By: Madison Smith
The stars sparkled as the music industry’s biggest night unfolded at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards this past Sunday. From electrifying performances, heartfelt speeches and unexpected guests, the evening celebrated the talents and diversity of music. Here is a rundown of the top five moments of the night.
Miley Cyrus takes home her first two Grammys ever
Cyrus is known for her acting in the Disney Channel show, “Hannah Montana,” and for her amazing, rock star voice. She had never won a Grammy before, and won her first two in one night for her self-love song “Flowers,” which was inspired by Bruno Mars’ song “When I Was Your Man.” Mariah Carey presented the award for Best Pop Solo Performance with Meryl Streep and Mark Ronson presented her with Record of the Year.
Cyrus gave a star-studded performance of the Grammy award-winning song, “Flowers,” which was her first time performing the song on live television. The singer stepped out in a bejeweled outfit that looks like it came out from the ‘70s. Cyrus also added her ad-libs in her performance such as “I just won my first Grammy” which showed her excitement of earning her first award from The Recording Academy.
Taylor Swift surprises her fans, again
2023 was the year of Taylor Swift, from her Era’s Tour to releasing two re-recordings of her albums “Speak Now” and “1989.” Swift fans believed she was going to be releasing the re-record of her album “Reputation” on Sunday. Swift changed her Instagram profile to black and white the morning of the awards which caused fans to believe she would be announcing the re-recording of “Reputation” at the Grammys, but Swift had other plans.
As she was accepting the award for Best Pop Vocal Album, Swift surprised fans by announcing a new album called “The Tortured Poets Department” coming this year. This was a huge shock to fans as Swift said she had been keeping this a secret for two years. Swift is known for hiding easter eggs for her fans to figure out and many fans also believe there were other hidden messages besides her announcement of her new album such as her holding up the number two and wiping off the award with her glove.
“I was not expecting that at all, she really surprised us all,” said senior Nursing major, Megan Bouma.
Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs perform the hit song ‘Fast Car’
Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs surprised guests with a heartwarming performance of Chapman’s song “Fast Car.” Combs had done a cover of the song earlier in 2023 that blew up. The two stars came together to perform the song and the crowd of celebrities loved it. Chapman had been out of the spotlight for over a decade and her last live television performance was in 2015. This was a very heartfelt performance as Chapman had stepped out of the spotlight years ago.
“The performance really brought me to tears,” said Amber Gaudy.
Annie Lennox Calls For Ceasefire
Lennox gave a fiery tribute to Sinhéad O’Connor at the Grammys on Sunday. O’Connor, who passed at the age of 56, was honored for her powerful voice and outspoken political beliefs on and off stage, such as ripping a picture of the Pope on SNL. The tribute to O’Connor ended with a call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
“Artists for ceasefire,” said Lennox as she finished the performance of O’Connor’s song “Nothing Compares 2 U.” Many of the artists cheered for her as she raised her fist in the air and made her statement.
Taylor Swift Makes Grammy History
Swift was awarded Album of the Year for her album “Midnights” at the Grammys on Sunday. Swift broke the record as the first and only woman artist to win the award four times. This has never happened in 66 years of Grammy history. Swift also brought up fellow nominated artist Lana Del Rey on stage with her, as Del Rey was a part of the “Midnights” album as well.
“I’ve watched the Grammys since I was a little kid and it is crazy that she [Swift] is the one who holds that record now,” said Michael Smith.
