Beyoncé Breaks Grammy Record; Top Prizes for Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift

“It’s been such a difficult time, so I wanted to uplift, encourage, celebrate all of the beautiful Black queens and kings that continue to inspire me and inspire the whole world,” Beyoncé said in her acceptance speech.

This year’s ceremony showcased moments that centered Black artists after years of persistent questions about the awards show’s commitment to diversity.

Mickey Guyton, the first Black woman to be nominated for best country solo performance, performed “Black Like Me,” also making her the first Black woman in country to take the Grammys stage as a performer. And the Atlanta rapper Lil Baby performed “The Bigger Picture,” an autobiographical protest song released less than three weeks after George Floyd was killed, joined onstage by the activist Tamika Mallory, the rapper and community leader Killer Mike and the actor Kendrick Sampson, who was also active in Black Lives Matter protests.

As with other awards shows, the coronavirus pandemic forced the ceremony to adapt. Hosted by the comedian and “The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah from in front of the Staples Center, the event took place in and around downtown Los Angeles and featured both live and taped performances.

In a nod to the severity of the pandemic’s impact on the live music industry, the Grammys highlighted the struggles of independent music venues by having staff members from four live music spots — the Troubadour and the Hotel Café in Los Angeles, the Apollo Theater in New York and Nashville’s Station Inn — present awards and encouraged viewers at home to support their local clubs.

The night also acknowledged a year of loss for the music industry with an extended in memoriam segment to recognize those lost to the coronavirus and other causes. The list of those lost included nearly 1,000 people and could not be included in full in the program but was posted online.

“I was going to write a speech about how you deserve this but then I was like, there’s no way they’re going to choose me,” Eilish said. “I was like, it’s hers. You deserve this.”

She went on: “You had a year that I think is untoppable. You are a queen. I want to cry thinking about how much I love you.”

Megan Thee Stallion was nominated in the category for “Savage (Remix),” featuring Beyoncé, which won for best rap song and best rap performance.

Eilish also beat out “Black Parade” by Beyoncé, “Don’t Start Now” by Dua Lipa, “Rockstar” by DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch, “Say So” by Doja Cat, “Circles” by Post Malone and “Colors” by Black Pumas.

Selena’s 1993 album, “Live,” won best Mexican-American album, making her the first female Tejano artist to win the Grammy. And her English-language debut, “Dreaming of You,” was posthumously released and sold 175,000 copies on first day it was available, a record at the time for a female vocalist.

Lionel Hampton, whose mastery of the vibraphone made him a leading figure of the swing era, was also honored posthumously. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, the first hip-hop performers inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, were also given an award for lifetime achievement; as was the American mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne; the hip-hop duo Salt-N-Pepa; and Talking Heads, a pioneer of new wave music.

A surprise release in July, “Folklore” represented Swift’s foray into more acoustic sounds and indie-rock textures following years of pop bombast. She was nominated six times in all on Sunday, but lost in five other categories before taking home album of the year.

“Evermore,” the “sister record” to “Folklore” and Swift’s second secret pandemic release, came out in December, meaning it could be nominated at next year’s Grammys and represents her fourth potential album win.

More than two hours into the telecast, viewers were surprised to see a camera show Beyoncé seated at the award ceremony. Minutes later she would win best rap song with Megan Thee Stallion, who gushed about her collaborator in her acceptance speech.

“I definitely want to say thank you to Beyoncé,” she said. “If you know me, you have to know that ever since I was little, I was like, ‘You know what, one day I’m going to grow up, I’m going to be like the rap Beyoncé.’ That was definitely my goal.”

Then Beyoncé herself won another Grammy for best R&B performance for “Black Parade” and gave her own acceptance speech.

“It’s been such a difficult time, so I wanted to uplift, encourage, celebrate all of the beautiful Black queens and kings that continue to inspire me and inspire the whole world,” she said. “This is so overwhelming. I’ve been working my whole life — since 9 years old — and I can’t believe this happened.”

With those two awards under her belt, plus the awards for best rap song (again for “Savage”) and best music video that she earned before the broadcast, Beyoncé broke the record for most Grammy wins ever by a female artist, previously held by Alison Krauss.

“History!” the host, Trevor Noah, exclaimed. “Give it up for Beyoncé. This is history right now!”

