Due to COVID-19, The Grammys was a little different this year. Only artists and a few plus-ones were allowed in the venue. Hosted by Trevor Noah, and featuring performances from DaBaby, Bad Bunny, Megan Thee Stallion, Taylor Swift, and Dua Lipa, it was quite an exciting night, especially when the awards were given out!
The Grammys is an annual prestigious event in the music industry where the Recording Academy awards singers, songwriters, and producers for their achievements in music. During the ceremony, artists from all major genres take to the stage and perform their recent hits. Many awards are given throughout the night, but there are four major ones that spotlight artists: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best New Artist.
Record of the Year
Record of the Year is given to the performer of the song. Many well-known artists were nominated for their work like Beyonce (“Black Parade”), Dua Lipa (“Don’t Start Now”), Billie Eilish (“Everything I Wanted”), Megan Thee Stallion (“Savage”), and others. Ultimately, Billie Eilish received the Grammy for her song “Everything I Wanted.”
Song of the Year
While easily mixed up with Record of the Year, Song of the Year is a different award. Song of the Year goes to the songwriter of the piece, not the performer. Some of the nominations for this award were: Aaron Dessner & Taylor Swift (“Cardigan”), H.E.R, Dernst Emile II & Tiara Thomas (“I Can’t Breathe”), Louis Bell, Adam Feeny, Kaan Gunesberk, Austin Post & Billy Walsh (“Circles”) and many more. The award was given to H.E.R for her song on the Black Lives Matter movements, “I Can’t Breathe.”
Best New Artist
Best New Artist is awarded to, well, the best new artist. Billie Eilish, Sam Smith, and Alessia Cara are just some of the previous winners. This year, Doja Cat, Phoebe Bridgers, Megan Thee Stallion, Noah Cyrus, and others were nominated. Megan Thee Stallion received the award for this year. She is the first female hip-hop artist to receive this award in 22 years!
Album of the Year
Debatably one of the most important awards of the night, Album of the Year is given to the performer, producers, and engineers for the entirety of an album. HAIM (“Women in Music Pt. III”), Taylor Swift (“Folklore”), Black Pumas (“Black Pumas Deluxe Edition”), and Dua Lipa (“Future Nostalgia”) were just a few of the nominations in this category this year. The Grammy was given to Taylor Swift for her surprise album that dropped last summer, “Folklore.” Swift made history by being the first woman to win Album of the Year three times.
The 2021 Grammys was a huge and historical night in music. While not winning in any of the major four categories, Beyonce made history by becoming the woman with the most Grammy awards of all time. With wins from Taylor Swift, H.E.R, Megan Thee Stallion, Billie Eilish, and many more in other categories, and electrifying performances, this year’s Grammys award show was a pleasure to watch.