Biggest Moments of the 66th Annual Grammy Awards

The 66th Annual Grammy Awards were presented on Sunday night as the Recording Academy celebrated another year of music around the world. The ceremony was filled with iconic moments, outstanding performances, and surprise appearances from top industry leaders. Let's discuss the most memorable moments of this year's show.

Taylor Swift Makes History

Well, here we are again. Taylor Swift has once again used an award show to surprise fans by exceeding expectations of possible rumors. After winning the award for "Best Pop Vocal Album" with Midnights, Swift gave a speech in which she recognized that this Grammy was the 13th of her career. After thanking Recording Academy and supportive fans, the global superstar announced that she had a brand new project two years in the making: a 16-track album titled, The Tortured Poets Department, releasing on April 19th.

This isn't the first time that Taylor has announced a brand new album at an award show. Swift announced Midnights at the MTV Video Music Awards in October 2022, which seems to have come full circle as the album proceeded to win "Album of the Year" on Sunday night.

With this win, Taylor Swift has become the first artist in history to win "Album of the Year" four times in their career, a record that was previously held by Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon, and Stevie Wonder. Swift ended the night thanking the various collaborators of the album, including Lana Del Rey, one of the featured artists on Midnights.

Tracy Chapman Receives her Flowers

One of the most heartfelt moments in recent Grammy history happened when music icon Tracy Chapman joined country singer Luke Combs on stage to sing "Fast Car." The hit song was originally owned and released by Tracy Chapman in 1988, with Luke Combs releasing a cover of the song in 2023. His cover of "Fast Car" spent over 40 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for "Best Country Solo Performance" at this year's Grammy Awards.

Even though Combs failed to secure the award, his performance of the song proved to honor the legacy and career of Chapman, who stood alongside Combs to sing the hit song. The performance followed the style of the 1988 version of the song, and many were delighted to see Tracy Chapman receive the credit that she deserved.

Jay-Z Calls out the Recording Academy and Colleagues

While accepting the award for the "Dr. Dre Impact Award," Jay-Z took the opportunity to call out the Recording Academy for their decision in not giving Beyoncé an award for "Album of the Year," despite her having the most Grammy awards in history. Beyoncé stood in the audience watching her husband, alongside her daughter Blue Ivy, defend her as the room was filled with awkward silence.

The rant didn't stop there, as Jay-Z proceeded to call out this year's nominees, saying that some of them didn't deserve to be on the show. While no names were specifically mentioned (thank God), the speech definitely felt a little hard to watch and created discourse surrounding who he was referring to.

Miley Cyrus has a Career First

From one of the best performances of the night to winning her first ever Grammy, Miley Cyrus cemented herself as the Grammys biggest winner this year. Paying homage to her 80s inspirations such as Tina Turner and Whitney Houston, Cyrus showcased her glitz and glamour on the red carpet and on the stage.

Cyrus started the night by winning the award for "Best Pop Solo Performance" for her #1 hit, "Flowers," which became her first career Grammy award. Cyrus proceeded to go on stage next to presenter, Mariah Carey, to share a heartfelt story about the meaning behind the chart-topping song, saying that she never thought the song would reach the height that it did.

Following the award speech, Miley Cyrus later took the stage to perform "Flowers," which was her first televised performance of the Grammy award-winning single. Cyrus turned the official performance into more of a casual, entertaining spectacle, jokingly asking the crowd, "Why are you acting like you don't know this song?" This led audience members to rise to their feet and sing or dance along to the song, in which Cyrus continued to be her authentic self by changing the lyrics of the song to "... Started to cry but then remembered, I just won my first Grammy!"

To end the night, Miley Cyrus took home one of the biggest awards that the Recording Academy offers: Record of the Year. "Flowers" was a no-brainer nomination for this category, as the song was one of the most successful of the year, but also received critical acclaim for its lyrics and composition. Cyrus has reached a new peak in her career and winning her first ever Grammy awards will continue to solidify her as an icon in the music industry.