Lil Baby was joined onstage by the activist Tamika Mallory, who helped to organize the 2017 Women’s March, the rapper and community leader Killer Mike of Run the Jewels and the actor Kendrick Sampson, who was also active in Black Lives Matter protests.

“President Biden we demand justice, equity, policy,” Mallory said during her portion of the performance, “and everything else that freedom encompasses.”

Killer Mike, inserting part of his verse from the Run the Jewels song “Walking in the Snow,” added pointedly: “All of us serve the same masters, all of us nothin’ but slaves/never forget in the story of Jesus, the hero was killed by the state.”

Lil Baby’s performance was just one of many Grammys moments that centered Black artists after years of persistent questions about the awards show’s commitment to diversity and its handling of hip-hop.

Earlier in the show, DaBaby and Roddy Ricch performed “Rockstar,” a song with an official “Black Lives Matter Remix,” joined by a choir of older white people in what looked like judge’s robes. DaBaby added an extra verse to the song: “Right now I’m performing at the Grammys/I’ll probably get profiled before leavin’,” he rapped. “Don’t be in denial like we all even now/‘cause if you’re in the projects or a mansion/you’re still a Black man when you leave the house/them’s the facts.”

Mickey Guyton, the first solo Black woman to be nominated in a country category, performed “Black Like Me,” also making her the first Black woman in country to take the Grammys’ stage as a performer. (“Black Like Me” lost the award to “When My Amy Prays” by Vince Gill.)

Three awards presented during the telecast also went to protest songs: “Lockdown,” released by Anderson .Paak on Juneteeth and inspired by the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, won for best melodic rap performance. “I Can’t Breathe,” by H.E.R., won song of the year. And “Black Parade,” Beyoncé’s own Juneteeth release, from her “Black Is King” film, won best R&B performance.

“It’s been such a difficult time,” Beyoncé said in her acceptance speech, “so I wanted to uplift, encourage and celebrate all of the beautiful Black queens and kings that inspire me.”

H.E.R., who is 23, was nominated for three Grammys this year, and hers was not the only protest song to win: “Lockdown,” released by Anderson .Paak on Juneteenth and inspired by the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, won for best melodic rap performance. And “Black Parade,” Beyoncé’s own Juneteenth release, won best R&B performance.

“I didn’t imagine that my fear and that my pain would turn into impact and that it would possibly turn into change,” H.E.R. said in her acceptance speech.

She ended with a kind of call to action to the protesters who filled the streets in cities across America over the summer: “The fight that we had in us the summer of 2020 — keep that same energy.”

When the “WAP” music video debuted in August, it set the internet ablaze with its R-rated lyrics and even more suggestive choreography (Cardi and Megan splashing around in fishnets). The song topped the charts for weeks, inspired myriad TikTok memes and debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100.

Megan Thee Stallion, who won best new artist earlier in the show, opened the brief set with two of her hits, “Body” and “Savage,” which is nominated for record of the year. She wore a glimmering leotard and tall white feathers on her head, which, along with the tap dancers, gave the performance a Roaring Twenties feel. Then Cardi B hit the stage in a bubble-gum pink pixie cut to perform her latest single “Up,” before the rappers teamed up for the crowd pleaser.

She also spoke out last month after a video of the country star Morgan Wallen using a racial slur surfaced online, writing on Twitter: “The hate runs deep.”

Her efforts, along with those of other, mostly female, artists — who host Trevor Noah called out during the telecast for their excellence —have helped push the country music industry to begin confronting issues of racism and bias.

And on Sunday, Guyton delivered a stirring performance on a simple, dark set. With spotlights all trained on her, millions of television views got to hear her carefully chosen lyrics about trying to fit in:

It’s a hard life on easy streetJust white painted picket fences far as you can seeIf you think we live in the land of the freeYou should try to be Black like me

Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak performed a tribute to Little Richard, who died of bone cancer in May, singing two of the rock ’n’ roll pioneer’s biggest hits, “Long Tall Sally” and “Good Golly, Miss Molly.” Lionel Richie sang “Lady,” his 1980 song that was first recorded by Kenny Rogers, who died last March.

Brandi Carlile performed John Prine’s “I Remember Everything”; the country-folk singer died of coronavirus complications in April. And with Chris Martin on the piano, Brittany Howard sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” a song from the musical “Carousel” that was covered by the Liverpool rock band Gerry and the Pacemakers; the band’s leader Gerry Marsden died in January (the song had seen a surge of popularity in the U.K. at the beginning of the coronavirus lockdown).

