63rd Annual Grammy Awards


The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in and around the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 2019 to August 31, 2020. The nominations were revealed via a virtual livestream on November 24, 2020. The performers for the ceremony were announced on March 7, 2021. South African comedian Trevor Noah hosted the ceremony.
Beyoncé received the most nominations with nine, followed by Dua Lipa, Roddy Ricch, and Taylor Swift with six each. Beyoncé received the most awards with four, surpassing Alison Krauss as the most-awarded woman in the show's history, with 28 awards overall. Her daughter Blue Ivy Carter became the youngest person ever to win a Grammy as an individual at the age of 8 years and 322 days for Best Music Video for "Brown Skin Girl".
Swift won Album of the Year for Folklore, making her the first woman to win the award three times and the first artist to do so since Paul Simon in 1988. Billie Eilish won Record of the Year for "Everything I Wanted", becoming the second solo artist, after Roberta Flack in 1974, to win two years consecutively, and the third overall since U2 in 2002. H.E.R. won Song of the Year for "I Can't Breathe" and Megan Thee Stallion won Best New Artist, becoming the second female rapper to win since Lauryn Hill in 1999.
The ceremony was originally scheduled for January 31, 2021; however, on January 5, 2021, the Recording Academy postponed the ceremony to March 14, 2021, due to a spike in COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles as well as health and safety concerns therein.
WWW grammy.com/grammys/awards...

Background

The nominations were announced during a virtual livestream on November 24, 2020, by Chair, and Interim Recording Academy President/CEO Harvey Mason Jr., alongside Megan Thee Stallion, Dua Lipa, Mickey Guyton, Lauren Daigle, Pepe Aguilar, Nicola Benedetti, Gayle King, Yemi Alade, BTS, Imogen Heap and Sharon Osbourne. The academy announced Trevor Noah as the host of the ceremony.

Category alterations

For the 2021 ceremony, the academy announced several changes for different categories and rules:

Venue and production

The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held at Los Angeles Convention Center, while the show's usual venue—Staples Center—served as the backdrop. The show was three and a half hours long.
The Recording Academy appointed Ben Winston as the executive producer of the show, his first time working on a Grammy show. Winston, via Rolling Stone, stated that the show would feature multiple stages, but no audience, highlighting the "creative triumphs, social justice movements, as well as COVID-19's impact on the arts". Regarding the venue shift, Winston stated that he does believe Staples is a safe place, but he wanted "to go above and beyond to make even the most-skeptical participants feel undoubtedly safe". The production was overseen by COVID-19 safety officers. To minimize physical contact, artists had their own backstage area, and entered the stages from different directions.
The show involved five equally sized stages arranged in a circle facing inwards; one of the stages was for presenters and the other four for performers. Crew members worked from the center of the circular set. As soon as one performance ended, the next stage would be covered, and so on. Each stage set-up was changed every 45 minutes and replaced with a different performer in the lineup. Winston mentioned that the concept was inspired by the British entertainment programs Later... with Jools Holland and TFI Friday. The show was a mix of live and pre-recorded performances, as "a fully live show would involve too many crew members moving sets and risking close contact". However, the whole show was planned to feel entirely live.
To help plan the sprawling production and immersive spectacle of the show, Winston collaborated with a multitude of producers, such as co-executive producer Jesse Collins, who produced The Weeknd's Super Bowl halftime show; co-executive producer Raj Kapoor, who handled creative direction for many artists on the last seven Grammy shows and produced Las Vegas concert residencies for Backstreet Boys and Mariah Carey; producer Fatima Robinson, worked on the Black Eyed Peas' 2011 halftime show; producer Misty Buckley, who produced Kacey Musgraves' 2020 Christmas show; talent executive Patrick Menton from Dick Clark Productions; James Corden collaborator Josie Cliff; and Hamish Hamilton, who directed Super Bowl halftimes, Olympic ceremonies, Academy Award, and Emmy Award shows.

Performers

Premiere ceremony

Performers were announced on March 2, 2021.
ArtistSong
Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra
Thana Alexa
John Beasley
Camilo
Regina Carter
Alexandre Desplat
Bebel Gilberto
Lupita Infante
Sarah Jarosz
Mykal Kilgore
Ledisi
Mariachi Sol De Mexico
PJ Morton
Gregory Porter
Grace Potter
Gustavo Santaolalla
Anoushka Shankar
Kamasi Washington		Tribute to Marvin Gaye
"Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"
Lido Pimienta"Eso Que Tú Haces"
Igor LevitPiano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor
Jimmy "Duck" Holmes"Catfish Blues"
Terri Lyne Carrington + Social Science"Trapped in the American Dream"
Rufus Wainwright"Hatred"
Poppy"Eat"
Burna BoyMedley:
"Level Up"
"Onyeka"
"Ye"

