On Sunday, Feb. 5, the biggest night in music kicked off at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Hosted by Trevor Noah for the third year in a row, the Grammys ceremony was full of great performances, tributes and historical records in the industry. 

Before the event, acclaimed conductor Georg Solti held the record for most Grammys won at 31 awards. However, once it was announced that Beyoncé won for both Best Dance/Electronic Recording and Best Dance/Electronic Music Album with her song “Break My Soul” and hit album “RENAISSANCE” respectively, she took the crown and broke the record for most Grammy awards won. Off stage, she won the awards for Best Traditional R&B Performance and Best R&B Song, which also contributed to her historic night. 

Of the four biggest awards of the night, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best New Artist, there was no sweep as we’ve seen before, like Billie Eilish’s consecutive win of all four at the 2020 Grammys. This year, four different and deserving artists got the chance to accept their awards on stage. Taking home Album of the Year was Harry Styles, with the pop album “Harry’s House.” Also snagged by Styles was the first award of the night: Best Pop Vocal Album. Many think that the other nominees were snubbed, so much so that videos have come up online of audience members present at the award show yelling, “Beyoncé should’ve won,” during one of Styles’ acceptance speech. Further, in that speech he defaulted to his usual spiel that he recites at the end of most of his concerts. One line he resorted to, however, received some backlash. His classic, “This doesn’t happen to people like me very often,” was labeled as out of touch and full of white privilege, and as many pointed out on Twitter. Album of the Year has not been won by a woman of color since 1999. Depending on how you look at it, the controversial speech could be seen a number of different ways; but who’s to say what Styles really meant by the comment. 

This year showcased a surprising win for the track “Just Like That” by songwriter Bonnie Raitt, who won the Song of the Year award. Many people on social media resorted to joke making and angry-tweeting because they’d never heard of the song or Raitt before the ceremony. Many “Swifties” were also upset, as this is the sixth time Taylor Swift was robbed of this award — this year’s nomination was for “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (The Short Film).” However, the fans came back around when Lizzo took home Record of the Year for “About Damn Time.” For any award that Lizzo accepts, her speeches are always full of gratitude and undeniable thankfulness that almost make me emotional with her. Finally, the award for Best New Artist, whose category was filled with rising stars like Omar Apollo, Måneskin and Wet Leg, went to jazz star Samara Joy, most known for her song, “Warm in December.” 

Aside from the actual awards presented in the almost four-hour long spectacle, the main reason most people tune in is to watch the year’s talented artists take the stage to perform. Opening the show this year was Bad Bunny with a super lively performance of “El Apagón” and “Después de la Playa.” Later in the show, Harry Styles performed one of the biggest hits of the year, “As It Was.” Some of the dancers that rehearsed alongside him on a rotating platform for the performance have since made videos revealing that during the live presentation of the song, the platform began to rotate in the opposite direction, leaving Styles and the dancers to think quickly on their feet to  finish  the show in reverse. Another incredible performance was Lizzo’s, who sang her winning song “About Damn Time” accompanied by “Special.” More notable performances of the night include Steve Lacy, Sam Smith and Kim Petras, Brandi Carlile and an epic hip-hop medley to close out the night with appearances by DJ Khaled, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, John Legend and Fridayy. While this is not a comprehensive list, all these performers and more did wonderfully on the Grammys stage. 

There were also two tribute performances of the night. The first was a 15-minute-long medley with some of the biggest names in hip-hop, celebrating 50 years of the genre. The tribute included appearances from LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Future, Ice-T, Lil Baby and Queen Latifah. Also during the televised ceremony was an annual tribute to all the artists and musical talent that we lost in 2023: Loretta Lynn, Christine McVie and Takeoff were all honored by Kacey Musgraves, Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt and Quavo to name a few. In a heartfelt presentation, this is a Grammy tradition that never fails to bring tears to the room. 

Along with any A-List event comes the highly anticipated red carpet walk, and this year the Grammy attendees didn’t disappoint. A few of my personal favorite looks of the night would have to be Beyoncé in a beautifully sleek black velvet gown, Swift in a dark blue glimmery two piece and Jennifer Lopez appearing in an extravagant ruffley purple gown. Twitter is always a scene with any red carpet event, and this year, viewers didn’t disappoint. Many were quick to joke about Styles rolling up in a revealing colorful jumpsuit, and users also had a lot to say about Shania Twain’s whimsical black polka dotted suit and hat, accompanied by her bright red hair. Nonetheless, the red carpet (and Twitter’s reaction) provides half the entertainment for any award show, especially one that’s almost four hours long.