Beyonce, Megan Thee Stallion, and Burna Boy just made history at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards hosted by Trevor Noah. The ceremony honors singers, rappers, and producers for their contributions to music.
Although Beyonce turned down a chance for us to see her ‘werk’ it on the stage, audiences were entertained by Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, country singer Mickey Guyton, and Doja Cat, among others.
From the 2021 Grammys Pre-show right up to the main event, Black talents getting the noms goes to show that they are being recognized for their hard work. Although not all of them went home with the golden gramophone, some made history, and we are here to celebrate them every step of the way.
Here are four highlights from the awards ceremony.
Beyonce makes history
With 79 nominations throughout her music career, Beyonce has won the most Grammy Awards of any female artist in Grammy history. The Queen B now has a total of 28 Grammys.
With a total of nine nominations for the night, Beyonce won three awards, cementing her name in Grammy history. She took home Grammys Best R&B performance with ‘Black Parade’, Best Music Video for ‘Brown Skin Girl’, and a third for her collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion.
Grammy firsts
For the first time, Megan Thee Stallion took home three awards after winning Best new artist of the year, Best rap song for ‘Savage’ remix, and Best rap performance.
Ledisi has had 13 Grammy nominations throughout her career. On Sunday, she took home her first award for Best Traditional Performance for ‘Anything For You.”
Tiffany Haddish was the only woman nominated for the best comedy album and she won. This makes it her first Grammy win and second nomination. In 2019, ‘The Last Black Unicorn’ got nominated for best spoken word album.
African acts
Burna Boy and WizKid put Afrobeats on the map at this year’s Grammys. Burna Boy’s album ‘Twice As Tall’ earned him a nomination into the Best Global Music Album category and he took home the golden gramophone.
According to BBC, the Grammys nomination described ‘Twice As Tall’ as “a masterclass in the vibe and hustle that have made Burna Boy an international musical force”.
“[He] continues to torch limitations, seamlessly blending styles and genres and fearlessly fuelling the fire heating the melting pot of pop, Afrobeat, dancehall, reggae and more,” it said.
This is his second nomination for the award, two years in a row.
Due to COVID-19 protocols, Burna ‘killed’ his performance during the Pre-award show outside the event grounds. Fans are still roaring over it on social media.
Wizkid did not receive a direct nomination but his performance on Beyoncé’s ‘Brown Skin Girl’ earned him his first Grammy award. The song, which became an anthem for people of color in the last year and was described as “a feast for the fashion-forward and a celebration of Black and brown female beauty everywhere”, was nominated for Best Music Video.
Now, the Best Music Video award is always given to the artist, video director, and video producer.
Blue Ivy
Blue Ivy Carter hails from music royalty and it is no surprise that the nine-year-old took home her first Grammy award at the ceremony’s Pre-show event hosted by Jene Aiko.
She was featured on her mother’s “Brown Skin Girl,” which took home the Best Music Video award. The song was originally released in the original motion picture soundtrack for the 2019 film “The Lion King: The Gift,” then adapted into an excerpt from Beyoncé’s 2020 film, “Black Is King,” according to LA Times.
