarded Grammys artist of all time, she now finally has the trophy for best album, too.

One of the most successful music stars of the last three decades, despite her years at the top – and previous nods for I Am… Sasha Fierce, the self-titled Beyonce, Lemonade, and Renaissance – Grammys recognition for her albums had previously eluded her.

This year, she finally takes home the gong for the chart-topping country record Cowboy Carter, taking her tally to 35 in total. It was a long time coming.

But on a very busy Grammys evening, which raised funds for wildfire relief efforts in Los Angeles, there were plenty of other highlights and surprises, too.

Here are the other key moments and bits that got everyone talking.

Interesting… outfits

First up, the red carpet. The Grammys (and music awards in general) are always more fun, more out-there than the film and TV ceremonies, and this year was no exception.

Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Cardi B, Sabrina Carpenter, Miley Cyrus, Raye, Chappell Roan and Gracie Abrams all stepped up.

Among the show-stopping dresses, there were some more unusual looks – Will Smith’s son Jaden wearing a black castle on his head, for instance.

And then there was Kanye West’s wife Bianca Censori, who arrived in a fur coat and took it off to reveal, well, pretty much nothing at all.

If you’re aware of the couple, you’ll know this isn’t particularly unusual. But when you’re not winning any awards – West lost out on the best rap song prize, which went to Kendrick Lamar – you’ve got to make headlines somehow, right?

Read more: All the best red carpet looks

Taylor Swift holds space for Cynthia Erivo

As her Eras tour dominated everything, Taylor Swift was the big winner of last year’s Grammys. This year, she went home empty-handed – but was more than happy to cheer on her fellow artists, and even share her seat.

In a video clip shared on social media, the star could be seen calling to Wicked star Cynthia Erivo when the actress and singer seemingly had trouble finding her table.

Swift scooched over to give Erivo space. Speaking of which, the pair even briefly recreated the “holding space” finger-holding from Erivo’s viral Wicked interview alongside her co-star Ariana Grande last year.

Kendrick Lamar and LA fires dedication

One of the night’s other big winners was rapper Kendrick Lamar, who picked up two of the top awards – record of the year and song of the year – for his “diss” track Not Like Us, reportedly directed at Canadian rapper Drake.

The song also won other prizes for best music video, best rap performance and best rap song.

On stage, Lamar dedicated the record of the year award to his hometown Los Angeles following the devastating wildfires.

“This is my neck of the woods that held me down since a young pup, since I was in the studio scrapping to write the best raps and all that,” he said.

“I can’t give enough thanks to these places that I rolled around since high school. Most importantly the people and the families out in the Palisades and Altadena. This is a true testament that we can continue to restore the city.”

Chappell Roan’s pink pony

Finishing off the winners of the big four prizes was Chappell Roan, who was named best new artist – her first Grammy award.

The star performed her disco anthem Pink Pony Club earlier on in the night, sitting on a giant pink pony before joining a group of dancers dressed as rodeo clowns.

Accepting her award, she called for the music industry to provide a “liveable wage and healthcare for artists”, revealing to the crowd she had always told herself she would demand that labels and the industry protect artists more if she ever won a Grammy.

She recalled feeling “betrayed” and “dehumanised” when she struggled to find work and afford healthcare during the pandemic, after getting dropped by her first label as a young artist when she had given “everything” to them.

Read more: All the big winners

The Weeknd returns

In 2020, The Weeknd accused the Grammys of being “corrupt” after being snubbed for awards despite a stellar year.

Five years later, he made a comeback and took to the stage for an unexpected performance.

Harvey Mason Jr, the chief executive of the Recording Academy, which organises the awards, acknowledged the star’s previous criticism in a speech as host Trevor Noah teased a big surprise.

Mason said the Academy had modernised and diversified in recent years. “With that in mind, on a truly special night, what better way to bring us together than this next artist – someone who has seen the work the Academy has put in.”

The Weeknd arrived on an elevated black stage with red lighting, and was joined by rapper Playboy Carti for a performance of Cry For Me from his new album, Hurry Up Tomorrow.