This year’s segment paid tribute to Charley Pride, country music’s first Black superstar, who died from coronavirus complications at age 86; Adam Schlesinger, an acclaimed singer-songwriter for the bands Fountains of Wayne and Ivy, who died from the disease at age 52; and Ellis Marsalis, a pianist and a guiding force behind a late-20th-century resurgence in jazz, who died at 85.

The list of those lost included nearly 1,000 people and could not be included in full in the program but was posted online.

The guitarist Eddie Van Halen died of cancer in October. Bill Withers, the influential singer of “Lean on Me” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” died in April. The producer and performer Sophie died in January at 34. Johnny Pacheco, the Dominican-born bandleader and songwriter who helped bring salsa to the world, died last month.

The death of the masked rapper MF Doom at 49 was disclosed on New Year’s Eve but was said to have occurred months earlier. Helen Reddy, whose 1972 hit song “I Am Woman” became the feminist anthem of the decade, died in September. And the 20-year-old rapper Pop Smoke was shot in a home invasion, ending his life as his career was ascending.

“Folklore,” released as a surprise in July, was responsible for five of Swift’s six nominations tonight — she was also up for a song she wrote for the film “Cats,” but lost to Billie Eilish in the preshow event — and would bring Swift her third career album of the year win, should she end up victorious. “Cardigan,” which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, is also nominated for song of the year.

The song “Willow” came from Swift’s second surprise album of the pandemic, “Evermore,” which was released in December, well after the Grammys deadline on Aug. 31, and would be eligible at next year’s show.

She becomes the first female rapper to be named best new artist since Lauryn Hill in 1999, and only the third solo rapper ever, following Chance the Rapper in 2017. (The hip-hop group Arrested Development took home the award in 1993.)

Megan Thee Stallion started releasing mixtapes on SoundCloud in 2016, while in college for health administration, but first broke through with muscular, confident freestyles that went viral online. In 2019, singles like “Hot Girl Summer” and “Cash ___” put her into regular radio rotation and the next year, she hit No. 1 twice — first with “Savage,” which featured Beyoncé on its remix, and then as a featured guest on Cardi B’s “WAP.”

The best new artist award capped what had been an emotional rise for Megan Thee Stallion, whose success was interrupted last summer when she said she was shot in the feet by the rapper Tory Lanez after a disagreement. Lanez, who denied shooting her, was charged with assault in the incident, which led Megan to become a vocal defender of — and advocate for — Black women.

In announcing his selection as host last November, officials with the Recording Academy and CBS praised Noah’s energy and ability to keep an audience engaged. Noah had suggested he would let the musical performances do much of the work powering the show.

But in his opening remarks, the spotlight was squarely on Noah. He used his time in part to lay out the complicated logistics around how the night’s performances would take place, but also to try to build excitement for the hours ahead.

“This is not a zoom background, this is real,” he said. “Tonight we’re going to celebrate some of the fantastic music that has touched our lives and saved our souls over this unprecedented year.”

Exclamation points aside, they weren’t that far off. The first quasi-live mega-awards red carpet since Covid-19 began was like a fashion primal scream. It was also kind of fun. Who wants restraint when we’ve all been constrained? Doja Cat summed it up when she showed off a Roberto Cavalli gown that involved a leather motorcycle jacket unzipped to the waist and then somehow spliced into a showgirl skirt of neon green and black feathers.

“I like something that’s kind of out there,” she said in her red carpet interview. “I feel like I’ve been kind of toned down before this.”

“Toned-down” was not a word anyone would have used (BTS in hip monochrome Louis Vuitton suiting aside). Phoebe Bridgers came as a bejeweled Thom Browne skeleton, with a full set of bones embroidered on a black gown. Noah Cyrus was a walking tower of whipped cream in exploding ivory Schiaparelli couture. Cynthia Erivo did her best imitation of liquid mercury in Vuitton sequins. Dua Lipa was a crystal Versace butterfly. Megan Thee Stallion channeled a gigantic neon orange supernova in a strapless Dolce & Gabbana column with a steroid-fueled bow on the back, complete with train.

“I wanted to look like a Grammy,” she said, of the dress. “I manifested this.”

