Beyoncé ignites social media by appearing on stage with Megan Thee Stallion. Swift wins the best album for the third time.
Female artists dominated top contemporary music awards Sunday night, when Beyoncé and Taylor Swift made Grammy history and 19-year-old Billie Eilish took home the record award of the year.
Beyoncé broke the record for most wins by a female artist, while Swift’s surprise folklore was named the album of the year and Eilish’s Everything I Wanted won the record of the year. Sunday’s victory made Swift, 31, the first woman to take home the album of the year three times.
Rapper Megan Thee Stallion, known for promoting women’s empowerment, was voted the best new artist when she received three awards at the social distancing ceremony.
The 26-year-old singer also won for her rap performance on the single Savage, with Beyoncé.
Taylor Swift made history by winning the album of the year for the third time [Kevin Mazur/The Recording Academy via EPA]
The writers of I Can’t Breathe, by the R&B artist HER, won the song of the year, which recognizes songwriters rather than performers and was written to mark last year’s Black Lives Matter protests in the United States.
“I didn’t think my fear and pain would become an impact,” said the 23-year-old musician when he received the trophy. “That fight that we had inside us, the summer of 2020, maintains that same energy.
The ceremony, hosted by Trevor Noah, who is the anchor of The Daily Show, took place a year after COVID-19’s ground tours and forced the closure of the venues and is part of an effort by the music world to try to overcome a 2020 overwhelming.
“We hope that this is what 2021 can be, full of joy, new beginnings and encounters. Never forgetting what happened in 2020, but full of hope for what is to come, ”said Noah.
Harry Styles was among the performers on Sunday and took home the award for best solo performance [Kevin Winter/The Recording Academy via EPA]
British singer Harry Styles, with a feather boa wrapped around his neck, started the performances and took home the award for best solo performance for his song Watermelon Sugar. Stars like Dua Lipa, DaBaby, Swift and Eilish also took the stage.
Beyoncé won her 28th Grammy for Black Parade, which was voted the best R&B song, giving her four wins in the night.
It wasn’t even clear initially that Beyoncé would attend the event, held outside Los Angeles, but she sparked social media after appearing live on the Los Angeles stage alongside Megan Thee Stallion to receive her Savage award.
“As an artist, I believe that it is my job and all of our work to reflect the times. And it’s been such a difficult time, ”said Beyoncé, with her husband Jay-Z watching.
“So, I wanted to praise, encourage and celebrate all the beautiful queens and black kings who continue to inspire and inspire me all over the world.”
British star Dua Lipa won the award for best pop vocal album by Future Nostalgia, while Nigerian superstar Burna Boy was the first time to win the award for best global music album.
Accepting the award, he said it was “a great victory for my generation of Africans around the world”.
Meanwhile, South Korean boyband BTS lost in the best performance of a pop duo or group to Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande with their single Rain on Me.
The seven-member band from South Korea hoped to be the first K-Pop band to win a Grammy after a successful year in the United States. They presented their hit single in English, Dynamite, during the show.
Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas accepting the Record of the Year award for Everything I Wanted during the 63rd Grammy Awards ceremony [Kevin Winter/The Recording Academy via EPA]