Step back in time

There were Grammy wins for both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones following their respective music comebacks.

The Beatles picked up the award for best rock performance for the song Now And Then, which was written and sung by John Lennon and later finished by Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Ringo Starr using overdubs and guitar tracks by George Harrison.

They were up against The Black Keys, Green Day, Idles, Pearl Jam and St Vincent.

Meanwhile, the Rolling Stones landed the prize for best rock album for Hackney Diamonds, their first album of original music in 18 years, seeing off competition from The Black Crowes, Fontaines DC, Green Day, Idles, Pearl Jam and Jack White.

Will Smith leads Quincy Jones tribute

Best known for his work with artists including Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson, legendary music producer Quincy Jones was also the executive producer of The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, the show on which Will Smith rose to fame.

Following his death last year aged 91, Smith led a Grammys tribute which also included performances by Stevie Wonder, Janelle Monae, Herbie Hancock and Erivo.

Smith – appearing at a televised awards ceremony for the first time since he infamously slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars in 2022 – told the audience how Jones “gave me a shot” with the comedy series and joked how “y’all saw the early episode, so y’all know I couldn’t really act”.

He said Jones had taught him “to take care” of the people working around him, “and I’ve done everything I can through my career to try to live up to Quincy’s demand”.

Jones won 28 Grammys throughout his career.

Smith is making a musical comeback and last week announced his first album in 20 years.

Charli XCX is so Julia

Of course, the Grammys had to acknowledge the phenomenon of Brat, and British star Charli XCX was among the early winners – picking up best dance/electronic album and best recording package for her viral sixth record, and best dance pop recording for the single Von Dutch.

These were her first ever Grammy wins.

The star also performed at the show and was joined by actress Julia Fox and collaborator The Dare on stage.

Emerging from a blacked-out 4×4 in a long black fur coat and blue underwear, she performed Von Dutch before moving on to Guess – cheered on by Billie Eilish, who collaborated on a remix of the song.

Emulating the music video for Guess, underwear rained down on the stage in a performance so racy “it might not make the edit”, Charli joked. “All unworn undergarments will be donated to survivors of domestic violence,” the crowd was told in a message that flashed on screen.

At the end of her performance, Charli pulled Fox to the front after wishing her a happy birthday.

Fox, an actress and model who turned 35 on Saturday, is referenced in 360, another hit song from Brat.

‘You are exactly who you need to be’

Rising star Doechii became only the third woman in Grammys history to take home the award for best rap album, following in the footsteps of Lauryn Hill and Cardi B.

The star, who picked up the award for her third mixtape Alligator Bites Never Heal, gave an impassioned speech as she collected her prize.

“I know there’s some black girl, so many black women, watching me right now,” she told the audience. “And I wanna tell you, you can do it. Anything is possible.

“Don’t allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you, tell you that you can’t be here, that you’re too dark or that you’re not smart enough or that you’re too dramatic or you’re too loud. You are exactly who you need to be.”

Pop and politics

As well as the LA fires, artists also used the stage to highlight several other political and social issues.

Jennifer Lopez presented the prize for best Latin pop album to Shakira, for Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran. Shakira hugged her two sons as she went to collect her award, dedicating it to “all my immigrant brothers and sisters in this country – you’re loved, you’re worth it, and I will always fight with you”.

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars won best pop duo/group performance for Die With A Smile, paying their respects to one another’s career achievements in their acceptance speech.

Gaga also spoke out for trans rights, saying: “Trans people are not invisible. Trans people deserve love. The queer community deserves to be lifted up. Music is love.”

They earlier performed 1960s classic California Dreamin’ in tribute to LA.

Alicia Keys was awarded the Dr Dre Global Impact Award by rapper and singer Queen Latifah. Taking one of her children on stage to accept her award, she paid tribute to a host of female artists who she said had “opened the doors” before her.

In a nod to politics, she went on to say DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) was “not a threat, but a gift”, and added: “When destructive forces try to burn us down, we burn like a phoenix.”

In the US, the Trump administration is currently calling for the rollback of DEI programs.