She wasn’t the only one. Suddenly, costumes that once might have provoked eye rolls and cynicism seemed like a courageous refusal to let the last year win. And the red carpet, which was increasingly dismissed as a mere marketing tool, has a whole new role.

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Diary of a Song Breaks Down the Grammys Beyoncé, Megan Thee Stallion, Billie Eilish, Dua Lipa and more will face off this weekend for record of the year. In this special Diary of a Song episode, The New York Times’ pop music team dissects the award show’s premier category.

When you look at this category, Record of The Year, how do you feel? “Sad.” “What the hell were they thinking?” “It feels like what 50-year-olds think popular music was like.” “It feels like 2020 in that it’s kind of unsatisfying.” “Record of The Year is the culture category. Where in the culture was this music in 2020?” “But it should be good. It should be the song that’s good enough to represent the year, not just the song that was zeitgeisty enough.” Singing: “Mother land, mother land, mother land, mother land drip on me.” Do you like this song? “I do like this song.” “I do like this song.” “It’s fine.” “I like Black Parade a lot, actually.” “It’s very textured and layered and it gets more and more interesting the more you listen to it.” “There’s the flute. There’s the African choir. There’s the fact that she’s being very topical, talking about Black Lives Matter protests.” “Is it like the banger from Beyoncé I want to hear every day? Not necessarily.” “And we are talking about one of pop music’s Olympic gods. This is a mortal song. She does probably win.” “And I think it might have an inside track, because they keep snubbing Beyoncé.” “She’s the queen of nominations and then the non-queen of winning, especially in the major categories.” “But she’s even better on ‘Savage.’” We’ll get to ‘Savage.’ Singing: “With all my favorite colors.” What is this song? “Every time it comes on I’m like, maybe this is going to be the time where I think it’s deeper than it actually is. But it really isn’t. It’s very simple.” “It’s a song that exists for the Grammys.” “The Grammys appreciate that kind of musicianship.” “There’s good guitar work on that song. Organ on that song is really strong. The vocal is good.” Singing: “I’ll be shaded by the trees.” “But what it’s missing for me is the punch or drama. I mean, it is for people in major Starbucks attendance withdrawal is what it is.” One of the things that hit me about this category is that a lot of them are guitar songs. Even the rap song is a guitar song. “Right. But they’re guitar songs, but they are guitar songs. It’s funny because the next one we’re going to talk about is DaBaby, which is definitely a guitar song.” Singing: “You even met a real rockstar. This ain’t no guitar, bitch, it’s a glock.” “Of every song in this category, it’s the best writing. The guitar part is so pretty, I feel like you almost aren’t catching everything that he’s saying.” Singing: “PTSD. I’m always waking up with cold sweats like I got the flu. My daughter a G. She show me kill a [inaudible] before the age of two. And I’d kill another [inaudible] too.” “I doubt it can win. Historically, the Grammys don’t do well with stuff like this.” “I also don’t think they want to give a Grammy to two Black men. They just don’t. Outkast was the last time that’s going to happen for a long time in the major categories.” Singing: “I’d let you had I known it. Why don’t you say so?” Doja Cat, “Say So,” produced by a man named Tyson Trax. Have you ever heard of this guy, Tyson Trax? “Isn’t that a pseudonym for somebody who maybe has a kind of a bad reputation?” “Oh wait, it’s not Dr. Luke?” Yeah. It’s Dr. Luke. “He used a pen name, for real?” Yeah — Tyson Trax. “Ew. That’s disgusting.” “The number of people in the nominating process or the voting process who know that this is a pseudonym for Dr. Luke, I have to imagine is less than 1 percent.” Do you like “Say So?” “No. Actually, I don’t. It’s disco without the luxury. Everything about disco and twirling around in furs under a disco ball. And this song kind of sounds like a sad person dancing under a single light bulb to me.” “It’s more like, hey.” Yeah. It’s Uber music. “Hey, everybody.” It’s music for the Uber. “It’s Uber music. That’s it.” Singing: “I got everything I wanted.” “This is typical Grammy stuff. Hey that worked. Let’s do it again.” Would it be too soon for Billie Eilish to win again? “Yes.” Singing: “Don’t