Focusing on the positives of the 2023 Grammy awards
On Sunday, Feb. 5, the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles filled with hopeful performers and music industry professionals for the first time since the pandemic began. The 65th Annual Grammy Awards, hosted by Trevor Noah, were full of celebratory moments for many minority groups that are often underrepresented at award shows.
Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny made history on Sunday by being the first all-Spanish Grammys opening act. His lively dance-filled performance highlighted Caribbean music and culture; Bad Bunny danced alongside Bomba and Plena dancers, as well as cabezudos, traditional big-headed characters that represent those who have made significant contributions to Puerto Rican culture. Other Grammy attendees could be seen dancing along in the audience, including Taylor Swift and Jack Harlow.
Bad Bunny went on to win Best Música Urbana Album for “Un Verano Sin Ti,” which debuted at No. 1 on the weekly Billboard 200 chart in May 2022. He dedicated the award to his homeland of Puerto Rico.
Shortly after the kickoff performance, actress Viola Davis reached EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Awards) status by winning the Grammy for Best Audio Book, Narration and Storytelling Recording. She is one of only eighteen people to achieve this feat.
Davis went on to present the award for Best R&B Song, which went to Beyoncé’s “Cuff It.” However, Beyoncé was stuck in traffic on her way to the ceremony at the time. Musician and composer Nile Rodgers, one of the co-writers on the tune, accepted the award on behalf of the team. Luckily, Beyoncé arrived at the arena in plenty of time to accept the award for Best Dance/Electronic Music Album (her 32nd Grammy) and break the all-time record for most Grammy wins; the award was for her album “Renaissance,” a celebration of Black and queer dance music. She is the first Black woman to win an award in the dance album category.
One of the more bittersweet moments of the Grammys was their “In Memoriam” segment, which honors the lives in the music community that have been lost over the past year. The tribute began with country singer Kacey Musgraves’ touching acoustic rendition of Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” which she played on the late songwriter’s personal guitar. Rapper Quavo then took the stage with Maverick City Music to honor Takeoff, his late nephew and fellow member of Migos.
To conclude the tribute, legacy musicians Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow and Mick Fleetwood came together onstage to honor Christine McVie. Raitt and Crow sang a beautiful duet of “Songbird” by Fleetwood Mac, which McVie wrote for the band’s 1977 album “Rumours,” while Fleetwood accompanied on percussion. McVie, who died in November 2022, was the vocalist and keyboardist for Fleetwood Mac.
There were many more landmark moments throughout the night. Lizzo became the first Black woman to win Record of the Year in this century for “About Damn Time.” She gave a special shoutout to Beyoncé in her speech (who was nominated in the same category), mentioning how she skipped school in fifth grade to attend a Beyoncé performance and how it changed her life. Kim Petras became the first transgender woman to win a Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Collaboration (for her song “Unholy” with Sam Smith). Additionally, the ceremony celebrated hip-hop’s 50th anniversary with show-stopping performances from Questlove, Queen Latifah, The Roots, GloRilla, Salt-N-Pepa and more.
