It was music’s biggest night, as the saying goes.
The 2025 Grammys, hosted at the Cryto.com Arena in Los Angeles, was the first major award show since the devastating California wildfires. And though the disaster loomed large throughout the evening, the ceremony contained plenty of moments of excitement and catharsis.
Here are the biggest moments from the 2025 Grammys.
1. Beyoncé (finally!) won album of the year
It’s not like Beyoncé needs the Grammys’ validation.
After all, the Houston superstar is widely considered one of the most important artists in contemporary pop music and now has 35 total Grammy wins, more than anyone in history. And yet, the album of the year honours had always eluded Beyoncé, despite the fact that in the last dozen years she has released a string of stone-cold classics, including her 2013 self-titled album, “Lemonade” (2016) and “Renaissance” (2022).
On Sunday, Beyoncé finally took home the night’s biggest prize for her country-themed album “Cowboy Carter,” becoming the first Black woman to win album of the year since Lauryn Hill in 1999. She dedicated her trophy to pioneering country singer Linda Martell, who appeared on “Cowboy Carter.” The award was presented by members of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Earlier in the evening, Beyoncé became the first Black woman to win a Grammy in a country category in over 50 years, when she took home the trophy for best country duo/group performance for the song “II Most Wanted” with Miley Cyrus. She also won the Grammy for best country album and looked genuinely shocked when her name was uttered by presenter Taylor Swift.
“I think sometimes genre is a code word to keep us in our place as artists,” said Beyoncé, “and I just want to encourage people to do what they’re passionate about.”
2. Kendrick Lamar’s never-ending victory lap continued — in a Canadian tuxedo
It’s been nine months since Kendrick Lamar landed a knockout punch in his feud with Drake with the release of the chart-topping diss track “Not Like Us,” and yet the song’s momentum continues unabated.
The song swept all the categories it was nominated for, including song of the year, record of the year, best rap song, best rap performance and best music video.“ There’s nothing more powerful than rap music,” Lamar said during one of his acceptance speeches. “We are the culture.”
It had to be a tough night for Drake, who is likely in his bunker bracing for Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime performance on Sunday. But surely it can’t get worse than the salting of the wound that took place as Lamar walked up to receive his trophy — wearing a Canadian tuxedo — for record of the year, soundtracked by an enraptured audience chanting along to one of the most cutting, brutal lines in the song.
3. The Weeknd ended his Grammys boycott following Recording Academy mea culpa
In 2021, Toronto R&B superstar The Weeknd announced that he was boycotting the Grammys after his blockbuster album “After Hours” received zero nominations. At the time, The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, accused the Recording Academy of “corruption” and criticized it for a lack of transparency surrounding how the award winners were chosen.
On Sunday, Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, offered Tesfaye an olive branch, telling the Grammys audience that he took this criticism seriously. “Over the past few years, we’ve listened, acted and changed,” Mason Jr. said, before bringing Tesfaye onstage for a surprise performance.
Tesfaye performed two songs off of his new album “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” including the track “Timeless” with rapper Playboi Carti.
A feel-good story? Or just a bit of promo for an upcoming world tour (including two dates at the Rogers Centre this summer)?
4. Taylor Swift got shut out
As readers of the Star are surely aware, it was a huge year for Taylor Swift, who recently wrapped Eras, the biggest concert tour of all time, and released a chart-topping new album. Despite earning five nominations, that album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” was shut out at this year’s Grammys. (Swift also lost in a sixth category for “Us,” her duet with Gracie Abrams.)
A Grammys shutout is a surprise: Swift has won album of the year a record four times, including last year. Something tells us, though, that she’ll be fine.
5. Chappell Roan won best new artist, rebuked record labels in stirring speech
Chappell Roan was signed to Atlantic Records when she was just 15, but was dropped by the label in 2020, in the midst of the pandemic. On Sunday, the now wildly successful singer and queer pop icon reflected on her experience after accepting the (much-deserved) Grammy for best new artist.
“I told myself if I ever won a Grammy and I got to stand up here in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry profiting millions of dollars off of artists would offer a livable wage, especially to developing artists,” Roan said, demanding that labels also offer health insurance to their artists.
“Labels, we got you, but do you got us?” Roan concluded.
6. The pop girlie takeover reached its zenith
In terms of trophies, it was a mixed bag for the pop girlies: Billie Eilish didn’t take home a single trophy despite her seven nominations, while Charli xcx, Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan took home three, two and one, respectively. But all four singers graced the stage on Sunday night, each bringing a unique flavour to the Crypto.com Arena.
Carpenter served up a funny, jazz-inflected medley of songs from “Short n’ Sweet,” while Eilish kept things classy with a straightforward rendition of her hit single “Birds of a Feather.” And Roan treated the audience to a highly theatrical show, surrounded by a troupe of dancers dressed as clown-cowboys.
But it was Charli who brought energy right as the show started to drag, performing a pair of rambunctious party songs from her album “Brat,” including “Von Dutch” and “Guess.” During the latter song, which featured an appearance from Julia Fox, Charli and her dancers performed amid a downpour of underwear (a reference to the music video for “Guess” featuring Billie Eilish), prompting an unexpected disclaimer from the broadcast: “All unworn garments featured in Charli xcx’s Grammy performance will be donated to domestic violence survivors.”
7. Bianca Censori went nude on the red carpet
Bianca Censori was supposed to be a peripheral person at the 2025 Grammys: the Australian model and architectural designer attended the event with her husband, Kanye West. Instead, Censori became one of the most talked about people of the night because of her outfit, or lack of it. Censori arrived on the red carpet wearing an oversized black fur coat, which she removed to reveal a sheer, skin-coloured “slip dress” that left nothing to the imagination. Even at an event that is accustomed to boundary-pushing looks, it caused a stir. Ye, for his part, was fully clothed in a black T-shirt, trousers and sunglasses.
8. Doechii, hip-hop’s next big thing, stole the show
Doechii’s been grinding for years now, but she’s been on a hell of a run these past few months and now seems poised to explode into hip-hop’s next major star. The rapper from Tampa, Fla., not only took home the Grammy for best rap album — becoming just the third woman to win in the category — but also put on a scorching, athletic performance of her songs “Catfish” and “Denial Is a River.”
Following the performance, the camera cut to Jay Z, Billie Eilish and SZA in the audience, each of whom looked absolutely blown away. Watch this space.
9. Quincy Jones received a star-studded, if slightly puzzling, tribute
Will Smith may be banned from the Oscars, but he is more than welcome at the Grammys!
The actor and rapper acted as the MC for an extended, star-studded tribute to the late, great producer Quincy Jones, who died last November.
Backed by legendary jazz musician Herbie Hancock on piano, the tribute kicked off with “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo performing Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon.” After that, country singer Lainey Wilson performed the Jones song “Let The Good Times Roll.” Next up was Stevie Wonder, who joined Hancock on the piano for a harmonica version of the Jones jazz standard “Bluesette.”
That felt like a special moment — two legends lost in the music — but it was slightly ruined by the ill-advised choice to follow it with a slightly awkward rendition of the 1985 charity song “We Are the World” (of all the Quincy Jones songs, really?).
Fortunately, Janelle Monáe brought things home with a high-energy performance of Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough” — moonwalk and all.
10. Benson Boone gave a very confusing performance
Wikipedia tells me that Benson Boone is a very popular pop rock singer, who once appeared on “American Idol,” and who is very popular on TikTok. I am sure he is a lovely person and a talented artist, but many on social media were confused by his performance, prompting countless memes on social media.