show up. Don’t come out. Don’t start caring about me now.” Dua Lipa, “Don’t Start Now.” “Yes.” “Is this the record of the year?” “Yes. Disco strings, baseline of the year.” Singing: “Don’t show up. Don’t show up. Don’t —” “It’s a kiss off to an ex who’s trying to make a comeback.” “It’s kind of the opposite of Robyn’s ‘Dancing On My Own.’” Singing: “I’m in the corner watching you kiss her.” “Dua’s like, don’t come watch me be in the club with somebody else, because I’m going out now and I’m over you.” “‘Don’t Start Now’ is a disco banger.” “It sounds like makeup.” Singing: “Run away, but we’re running in circles.” “The idea that this person also did ‘White Iverson.’” Singing: “I got me some braids and I got me some hoes.” “It is fascinating to think that those are the same artist.” This is not a rap song? “No.” “I don’t even know what this song is.” “You know what? This was the Post Malone song that convinced me. I was like, OK, you’re a songwriter. This is a really good song.” “I don’t dislike it, because it’s almost like structurally impossible to dislike.” But you also wouldn’t vote for it? “No, I wouldn’t.” Singing: “I’m a savage. OK Classy, bougie, ratchet, OK Sassy —” Is this the record of the year? “Yes it is.” “A major streaming hit. A huge TikTok hit and dance trend before Beyoncé ever shows up. Beyoncé shows up because of all that. But Megan Thee Stallion, she’s like a C.E.O.” Right. “She’s a great rapper about transaction. It isn’t only about capitalism. But it is also about orgasm, and pleasure, and body fluids.” “Do you think that this is a bigger TikTok song than ‘WAP?’” That’s a good question. ‘WAP’ obviously could have been in this category. Cardi B. reportedly did not submit it for nominations because she wants to save it for the next Grammys. But Beyoncé is Beyoncé. So, you know — “Yeah. Yeah.” “Beyoncé on this song is that big steak that the Flintstones get at the end of every episode and it tips the whole car over. Beyoncé is that steak. She can’t help it. And if you’re Megan Thee Stallion, what are you going to say?” Is this the song to beat in the category? “Yeah. I think it’s between this and Dua.” Flat out, what’s going to win this category? “I think ‘Black Parade.’” “I’m picking ‘Black Parade.’” “‘Savage’ or Billie Eilish.” “I’m going to say, Dua. I think she should win, and I think she will win.” And who should win? “I’m giving it to Beyoncé and ‘Black Parade’ again.” “The Dua Lipa song and ‘Savage’ are my favorite two.” “My vote’s ‘Rockstar.’” And what do you miss in this category? What should be here? “‘Watermelon Sugar.’” Singing: “High.” “It’s a classic no-brainer record of the year. I can’t believe it’s not here. And ‘Blinding Lights’ is the other song.” Right. Singing: “When I’m like this, you’re the one I trust.” “‘Cardigan’ by Taylor Swift is not there.” Singing: “You put me on and said I was your favorite.” “That’s a cozy, old-fashioned subliminally catchy song.” “My heart will always be with that Dua song because I think it’s crisp and perfect. But, if Beyoncé came to the awards, and gave an acceptance speech, and if she would take the Grammys to task for it taking so long for her to be properly honored, the potential of the ‘Black Parade’ win is the most interesting one.” Singing: “Black parade.” “That presumes I think the Grammys are valid.” Sure. “So let’s start with that. That’s a dubious proposition. Start there.” [vocalizing] “I just had this idea that I wanted it to bounce.” Singing: “I got the horses in the back.” [vocalizing] Singing: “Man, what’s the deal? Man, I’m coming through. It’s your girl Lizzo.”

This year, Beyoncé appears in the category twice — for her song “Black Parade” and “Savage (Remix)” with Megan Thee Stallion — alongside “Don’t Start Now” by Dua Lipa, “Rockstar” by DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch, “Say So” by Doja Cat, “Everything I Wanted” by Billie Eilish, “Circles” by Post Malone and “Colors” by Black Pumas.

It’s an eclectic mix, telling a variety of stories about the industry through disparate sounds. To understand the premier category, The New York Times’ pop music team gathered remotely to discuss the nominees in a special “Diary of a Song” spinoff episode. Watch the breakdown above.

And check out the rest of the behind-the-scenes making-of videos — including appearances by Lipa, Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers and Olivia Rodrigo, a Grammys hopeful for next year — at our YouTube channel. Subscribe to never miss an episode.