US rapper Kendrick Lamar has dedicated his record of the year award to his hometown Los Angeles after the city was devastated by wildfires.
This year’s award ceremony is raising funds for wildfire relief following wind-driven blazes swept through parts of the Californian city last month, destroying neighbourhoods and killing at least 28 people.
Lamar picked up the prestigious gong as well as song of the year award – which recognises achievement in songwriting – for his “diss” track Not Like Us which is reportedly directed at Canadian rapper Drake.
The Compton-born artist added: “This is my neck of the woods that held me down since a young pup, since I was in the studio scrapping to write the best raps and all that…
“I can’t give enough thanks to these places that I rolled around since high school. Most importantly the people and the families out in the Palisades and Altadena. This is a true testament that we can continue to restore the city.”
The track also picked up a slew of early prizes including best music video, best rap performance and best rap song.
Lady Gaga offered her support to the transgender community as she collected her award after the new Trump administration issued executive orders rolling back transgender rights.
Accepting the best pop duo/group performance prize for her collaboration with Bruno Mars on Die With A Smile, Gaga said: “It is a privilege to be a songwriter and a producer, a musician, such an honour to sing for all of you.
“And I just want to say tonight that trans people are not invisible. Trans people deserve love. The queer community deserves to be lifted up. Music is love. Thank you.”
Earlier in the night, Beyonce secured best country album for Cowboy Carter, which was born from an experience where she “did not feel welcome”.
Pop star Taylor Swift presented the award to the singer who appeared visibly shocked and said “I really was not expecting this” as she delivered her acceptance speech.
“I think sometimes genre is a cold word to keep us in our place as artists and I just want to encourage people to do what they’re passionate about and to stay persistent.”
Ahead of releasing the album last year, the 43-year-old said in an social media post that the album had been “born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed… and it was very clear that I wasn’t”.
She added: “But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive.”
The win comes after she was snubbed at the Country Music Awards, despite the Texas-born star becoming the first black woman to top Billboard’s country music chart with Texas Hold Em’.
The singer thanked her “beautiful family” as her daughter Blue Ivy and her husband Jay-Z looked on from the audience, as well as her fans and the artists who collaborated with her on the album, including Miley Cyrus and Post Malone.
Ahead of the ceremony, Beyonce announced she would be taking Cowboy Carter on tour with an Instagram post featuring a light-up billboard.
However, the star has never won the prestigious album of the year prize and she will be hoping to rectify that this year as Cowboy Carter is up for the coveted award.
She will face tough competition for the prize from Charli XCX’s Brat, Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet, Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard And Soft, Chappell Roan’s The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess and Swift’s eleventh record The Tortured Poets Department.
Rapper Andre 3000 is also nominated for his jazz flute album New Blue Sun alongside Jacob Collier’s Djesse Vol 4.
Beyonce picked up her first award of the night during the pre-ceremony for her song featuring Cyrus, titled II Most Wanted, winning the country duo/group performance gong.
Later on, Chappell Roan called for the music industry to provide a “liveable wage and healthcare for artists” as she collected her first Grammy award.
After the 26-year-old US star secured the prestigious best new artist prize, she revealed she had told herself she would demand that labels and the industry would protect artists more if she ever won a Grammy.
She recalled feeling “betrayed” and “dehumanised” when she struggled to find work and afford health care during the pandemic after getting dropped by her first label as a young artist when she had given “everything” to them.
Earlier in the night, she delivered a joyful performance of her disco anthem Pink Pony Club which saw start by sitting on a giant pink pony before joining a group of dancers dressed as rodeo clowns for some western-inspired choreography.
The US singer was cheered on by fellow nominees Swift and Eilish as she made her way to the stage shortly after performing a theatrical medley of Espresso and Please Please Please from the winning album.
Collecting the award, the 25-year-old praised her fellow nominees as some of her “favourite artists in the world”, adding: “I can’t believe I’m nominated against them, or even in this room right now. This is my first Grammys.”
US star Eilish also performed a melodic rendition of her song Birds Of A Feather, which is nominated for record of the year and song of the year.
Rising star Doechii secured best rap album for her third mixtape Alligator Bites Never Heal, becoming the third woman to do so after Lauryn Hill and Cardi B, with the later rapper presenting the award on Sunday.
Colombian singer Shakira dedicated her best Latin pop album award for her 12th record Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran to all of her “immigrant brothers and sisters” in the US.
She added: “You’re loved, you’re worth it, and I will always fight with you. And to all of those women who work really hard every day to provide for their families, you are the true heroes”.
Host comedian Trevor Noah opened the ceremony by paying tribute to the “spirit” of Los Angeles communities after they came together following the devastating wildfires.
The Beatles picked up best rock performance for their new song Now And Then, which was written and sung by John Lennon and later finished by Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Ringo Starr using overdubs and guitar tracks by George Harrison.
Meanwhile, fellow British rockers The Rolling Stones won best rock album for their 2023’s Hackney Diamonds, their first album of original music in 18 years.
The 2025 award show is being hosted by South African comedian Noah for the fifth year in a row with 94 awards set to be handed out across the premiere and main ceremony.
