Grammys 2022: Highlights of Music’s Biggest Night
April 3, 2022 was a long time coming this year for Grammy Award hopefuls.
After the Recording Academy announced a postponement from the original January 30 date regarding COVID-19 concerns, the coveted awards show finally arrived this past Sunday night. In typical Grammys fashion, there were star-studded performances, glamorous fashion statements, surprise winners, and touching tributes to music legends.
Here’s my rundown of the most memorable highlights of the 64th Grammy Awards:
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Big Winners
This year’s major categories (Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist) were expanded from eight to ten nominees, therefore the competition was especially tight. Jon Batiste, who led all artists with the most nominations of the year, was Sunday night’s biggest winner.
The soul musician collected five awards out of his eleven nominations, including the prestigious Album of the Year trophy for his recent release, WE ARE. Batiste also delivered one of the night’s most genuine and humble acceptance speeches.
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“I believe this to my core, there is no best musician, best artist, best dancer, best actor, the creative arts are subjective and they reach people at a point in their lives when they need it most,” Batiste shared. “It’s like a song or an album is made and it almost has a radar to find the person when they need it the most.”
Surprisingly to many, the throwback soul duo Silk Sonic, comprised of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, won all four of their nominations, beating out other pop favorites such as Billie Eilish, Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo, and Justin Bieber. Their hit single “Leave the Door Open” took home Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best R&B Song, and Best R&B Performance, which tied with Jazmine Sullivan’s “Pick Up Your Feelings”.
“In the industry, we call that a clean sweep!” Anderson .Paak boasted during their fourth acceptance speech of the evening, to which Bruno Mars replied, “That’s four for four!”
Teen pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo entered her very first Grammy Awards with seven nominations, three of which she won for Best New Artist, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Pop Solo Performance. She also performed a moving rendition of her record-breaking, career-shifting ballad “driver’s license” from a Mercedes onstage.
One of my personal favorite moments was witnessing Doja Cat and SZA make Grammys history, becoming the first black women to win the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their popular summer jam, “Kiss Me More.”
As SZA hobbled on crutches supporting a broken ankle, Lady Gaga generously untangled the train of her dress and carried it until she was safely onstage. Meanwhile, Doja Cat hilariously ran in late from the bathroom before delivering a heartfelt speech, thanking SZA for featuring on her track and calling her “the epitome of talent.” Through tears, Doja admitted to the audience, “I like to downplay sh**, but this is a big deal.”
Other winners of the night include Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett (Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, Love For Sale), H.E.R. (Best Traditional R&B Performance, “Fight For You”), Chris Stapleton (Best Country Solo Performance, “You Should Probably Leave” and Best Country Song, “Cold”), Jazmine Sullivan (Best R&B Performance, “Pick Up Your Feelings” and Best R&B Album, Heaux Tales), and Tyler the Creator (Best Rap Album, CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST).
Notable Performances
Host Trevor Noah declared at the beginning of the Grammy Awards, “It’s not an awards show. It’s a concert where we also give out awards.” Truly, the night lived up to this statement, as only a few award ceremonies were televised in favor of maximizing the amount of live performances.
Silk Sonic opened the show with a fiery, Vegas-themed take on their funky track “777.” Following Olivia Rodrigo’s Grammy debut performance of “driver’s license”, Latin artist J. Balvin took the stage with Maria Becerra to perform “¿Qué Más Pues?” all before any award winners were announced.
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Later, pop stars Billie Eilish and her brother FINNEAS performed her biggest hit of 2021, “Happier Than Ever,” the Grammy-nominated title track from her exquisite sophomore album.
In a touching tribute to the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, who passed away on March 25, Eilish sported an oversized graphic t-shirt with Hawkins’ face on the front during their performance.
Also notable was a musical theater-inspired tribute to the late composer Stephen Sondheim, which was shown during the Grammy’s annual “In Memoriam” portion of the show honoring artists, musicians, songwriters, and performers who passed within the recent year. Ben Platt, Rachel Zegler, Leslie Odom, Jr., and Cynthia Erivo performed a medley of Sondheim songs, including “Not a Day Goes By,” “Send in the Clowns,” and “Somewhere.”
Lady Gaga dazzled in a mint green ballgown as she strutted around the stage performing “Love For Sale,” and “Do I Love You” from her jazz collaboration album Love For Sale with Tony Bennett. Though Bennett’s increasingly severe battle with Alzheimer’s prevented him from performing live, the legendary singer’s pre-taped video message brought the entire room to tears, especially Gaga herself, who ended her touching performance with the words, “I love you, Tony. We miss you.”
For a complete list of all performers at the 64th Grammy Awards, click here.
