The attendees at the 62nd annual Grammy Awards, besides paying a tribute to lost heroes, including basketball player Kobe Bryant and late rapper Nipsey Hussle, called out for more inclusiveness. Then 18-year-old Billie Eilish swept with five wins, capping off an incredible breakthrough year. Here are the top moments from the gala
Drama over fairness and inclusion at the Grammy Awards carried over to music’s big night as newcomers and mainstays in the industry supported Sean “Diddy” Combs and his powerful speech putting the Recording Academy on a clock to fix the nomination process when it comes to rap and R&B in major categories. “I think if they smart, they listen to Diddy,” soulful singer Lucky Daye said on the red carpet.
British rapper Labrinth added, “Hopefully there’s a conversation to really think about what’s happened.” Days ago, the academy’s just-ousted CEO Deborah Dugan claimed that the awards are rigged and filled with conflicts of interest. At the Clive Davis gala, Combs — who was honoured — spoke for 50 fiery minutes, saying in part: “So I say this with love to the Grammys because you really need to know this, every year y’all be killing us man. Man, I’m talking about the pain. I’m speaking for all these artistes here, the producers, the executives. The amount of time it takes to make these records, to pour your heart into it and you just want an even playing field.”
Combs urged in his speech that substantive change should come within 365 days. Legend Smokey Robinson had words of support for Combs, his friend but he said he wasn’t surprised about the Grammy criticism. “Diddy could actually be a politician. I thought this speech was powerful. It touched on a lot of things people were afraid to say,” he said.
Of Dugan calling out manipulation of the nomination process, he said, “It’s not like it’s news. We’ve known it all along. It’s just coming to the forefront. All that is hidden will come to light.”
Tyler, The Creator said backstage after his Igor won best rap album that he’s “half and half” on the controversy over whether Grammy voting is fair. “On one side, I’m very grateful that what I made could just be acknowledged in a world like this,” he said. “But also, it sucks that whenever we, and I mean guys that look like me, do anything that’s genre-bending, they always put it in a ‘rap’ or ‘urban’ category. I don’t like that ‘urban’ word. It’s just a politically correct way to say the N-word. When I hear that, I’m just like why can’t we just be in pop?” His other half feels like the “rap nomination was a backhanded compliment.”
Bluesman Keb’ Mo’, who has served in academy positions over the years, said his experiences on the inside have been “nothing but integrity.” He added, “Nothing’s perfect but my experience is the Grammys trying to maintain integrity and the artistic process.” Others said Combs’ words and support will hopefully go a long way.
“I believe that, you know, sometimes there’s always a tweaking that can be done. I think sometimes you may have to just revisit the process,” said gospel artist Tasha Cobbs Leonard. “I have hope that’s what’s happening now in every category.”
The Grammys have been criticised over the years when Beyoncé, Kanye West, Eminem, Mariah Carey and other top stars have lost in major categories, including album of the year and best new artist. The rap and R&B stars often fall short of their pop, rock and country counterparts.
Boys Noize, along with Skrillex and and Ty Dolla $ign, also supported the cause on the red carpet. “Everybody should be here. More black, more female,” Boys Noize said. Ty Dolla $ign added: “The people will rise for sure.”
Billie Eilish has won album of the year and record of the year to cap a dominant night of five victories at the Grammy Awards. The 18-year-old Eilish won album of the year for When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? and record of the year for Bad Guy. Her album beat a group of nominees that included Lana Del Rey, Lizzo and Ariana Grande. “Can I just say that I think Ariana deserved this?” Eilish said as she accepted the award. Her other Grammys include best new artist, and song of the year for Bad Guy. She told the music stars in the crowd that “I grew up watching all of you.”
John Legend, Meek Mill, DJ Khaled and a host of musicians paid tribute to Nipsey Hussle at the awards, filling the vast stage with a soaring performance of his music. The tribute kicked off with Mill performing a new song called Letter to Nipsey, which mentioned a letter President Barack Obama wrote in Hussle’s honour. “When we lost you, it really put some pain on me,” Mill rapped. “Real hitters never die.”
Then DJ Khaled and Legend sang their collaboration with Hussle, DJ Khaled’s track Higher, which later won the Grammy for best rap/sung performance. Legend sang while playing the piano as a choir sang along with them. Other performers including Kirk Franklin, Roddy Ricch and YG, each took turns doing solos.
