The 59th Annual Grammy Awards Most Talked-About Moments

McKenzie Feldman
Web Editor

Music’s biggest night of the year was a hit. The 59th Grammy Awards celebrated the music industry’s finest achievements this past Sunday. With big winners to electric performances, this year’s Grammys was quite unforgettable.

Adele proved to be the shining star we know her to be. With five Grammy wins, she walked away as the night’s biggest winner. She started by opening up with a flawless rendition of “Hello.” Adele then swept the top categories, winning Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Pop Solo Performance. Although her winnings put her at the top, her emotional tribute to George Michael was all the talk. A few seconds into the performance, the British singer/songwriter asked to start over. She started by saying, “I cannot do it again like last year.” She then continued after the bleeped out moment, “I'm sorry for swearing and I'm sorry for starting again. Can we start it again? I'm sorry, I cannot mess this up for him. I'm sorry. I cannot. I'm sorry for swearing, I'm really sorry." Adele was visibly upset, but the star-studded crowd cheered her on. The second time around received a standing ovation as well as numerous teary-eyed celebrities scattered throughout the audience. 

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Adele was not the only leading lady of the night. Many saw the night as a competition between Adele and Beyoncé because they were up for many of the same categories. Although Adele won big, she did not forget to bow down to Beyoncé. Beyoncé still walked away with Best Urban Contemporary album for Lemonade, and she championed pride for every child of every race in her acceptance speech. She then went on to provide a show-stopping performance celebrating motherhood. In addition to winning the Best Urban Contemporary Album, she also won Best Music Video for “Formation.” The two leading ladies ruled the night. Both delivered riveting performances that highlighted the greatness in all that they do.

Another leading artist of the night was Chance the Rapper. He won the first award of the night for Best New Artist as well as Best Rap Album. Also, he was awarded the best rap performance during the non-televised portion of the awards show. His acceptance speeches were just as energetic as he is as he thanked God and his hometown of Chicago. Later in the night he also brought out Kirk Franklin, Tamela Mann, and a gospel choir to join him in a performance. Chance added decades of soul, gospel, and hip-hop to his performance that turned anyone watching into a fan.

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Another iconic piece of the night was the host of this year’s award show, James Corden. It all started with his comical entrance as the elevator carrying him to the top of the stairs stopped halfway. He then preceded to rap his opening monologue, working in well-known names and trends. Corden is most known for his viral success of the “Carpool Karaoke” franchise. In these buzz-worthy videos, Corden hops in a car with a famous celebrity, usually a chart-topping singer, and they cruise around while jamming to an assortment of songs. Since Corden is known for this segment, he did not miss a chance of bringing it to the Grammys.  A handful of musicians joined Corden in a short sing along to “Sweet Caroline” behind a cardboard cutout car. Corden pulled together Neil Diamond, Jennifer Lopez, John Legend, Faith Hill, Jason Derulo, Ryan Tedder, Keith Urban, Tim McGraw, and even little Blue Ivy to perform Diamond’s song.

​​Following the distribution of awards were many electric performances. Most notably was Bruno Mars’s tribute to Prince which won over the crowd. Mars dressed in Prince’s iconic purple shirt and suit and dazzled the crowd with “Let’s Go Crazy.” Speaking of clothing attire, Twenty-One Pilots also made a memorable moment of their own. The two accepted their Grammy for best pop duo/group performance without pants on. Their story behind it consisted of pact that they would turn back time before they were making money and music. They explained that when they got together to watch the Grammys, somewhere along the line they realized they were all in their underwear. They said they were no one at the time. If they were ever going to win a Grammy, they wanted to receive it the exact same way. Corden followed up by stripping down to his underwear too when introducing Ed Sheeran.
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The 59th Grammy Awards largely kept the focus on the music, reminding the world the power that lies behind the tunes we hear on the radio. The night not only highlighted the stars but also the influence behind the music. Who knows who and what the chart-topper will be next year?

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