In a recent interview, Grammys executive producer Ben Winston summed up the award show’s core dilemma like this: “If it goes wrong, everyone will talk about it, and if it goes really well, people will be like, ‘Oh yeah, good job.’ And that’s it.” Especially following last week’s Oscars debacle, the Grammys organizers were likely hoping for something relatively ho-hum—and that’s exactly what they got. After the pandemic forced the Grammys to improvise last year, resulting in a show that was more intimate and exciting than usual, things mostly went back to normal this time. There were plenty of big set-pieces, bad jokes, and stars singing songs you’ve heard many, many times before.
One moment felt new, but not necessarily in a way that put everything else in a positive light. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a speech about the power of music and freedom, but more than anything, his appearance served to underline the frivolity at the core of this annual gala of the rich and famous. Beyond that very serious interlude, when it comes to the Grammys, you generally have to embrace the fleeting moments of joy that bubble up in between all the nonsense. In that spirit, here are the highs and lows from last night.
The Best
Going into the night, it looked like Olivia Rodrigo had a chance to sweep the major categories. It ended up being more of a mixed bag: She took home trophies for Best New Artist, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Pop Solo Performance, but lost Album of the Year to Jon Batiste, and both Song and Record of the Year to Silk Sonic. Her teary-eyed speeches were endearing, but ultimately, there was nothing sweeter than watching her scan through her own hits on the radio of a vintage Benz before landing on “drivers license,” the single that made her 2021’s favorite pop star. Decked out in a feathery white Givenchy dress, she delivered the yearning anthem in front of a suburban street backdrop, her vocals as heartbreaking as ever. As one of the night’s first performances, it offered an early reminder of why she deserved to win. –Gio Santiago
There was talk this week of a Grammys performance in honor of the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, but what ended up happening was more subtle: Billie Eilish wore a T-shirt printed with a photo of him on it while she crooned lines like “I wish it wasn’t true” and ripped through her most raucous song to date, “Happier Than Ever.” What started in an upside-down living room ended on the roof of the house in a torrential downpour, as Billie and her band thrashed about with an uninhibited joy rarely seen at awards shows. It was giving Bush performing in the rain on MTV Spring Break, ’90s Weezer in the guitar distortion, and nu-metal in the attitude (not to mention a callback to the song’s underwater video). Eilish wasn’t a big Grammy winner this year, but she easily staged one of the most thrilling performances of the night. That she honored Hawkins at the same time made it even more significant. –Jillian Mapes
Jazmine Sullivan paused a beat after Heaux Tales was called as the R&B Album winner, and then walked to the stage in a daze. Cool and gracious as ever, she gave the night’s first meaningful acceptance speech. Opening with a joke (“Shoutout to H.E.R. for wearing these glasses in the dark, I fell like 10 times tonight”), she then cut to the heart of Heaux Tales: “I wrote this project to deal with my own shame and unforgiveness around decisions I made in my 20s that weren’t favorable. But what it ended up being was a safe space for Black women to tell their stories, for us to learn from each other, laugh with each other, and not be exploited at the same time. That’s what I’m most grateful for. Shoutout to all Black women who are just living their lives and being beautiful.” Sometimes the Grammys try so hard to force an issue that there’s not a lot of room for artists to reflect on the space their music naturally holds. This felt like a rare feel-good moment about The Power of Music that didn’t have to announce, “This is about the power of music.” –Jillian Mapes
In terms of showmanship purely for showmanship’s sake, BTS’s secret agent send-up was my favorite slightly random Grammys performance. (Theory: Is this deep IP synergy with CBS’s parent company, since the original Mission: Impossible television series is now streaming on Paramount+?! And will every awards show from now on be required to honor James Bond?) It started with Jungkook, on the mend from COVID, descending from the ceiling, while the rest of the group scattered into the audience to get their flirt on. Most importantly, they fulfilled the number one rule of a successful spy-themed performance—dancing around those pesky lasers. –Jillian Mapes
After three long, mostly dull hours of awards, the night’s most chaotic yet satisfying speech arrived when Doja Cat and SZA won the trophy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Kiss Me More.” SZA hobbled up to the stage in crutches (as Lady Gaga held her train), while Doja rushed in from the side, announcing, “I’ve never taken such a fast piss in my whole life” while fixing her underwear. Out of breath, Doja then made an emotional realization: “I like to downplay a lot of shit, but this is a big deal.” For two artists that have repeatedly declared their frustrations with the industry, this moment felt like a refreshingly real triumph. –Gio Santiago
A classic Grammys performance technique is taking a fun song and turning it into a self-serious ballad. That was the road Justin Bieber chose for “Peaches”—but he did it with a wink. Wearing a baseball hat, black hoodie, and shiny leather pants, Bieber sat behind a grand piano and dramatically paid tribute to ass, weed, and… loneliness? Delightfully, we got to hear him crooning the words “bad-ass bitch” while caressing the keys, as if he were John Legend serenading a strip club. He was joined midway through by Daniel Caesar and Giveon as the performance switched to a more faithful rendition of the song, but that spare opening made me long for the full Bieber unplugged experience. –Quinn Moreland
The Mid
Lil Nas X’s performance had all the right ingredients to be as eye-melting as his videos: Michael Jackson-inspired outfits, a glittery statue, and enough back-up dancers to stage a gay coup at the Grammys. Yet somehow, it didn’t quite generate the scintillating excitement and always-online wit he’s known for. Maybe it was the unnecessary mid-performance commentary underlining his past controversies? Or perhaps it was featured guest Jack Harlow’s obnoxiously addictive “my handprint on her ass cheek” lyric getting cut. Then again, Harlow’s suggestive microphone move was enough to make Gen-Z absolutely lose their shit, again. –Gio Santiago
The Worst
Every time Bruno Mars performs on the Grammys, he is legally obligated to emulate at least one musical icon of yesteryear. Opening this year’s telecast with his Silk Sonic partner Anderson .Paak, he channeled two: Elvis, whom he grew up impersonating, and James Brown, whom he grew up to impersonate. The rendition of An Evening With Silk Sonic’s “777” interpolated “Get On Up” and had a strong “We’re in Vegas, baby!” vibe, complete with slot machine graphics, jeweled white suits, and .Paak rocking a Sonny Bono wig.
