Taylor Swift made history Monday as the first woman to win the top Grammy twice, but rapper Kendrick Lamar took home five awards and delivered an electrifying, politically charged performance that rocked the gala.
Advertisement
And she also snagged two awards before the broadcast: Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Music Video for “Bad Blood” featuring Kendrick Lamar.
Besides his five Grammys, Lamar had one of the night’s most intense, riveting performances.
While accepting her Album of the Year award for her first full-on pop album, 1989, Taylor addressed young women, saying, “There are going to be people along the way who are going to try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame”.
Taylor Swift appeared to hit back at Kanye West during her acceptance speech at the Grammy Awards.
Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars picked up the other major award of the night – Record of the Year – for “Uptown Funk”.
Swift won in 2010 for her album ‘Fearless, ‘ and she’s the youngest person ever to win the high honor.
Being of a certain age and having followed David Bowie throughout his career, I really wondered how the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences – the folks behind the Grammys – would pay homage to him.
South African musician Wouter Kellerman’s latest album “Love language”, for which Bengaluru-based Grammy victor Ricky Kej composed, produced and mixed “Aishwarya”, lost the Grammy for the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album category to “Sylva” by Snarky Puppy & Metropole Orkest.
The 28-year-old also won ‘Best Rap Album’ earlier in the night. Set to a jailhouse theme, Lamar donned chains as his band emulated being locked inside of jail cells while performing “The Blacker The Berry”.
Brit pop vocalist Adele, a likely big victor at next year’s ceremony, returned to the Grammysstage to perform “All I Ask”, a track from her mega-hit album “25”, which has sold more than 8 million units since its November release.
The Weeknd, who had seven nominations, bagged Grammys for Best R&B Performance for “Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)” and Best Urban Contemporary Album for “Beauty Behind the Madness”.
Speaking to Billboard prior to the performance, Grammys producer Ken Ehrlich said: “Kendrick came to us and said that we live in a time where these issues confront us every day and that it’s important that they be given a public forum, and he would like to use his x number of minutes to create a great performance that is consistent with his this year”.
Nothing Has Changed, a collection of the late David Bowie’s music from 1964 to 2014, won a Grammy for best arrangement, instrument and vocals, for Sue (or in a Season of Crime).
Advertisement
Trainor is obviously favored to win, but many complain that the award should go to a ‘new artist’.
