(New York Post) Somehow after Beyoncé became the winningest artist in Grammy history with 32 gramophones, she still managed to come off as a loser — yet again — when Harry Styles’ “Harry’s House” won Album of the Year over B’s “Renaissance.”
But — deep breath — how could Beyoncé still not have an Album of the Year gramophone after four nominations, when she should already have at least two?
Her game-changing surprise self-titled set lost to Beck’s “Morning Phase” in 2015, and “Lemonade” — one of the best albums of the century — bowed out to Adele’s “25” in 2017.
But the Queen B wasn’t the only artist to get snubbed — or pull a surprise — at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunday night. Here, we look back on some of the other major shockers on music’s biggest night.
Beyonce became the winningest artist of the Grammys with her 32nd award tonight — but that fact wasn’t enough to beat Harry Styles for Album of the Year.
Snub: Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift took home an award for Best Music Video, but was shut out of both Song of the Year and Best Country Song.Variety via Getty Images
Yes, T-Swizzle — who dutifully showed up to the awards even though she (and everybody else) knows that 2024 is really her year— won Best Music Video for “All Too Well: The Short Film,” she failed to pick up gramophones for either Song of the Year or Best Country Song for the tunes that were nominated for her re-recorded versions of “Red” and “I Bet You Think About Me.” While this has been a great move for Swift from a principal and pocketbook standpoint, it’s not exactly what the Record Academy wants to award yet with so much truly new music out there.
Surprise: Bonnie Raitt
A shocked Bonnie Raitt takes in the applause.CBS
Who doesn’t love Bonnie Raitt? But when you’re competing against the likes of Adele, Beyoncé, Harry Styles, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and Lizzo — all superstars at the top of their game — it just doesn’t make any kind of sense that the 73-year-old would win Song of the Year for “Just Like That” — a tune that most people (like, almost everybody) haven’t even heard.
Surprise: Muni Long
Sorry, who? Muni Long beat out legend Mary J. Blige — among other big names — for Best R&B Performance.Getty Images for The Recording A
Um…who is Muni Long? Well, hopefully the world will get hip to this R&B singer-songwriter after she beat out not only Grammy winners Mary J. Blige and Jazmine Sullivan but Beyoncé — let’s repeat that, Beyoncé — for Best R&B Performance for “Hrs & Hrs.” Proof that the Grammys are not, indeed, rigged — expect to see her streams go through the roof tomorrow.
Snub: Mary J. Blige
Something is wrong with a system that shuts out Mary J. Blige, who deserved to win for her album “Good Morning Gorgeous.”Getty Images for The Recording A
Wait a minute — so Mary J. Blige, the indisputable Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, was nominated for Album of the Year for “Good Morning Gorgeous” for only the second time in her career (after 2005’s “The Breakthrough”), she lost out to neo-jazzman Robert Glasper — a worthy winner in his own right — for “Black Radio III.” But when you are nominated for Album of the Year and you can’t even win in your own genre category — especially a deserving diva such as MJB — something is wrong with the system.
Surprise: Madonna
Madonna presented the much ballyhooed performance of “Unholy” by Sam Smith and Kim Petras.CBS
When you’re the Queen of Pop, you only step out to present awards when it really means something to you. And after all of her work and representation for the LGBTQ community over the years, Madonna sure was the perfect person to present the performance of non-binary artist Sam Smith and trans singer Kim Petras — who had already become the first trans performer to win a Grammy when their “Unholy” won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance earlier in the night. Certainly, it made sense that Madonna is reminding folks about her own impact last as a fierce LGBTQ ally as she gets set to launch her “The Celebration Tour” honoring her 40th anniversary in music later this year.
Surprise: Samara Joy
Bronx-born jazz singer Samara Joy was a surprise winner for Best New Artist at the Grammys on Sunday night.CBS
It was a pretty open field for Best New Artist year, with no clear favorite among a motley crew that ranged from buzzy indie duo Wet Leg to Brazilian star Anitta. At the end of the day, the edge seemed to go Italian glam rockers Maneskin for perfectly playing the industry game — and helping to revive a dying genre. But a 23-year-old jazz vocalist from The Bronx somehow, who has been compared to Sarah Vaughan, surprised everyone in one of the night’s biggest shockers.
