Alicia Keys hosted the 62nd Grammy Awards on Sunday, Jan. 26. This Grammy Awards was one for the books, as it celebrated the biggest musical artists of the past year while simultaneously giving a heartfelt tribute to basketball legend, Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, who had died previously that day.
The performances of the night were breathtaking as usual. Lizzo started the night with a performance of her songs “Cuz I Love You” and “Truth Hurts,” but really stole the show with her flute solo at the end of it. Her performance gave the start of the Grammys the energy it needed. Lizzo was the most nominated artist of the night, and she won her first ever Grammys for “Best Urban Contemporary Album,” “Best Traditional R&B Performance” and “Best Pop Solo Performance.”
Second-time Grammy host Alicia Keys performed three songs during the night. She sang her new single, “Underdog,” a tribute to Kobe Bryant through the song, “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday” with Boyz II Men, and a version of “Someone You Loved.”
The most electrifying performances were the three tributes. Usher sang a tribute to Prince. He performed the late singer’s hits “Little Red Corvette,” “When Doves Cry” and “Kiss” with FKA Twigs as the lead dancer. John Legend, Meek Mill, DJ Khaled and more performed a tribute to rapper Nipsey Hussle who passed away in 2019. They performed his songs “Higher” and “Letter to Nipsey.” To commemorate producer Ken Ehrlich, Camilla Cabello, Cyndi Lauper, Ben Platt and others sang a beautiful rendition of “I Sing the Body Electric” from the 1980 film, “Fame.”
Demi Lovato had an absolutely heartbreaking performance of her brand new song, “Anyone,” which was her first performance in two years. The song talks about her struggle with drug abuse, and she sang it with such emotion and authenticity that it had the audience in tears. Her performance was one of the stand-outs of the night.
Lil Nas X’s performance of his hit song, “Old Town Road” was wild. It included artists like Billy Ray Cyrus, Diplo and even Korean pop band BTS. The song was a huge cultural hit this past year, and the performance showed just how impactful it was. The stage spun as Lil Nas X sang different verses with the different artists.
The most buzz for the Grammys was around Billie Eilish who swept the top awards, winning Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year. She also won Best New Artist Best Pop Vocal Album. The last artist to sweep the four major awards was Christopher Cross in 1981. The 18 year old is also the youngest artist to win album of the year. Her performance of her song, “when the party’s over” was absolutely spine-chilling in the best way.
Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were the focus of the night with many of the performances making some sort of tribute to them. Many artists chose to include a message of support to his family.
Despite everyone still freshly mourning a legend, the 62nd Grammys had inspiring and beautiful performances, and it truly celebrated the artists of the past year well.
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