The 2024 Grammys was a show for the history books, from Taylor Swift becoming the only person in history to win Album of the Year four times to surprise winners and yet another disappointment for Lana Del Rey fans.
Record of the Year: “Flowers,” Miley Cyrus
This win was the most shocking of the night to a lot of viewers. While not an objectively bad song, a lot of the other songs nominated had amassed a greater number of hits and recognition in comparison to Miley Cyrus’ hit song.
The other nominees in this category were “Worship” by Jon Batiste, “Anti-Hero” by Swift, “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo, “On My Mama” by Victoria Monét, “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish and “Kill Bill” by SZA.
While this category is not based on the popularity of each individual song, many viewers felt as if “Flowers” did not amass the same popularity due to the quality of the song in comparison to the other nominees.
This was not the only surprise of the night to viewers, with many winners in other categories being criticized for the same reasons. While the Grammys are criticized heavily each year, this year this category was the main target for criticism. Yet, the determining factors of record of the year include both the song and the production that goes into making the song.
“Flowers” was the hit song off of Cyrus’ newest album, “Endless Summer Vacation.” “Flowers” is a song about self-love and breakups. It features an upbeat background with clear disco and techno influence. The song primarily tells the story of accepting being independent and finding joy in it. That being said, the song debuted at No. 1 and spent eight consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, also topping the charts in 37 other countries.
Album of the Year: “Midnights”, Taylor Swift
Also to many viewers’ surprise, Swift took home yet another Album of the Year award. Swift made history at the Grammys by being the first person, man or woman, to win a fourth Album of the Year award, with her other wins being “Fearless,” “1989” and “Folklore.” While Swift fans all around were happy to see her win this achievement, many felt as if “Midnights” did not amount to the success of her previous Album of the Year winners.
The other nominees in this category were “World Music Radio” by Batiste, “Guts” by Rodrigo, “the record” by boygenius, “SOS” by SZA, “The Age of Pleasure” by Janelle Monáe, “Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd” by Lana Del Rey and “Endless Summer Vacation” by Miley Cyrus.
When Swift won the award, one notable thing she did was bring fellow nominee Del Rey on the stage with her. Viewers had mixed reactions to this, as she featured on Swift’s album but did not win the category herself and went another year without being awarded for her music. Despite this, Swift went on to recognize Del Rey for her influence on women in the music industry.
“Midnights” is Swift’s 10th studio album, described as a synth-pop and electro-pop album. “Midnights” was Swift’s 11th No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 and Swift’s fifth album to sell more than 1 million copies in the first week while also being the best-selling album of 2022.
Song of the Year: “What Was I Made For?,” Billie Eilish
After winning Best New Artist at the 62nd annual Grammys, Eilish has racked up nine wins and 25 nominations. This melancholy piece was made for the movie “Barbie,” despite its differences from the rest of the movie’s upbeat pop track. The song is both passionate and deep as it can be interpreted in relation to both Barbie’s journey throughout the movie and also finding purpose in life in general.
The other nominees for the award were “Vampire” by Rodrigo, “Kill Bill” by SZA, “Flowers” by Cyrus, “Dance The Night” by Dua Lipa, “Butterfly” by Batiste, “Anti-Hero” by Swift and “A&W” by Del Rey.
Best New Artist: Victoria Monét
The Best New Artist category was one of the most accomplished and stacked groups of nominees in the Grammys. All artists who were nominated have grown prominent fan bases and are budding with potential.
The nominees for Best New Artist were Jelly Roll, The War and Treaty, Noah Kahan, Coco Jones, Ice Spice, Fred Again and Gracie Abrams. The nominees assembled a diverse group of artists spanning across genres.
Monét also took home the Grammy for Best R&B Album, “Jaguar II,” as well as Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Monét broke out as a solo artist this year with the release of “Jaguar II,” with the hit “On my Mama” also being nominated for Record of the Year. Monét has been in the music business for quite some time now, working with artist Ariana Grande on some of her biggest hits, such as “thank u, next,” “Be Alright” and “needy.” “Jaguar II” allowed Monét to solidify herself in the R&B space, so this recognition came as no surprise to many viewers.
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Jack Antonoff
Jack Antonoff is no stranger to the music production industry, working alongside many major artists to help write and produce their albums. It was no surprise that he took this award home, especially considering the nominations these albums received both at the Grammys and other award shows along with their commercial success.
Other notable artists that Antonoff has worked with in the past include Carly Rae Jepsen, Sara Bareilles, Grimes, Troye Sivan, Rachel Platten, Sia, Fifth Harmony, Zayn, Kevin Abstract, The Chicks, Olivia Rodrigo, Clairo, Lorde, Florence and the Machine, Tame Impala, Diana Ross, BROCKHAMPTON, Kali Uchis, Thundercat, Phoebe Bridgers, and Maren Morris.
Other notable winners include indie supergroup boygenius, who took home three Grammys. boygenius consists of indie singer-songwriters Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers. All three of their awards were taken home during the pre-show awards on Sunday afternoon. Their wins include Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance for their breakout single “Not Strong Enough,” which was from their Best Alternative Album-winning piece “The Record.” Despite the praise from their fanbase on these awards, they received a lot of criticism for the categories that they won, with many rock and alternative fans feeling as if they should not have been in the categories they were in.
Jay-Z and Beyoncé were also a surprise to viewers, as they were in the crowd for Sunday’s ceremony. Jay-Z was there to accept the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, which he took as an opportunity to call out the recording academy for repeated snubs of his wife Beyoncé in the Album of the Year award. His speech alluded to the scrutiny the recording academy has amassed as they have consistently miscategorized and undervalued Black artists, coincidentally occurring on a night when SZA, another Black musician, amassed the most nominations but was persistently shut out in the biggest award categories.
Travis Scott was one of the rap performers of the night, with what can best be described as a daunting performance. Scott was joined by Playboi Carti for performances of “My Eyes,” “I Know” and “Fein.” As the performance progressed, so did the madness. Scott began smashing folding chairs as pyrotechnics went off around him. Overall, the performance felt strangely passionless, with the chair smashing being similar to that of a toddler having a temper tantrum rather than the dystopian vibe that Scott appeared to be going for.
The Grammys also usually features a memorial segment to honor artists that had a large impact on the music genre and society but had been lost. The segment opened with Stevie Wonder performing “For Once in My Life” as a tribute to Tony Bennett, both singing and speaking on Bennett’s life and his commitment to civil rights. He was then followed by Annie Lennox, who proclaimed “Artist for cease-fire, peace in the world” while performing in front of Sinéad O’Connor, an important artist who was also a large political and social justice activist whilst singing “Nothing Compares 2 U.”
Additionally, Batiste and Ann Nesby performed Bill Withers’ songs including “Ain’t No Sunshine” into a gospel version of “Lean on Me.” Oprah Winfrey also delivered a verbal tribute followed by Fantasia Barrino honoring Tina Turner by singing “Proud Mary.”
Tracy Chapman also made a return at the Grammys, singing a duet of her hit “Fast Car,” which Luke Combs had been nominated for a country hit single because of his interpretation of. The two traded verses, with Chapman appearing comfortable and confident after previous alienation from the music industry and lack of touring since 2009.
Celine Dion made a return at the Grammys as well. After previously announcing that she had developed stiff person syndrome, a neurological condition, Dion also canceled all of her concert dates. Yet, Dion showcased her resilience as she surprisingly returned to announce the winner of the coveted Album of the Year award.
All in all, the 66th Annual Grammys was full of surprises, whether it was through wins, guest appearances or performances.