Hussle was killed outside of his South Los Angeles clothing store in March 2019. Sunday’s performance featured musicians, background dancers and Legend wearing traditional Ethiopian and Eritrean clothing in honour of Hussle’s African roots. The tributes to Hussle were made even more poignant by the loss earlier in the day by another icon — basketball superstar Kobe Bryant.
He played for 20 years for the city’s NBA team. Bryant’s death in a helicopter crash earlier in the day was acknowledged in the opening minutes of the Grammys broadcast. Before her performance, Lizzo said, “This is for Kobe.” She went on to perform Truth Hurts and Cuz I Love You.
Host Alicia Keys said she was feeling “crazy sad” about Bryant. She was joined on stage with Boyz II Men, who collectively sang It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday. “The whole wide world lost a hero,” the singer said in front of the audience. “We are standing her literally heartbroken in the house that Kobe Bryant built.” The NBA legend, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others were killed in the crash on a steep hillside in dense morning fog in Southern California. He was 41 and had retired from the Lakers in 2016.
Some shed tears for Bryant on the red carpet. Others were almost speechless ahead of the 62nd annual awards show. Music artists including Billy Ray Cyrus, Rick Ross and Kirk Franklin paid tribute to Bryant, the 18-time NBA All-Star and five-time champion. Debbie Allen, who is married to former Laker Norm Nixon, was seen crying. DJ Khaled said the news about Bryant’s death was “devastating.”
Actor Priyanka Chopra also paid tribute to the late basketball star Bryant in a special way. She took a moment to style her decorated nails with the number “24” written on her index finger. “RIP Mamba,” Priyanka shared on her Instagram page with a purple heart emoji, alongside an image of her tribute. While attending the Grammys, she walked arm-in-arm with her husband and singer Nick Jonas, wearing a custom Ralph & Russo design, which featured a plunging neckline and also included diamond-adorned pieces, fringe sleeves and intricate embroidery.
Outside Staples Centre, fans wearing Bryant’s No 8 and No 24 jerseys flocked to the arena to show their respect for the Laker legend. A few hundred people gathered at LA Live in front of a mega screen with a smiling Bryant that read, “In Loving Memory of KOBE BRYANT 1978-2020”.
With tears running down her cheeks, Demi Lovato stood on the Grammys’ stage in a white ballgown and belted her new single Anyone, written just four days before her near fatal overdose in July 2018. It was the 27-year-old’s first time at the Grammy Awards in two years and her first big performance since that fateful day.
At age 61, Tanya Tucker has won the first two Grammy Awards of her career, 48 years after her first hit at age 13. Tucker won best country album for While I’m Livin’, her first album of original material in 17 years. She also won best country song for Bring My Flowers Now, which is also nominated for overall song of the year. Tucker has been nominated for Grammys 14 times. He is still very young compared to the winner of the other major country Grammy, 86-year-old Willie Nelson, who took home best country solo performance for Ride Me Back Home. It was Nelson’s ninth Grammy.
Hildur Guðnadóttir took home a Grammy for music she first thought no one would care to hear. The female composer won best score soundtrack for the HBO miniseries Chernobyl during the pre-telecast ceremony. The soundtrack already won her an Emmy late last year. And in January she became the first woman in 19 years to win best original score for Joker at the Golden Globes. “I think it fit really well with the images of the film, and I was happy with how the music worked with the narrative and characters in this series,” she said backstage of the Chernobyl soundtrack. “But I never thought anyone would ever listen to the soundtrack record, honestly. I’ve very surprised to be here today.”
Michelle Obama is a Grammy winner. The former first lady won her first Grammy Award for best spoken word album for the audio book of her 2019 memoir Becoming. Obama was not on hand to accept the award. Her husband, former president Barack Obama, has two Grammys in the same category, one for his 2005 audio book Dreams of My Father and another for his 2007 audio book The Audacity of Hope. The spoken word album category includes poetry, storytelling and audio books.
Beyoncé’s Homecoming has won the Grammy Award for best music film. The Netflix film weaves together Beyoncé’s 2018 performances at the Coachella music festival, which included numerous nods to historically black colleges and universities.
—With inputs from agencies