Amariyah Mallory 
The 65th Grammy Awards, hosted by comedian Trevor Noah, was a night full of history making moments.
Viola Davis officially obtains “EGOT” status after winning a Grammy for her Memoir that released in the spring of last year, Finding Me. An “EGOT” is the compilation of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony award over a career. Davis has now joined an elite group with only 18 other people achieving this status. She is the fourth Black person to do so alongside John Legend, Jennifer Hudson, and Whoopi Goldberg,
“It has just been such a journey,” Davis said in accepting the award. “I just EGOT!”
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Muni Long, Lizzo, Harry Styles, and Adele were among the other winners of night. Harry Styles took best pop vocal album for Harry’s House. Lizzo won record of the year for her song “About Damn Time.” Kendrick Lamar won best rap album with Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers. New upcoming artist Muni Long won the best new performance award for her hit single “Hrs & Hrs.” Dr Dre became the first to win the “Dr. Dre Global Impact Award” an award named after himself.
The biggest history making moment came when Beyoncé broke the record for most Grammy wins of all time! Dethroning classical musician George Solti. Previously tied with her spouse, entrepreneur, record producer, and rapper Jay Z with 88 nominations each. Now with 32 wins to her name, Beyoncé broke the tie after winning four out of her nine nominations with Best R&B Song (“Cuff It”), Dance Recording (“Break My Soul”), Best Traditional R&B Performance (“Plastic of the Sofa”), and Dance/Electronic album (Renaissance). Chicago’s own, DJ Terry Hunter is responsible for the “Break My Soul” remix.
As a proud Beyhive member, I was ecstatic, especially with the recent announcement of her tour!
Chi-Town received even more love at the event when poet J. Ivy received his first Grammy for “The Poet Who Sat by the Door.” During his acceptance speech, Ivy said, “Let it be known, this is for the poets y’all.” The winning album features contributions from John Legend, Slick Rick, PJ Morton, Sir the Baptist, BJ the Chicago Kid and a number of other talents.
During one of the biggest nights in music, the Grammy paid tribute to Hip Hop as they celebrated the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop. The celebration included a performance from some of the main influences of hip hop throughout past decades. While every impactful artist could not perform, the recording academy still put on a show. Queen Latifah, Missy Elliot, Busta Rhymes, LL Cool J, and upcoming rap artist GloRilla set the stage on fire after their performances.
Did you watch the Grammys? If so, what did you think of the show? Reach out to me and let me know!
By Amariyah Mallory, Freshman, Whitney Young
IG: Dancemari_
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