The 66th annual Grammy Awards were held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on February 4. It was a night where women won big, dominating the general categories in nominations–and taking home the biggest awards of the night.
Taylor Swift took home Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for her critically acclaimed tenth studio album, “Midnights.” She announced her eleventh upcoming album, “The Tortured Poet’s Department,” for release April 19, during her acceptance speech for the latter award.
This came as a surprise to everyone, as she dropped a copious amount of clues toward the release of the re-recorded version of 2017’s “reputation.” Swift made Grammy history, being the first person to take home Album of the Year for the fourth time; “Midnights” joined “Fearless,” “1989,” and “folklore.”
Miley Cyrus took home her first two Grammys ever, with her single “Flowers” winning Best Pop Solo Performance and Record of the Year. The latter, according to the Recording Academy, is awarded to “artists, producers, recording engineers, mixers, and mastering engineers.” It is focused on the production of a song, while Song of the Year is for songwriting and is given to the writer only.
Billie Eilish brought her Grammy count up to nine by taking home Song of the Year for “What Was I Made For?” from the “Barbie” soundtrack, which also earned Best Song for Visual Media. It is the second win for Eilish in each category, following her Song of the Year win in 2020 for “bad guy” and “No Time to Die” from the 2021 James Bond movie of the same name.
Each general field category–Album, Record, Song of the Year, Best New Artist, Songwriter, and Producer of the Year–was predominantly filled with female nominees. In fact, seven out of eight nominees in the first three categories were women. The night’s contenders competed among acclaimed singers like Olivia Rodrigo and Joni Mitchell.
Victoria Monet was the night’s Best New Artist, along with earning Best Engineered Album, non-Classical, and Best R&B Album for “Jaguar II.” Her 2 ½-year-old daughter, Hazel, became the youngest Grammy nominee in history for her laughter on the track “Hollywood,” which was nominated for best Traditional R&B Performance.
SZA was the most nominated artist of the night, with nine nominations overall. She won three awards – Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Ghost in the Machine” with Phoebe Bridgers, Best R&B Song for “Snooze,” and Best Progressive R&B Album for “SOS.”
Bridgers earned her first Grammy awards after several previous nominations–winning Best Pop Duo/Group Performance as a featured artist on the aforementioned SZA track. As part of supergroup boygenius with Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus, Bridgers took home Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, and Best Alternative Music Album. She was the most awarded artist of the night.