While technically a smart choice to open the show with a retro act seemingly invented by the Grammys (Silk Sonic made its TV debut at last year’s ceremony) and with the ability to hype a crowd, it felt a little obligatory. By now, the Grammys know by now that they can slot Bruno in anywhere. The opening performance, much like the night’s first award, for Song of the Year, should have gone to Olivia Rodrigo instead. In his acceptance speech for that trophy, when .Paak said they’d be singing “Leave the Door Open” for the rest of their lives, it almost sounded like a threat. –Jillian Mapes
Back in 1989, the Grammys acknowledged hip-hop for the first time with the Best Rap Performance category—but nominees including Will Smith, Salt-N-Pepa, and LL Cool J boycotted the show because the award wasn’t televised. Thirty-three years later, not much has changed.
The announcement of Tyler, the Creator’s Best Rap Album win for Call Me If You Get Lost was relegated to the untelevised pre-show, as if it were meaningless. There will be excuses, like 1) The show needed more time for gratuitous shots of Anderson .Paak’s wig and 2) They reportedly intended to broadcast the award but chose not to because Tyler apparently ditched the show to go on a hike. The rapper ended up giving a speech, which would have been one of the best of the night, on Instagram.
It’s just the latest example of the Grammys’ bumpy history with hip-hop, which this year also included Drake withdrawing his nominations and the Academy rescinding its offer to let Kanye perform due to his “concerning online behavior.” (Ye did win Best Rap Song, for “Jail,” but it was also not televised.) At least they aired the Best Rap Performance award, which went to Baby Keem and Kendrick Lamar’s “Family Ties,” but the joke was on the Grammys once again, because Kendrick was nowhere to be found. –Alphonse Pierre
Coming off last year’s controversy around his video for “Perra,” which faced criticism due to its demeaning portrayal of Black women, and rival Residente’s recent 10-minute diss track aimed his way, J Balvin really could’ve used the Grammy stage as a space to recapture the lighthearted energy that first hurtled him to global stardom. But instead he sleepwalked through low-energy renditions of “In da Getto” (remember his #EveryLivesMatter Twitter debacle?), and “¿Qué Más Pues?” with Argentine singer Maria Becerra. Between Balvin’s exceptionally boring outfit choice (a trench coat, really?) and oversaturated lighting, he just couldn’t seem to match urbano’s momentum. And those backup dancers? Please! I thought we left the Jabbawockeez in 2008. –Gio Santiago
If this year’s Super Bowl taught us anything, it’s that turn-of-the-century rap is now being treated like classic rock. So the Grammys decided to get in on the nostalgia and flew Nas out to perform tracks from 2001’s Stillmatic and 2002’s God’s Son. Of course, it was a waste of time—a hurried medley that tried to squeeze four Nas songs into about three minutes. Who the hell wants to hear just the grating children’s choir hook from “I Can,” or just a snippet of “One Mic,” when the whole point of the song is its build? Maybe I wouldn’t be so hard on the performance if it wasn’t practically the only time we heard live rapping all night. The Oscars made time for Megan, why couldn’t the Grammys? Did the show lose Lil Baby’s number? Did they really pass up the opportunity to have Gunna pull up in the silliest outfit talking about “pushin P”? What are we doing? –Alphonse Pierre
The Grammys are committed to torturing its viewers, so it makes sense that they invited last year’s host, Trevor Noah, to run it back for more edgeless, cookie-cutter jokes that might as well have been spit out by a bot. It’s impressive, in a sad way: Part of me wants to shake the hands of everyone who got paid to come up with his one-liners, because those writers are the greatest scammers since Teejayx6.
After Noah’s opening monologue—full of quips about Lil Nas being taller than Nas, if Finneas’ last name is Eilish, and, yes, The Slap—I was already at a breaking point. Then he kept going all damn night. There was one good moment, though—a call-out of musicians’ weird-ass obsession with the Bored Ape NFTs. (I know, the bar is in hell.)
Maybe the Grammys needs some suggestions for next year’s host? What about Jerrod Carmichael or Ali Wong, who know how to be intentionally funny, or even Euphoria’s Angus Cloud, aka Fezco, who knows how to be unintentionally funny. On the musician front, Doja Cat or Tyler, the Creator would certainly take the show in insane new directions if given the chance. Let’s be bold, folks. –Alphonse Pierre
