Who Won Big at the Grammys?
8,455 total views, 1 views today
Even though the Recording Academy has been embroiled in controversy since mid-January, the 62nd annual Grammy Awards took place on January 26 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The ceremony arrived just over two months after the nominees were announced in November 2019, with the three artists who received the most nominations all being first-time nominees. One of these three artists absolutely dominated last night’s ceremony – read on to find out who won big at the Grammys (and who got snubbed).
The 2020 Grammys MVP: Billie Eilish
When the 2020 Grammy nominations were announced in November 2019, Billie Eilish was nominated more than any artist besides Lizzo. Both Eilish and Lil Nas X received six nominations, as compared to Lizzo’s eight, and all three were first-time nominees. Eilish, though, took home more awards than the other two – and in doing so, she made history.
Eilish won all four General Field awards: Album of the Year for her acclaimed debut album WHEN WE FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?, Song of the Year and Record of the Year for her chart-topping mega-hit “bad guy,” and Best New Artist. Eilish is the first artist to win all four General Field awards at the same ceremony in nearly 40 years, and only the second ever to do so (the first was Christopher Cross, in 1981). Adele has won awards in each of these categories, but not in the same year.
Eilish also made history as the youngest Album of the Year winner, stealing the record from Taylor Swift, who previously held it for winning the award for her sophomore album Fearless when she was 20. Additionally, Eilish’s main collaborator, her brother FINNEAS, took home the Producer of the Year, Non-Classical award.
The other big winners
Of her eight nominations, Lizzo won three: Best Pop Solo Performance for her ubiquitous hit “Truth Hurts,” Best Urban Contemporary Album for her 2019 album Cuz I Love You, and Best Traditional R&B Performance for Cuz I Love You track “Jerome.” Lil Nas X also won two awards: Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for his “Old Town Road” remix featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (the same version that shattered the record for most weeks spent atop the Billboard Hot 100) and Best Music Video for the same song.
Genre-defying musician Anderson .Paak (who raps, dances, sings, and drums, sometimes doing more than one of these at once) took home two R&B awards: Best R&B Album for Ventura, and Best R&B Performance for “Come Home (ft. Andre 3000).” Those who might classify .Paak as a rapper rather than a singer need not fret: His absence from the rap categories allowed hip-hop iconoclast Tyler, the Creator to win his first Grammy. Tyler won the Best Rap Album award for last year’s IGOR, his celebrated fifth album.
On the rock side of things, Gary Clark, Jr. walked away with two awards. Clark won Best Rock Song for “This Land” and Best Rock Performance for his third album, This Land. Vampire Weekend, one of the biggest rock bands of the past decade, also won an award. The band took home the Best Alternative Music Album for its fourth album Father of the Bride, which the album’s predecessor Modern Vampires of the City also won in 2014.
Who got snubbed
When the Grammy nominations were announced last year, Ariana Grande and H.E.R. both received five nominations each, more than many other nominees. Neither artist won any Grammys last night, and many have pointed to this lack of wins as a major snub. Grande’s fans were particularly vocal on social media about these snubs, as were Lana del Rey’s fans. Del Rey’s sixth studio album Norman F*****g Rockwell! and its title track were nominated respectively for Album of the Year and Song of the Year, and it won neither. Norman F*****g Rockwell! has inarguably fared far better among music critics than any other Grammy-nominated albums, landing atop more leading publications’ best albums of 2019 lists than any other release last year and even ranking highly in many prominent lists of the best albums of the 2010s.
Who do you think got snubbed at the 2020 Grammys? Sound off in the comments!