Main ceremony

Performers for the ceremony were announced on March 7, 2021.
ArtistSong
Harry Styles"Watermelon Sugar"
Billie Eilish
Finneas		"Everything I Wanted"
Haim"The Steps"
Black Pumas"Colors"
DaBaby
Roddy Ricch
Anthony Hamilton		"Rockstar"
Bad Bunny
Jhay Cortez		"Dakiti"
Dua LipaMedley:
"Levitating"
"Future Nostalgia"
"Don't Start Now"
Silk Sonic
"Leave the Door Open"
Taylor Swift
Jack Antonoff
Aaron Dessner		Medley:
"Cardigan"
"August"
"Willow"
Silk Sonic
Lionel Richie
Brandi Carlile
Brittany Howard
Chris Martin		In Memoriam
"Long Tall Sally"
"Good Golly Miss Molly"

"Lady"

"I Remember Everything"

"You'll Never Walk Alone"
Mickey Guyton"Black Like Me"
Miranda Lambert"Bluebird"
Maren Morris
John Mayer		"The Bones"
Megan Thee Stallion
Cardi B		"Body"
"Savage Remix"
"Up"
"WAP"
Post Malone"Hollywood's Bleeding"
Lil Baby
Tamika Mallory
Killer Mike		"The Bigger Picture"
Doja Cat"Say So"
BTS"Dynamite"
Roddy Ricch"Heartless"
"The Box"

Presenters

Premiere ceremony
Main ceremony

Winners and nominees

Winners appear first and highlighted in '''Bold.'''

General field

Record of the Year"Everything I Wanted" – Billie Eilish
Album of the YearFolklore – Taylor Swift
Song of the Year"I Can't Breathe"
Best New ArtistMegan Thee Stallion

Pop

Best Pop Solo Performance"Watermelon Sugar" – Harry Styles
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance"Rain on Me" – Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande
Best Traditional Pop Vocal AlbumAmerican Standard – James TaylorBlue Umbrella – Burt Bacharach & Daniel TashianTrue Love: A Celebration of Cole Porter – Harry Connick Jr.Unfollow the Rules – Rufus WainwrightJudy – Renée Zellweger
Best Pop Vocal AlbumFuture Nostalgia – Dua LipaChanges – Justin BieberChromatica – Lady GagaFine Line – Harry StylesFolklore – Taylor Swift

Dance/electronic music

Best Dance Recording"10%" – Kaytranada featuring Kali Uchis
Best Dance/Electronic AlbumBubba – KaytranadaKick I – ArcaEnergy – DisclosurePlanet's Mad – BaauerGood Faith – Madeon

Contemporary instrumental music

Best Contemporary Instrumental AlbumLive at the Royal Albert Hall – Snarky PuppyAxiom – Christian Scott Atunde AdjuahChronology of a Dream: Live at The Village Vanguard – Jon BatisteTake the Stairs – Black ViolinAmericana – Grégoire Maret, Romain Collin & Bill Frisell

Rock

Best Rock Performance"Shameika" – Fiona Apple
Best Metal Performance"Bum-Rush" – Body Count
Best Rock Song"Stay High"
Best Rock Album

Alternative

Best Alternative Music AlbumFetch the Bolt Cutters – Fiona AppleHyperspace – BeckPunisher – Phoebe BridgersJaime – Brittany HowardThe Slow Rush – Tame Impala

R&B

Best R&B Performance"Black Parade" – Beyoncé
Best Traditional R&B Performance"Anything for You" – Ledisi
Best R&B Song"Better Than I Imagined"
Best Progressive R&B AlbumIt Is What It Is – ThundercatChilombo – Jhené AikoUngodly Hour – Chloe x HalleFree Nationals – Free NationalsFuck Yo Feelings – Robert Glasper
Best R&B AlbumBigger Love – John LegendHappy 2 Be Here – Ant ClemonsTake Time – GiveonTo Feel Love/D – Luke JamesAll Rise – Gregory Porter

Rap

Best Rap Performance "Savage" – Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé
Best Melodic Rap Performance"Lockdown" – Anderson.Paak
Best Rap Song"Savage"
Best Rap AlbumKing's Disease – NasBlack Habits – D SmokeAlfredo – Freddie Gibbs & The AlchemistA Written Testimony – Jay ElectronicaThe Allegory – Royce da 5'9"

Country

Best Country Solo Performance "When My Amy Prays" – Vince Gill

Best Country Duo/Group Performance"10,000 Hours" – Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber
Best Country Song"Crowded Table"
Best Country AlbumWildcard – Miranda LambertNightfall – Little Big TownNever Will – Ashley McBrydeLady Like – Ingrid AndressYour Life Is a Record – Brandy Clark

New age

Best New Age AlbumMore Guitar Stories – Jim "Kimo" WestSongs from the Bardo – Laurie Anderson, Tenzin Choegyal & Jesse Paris SmithPeriphery – Priya DarshiniForm//Less – SuperpositionMeditations – Cory Wong & Jon Batiste

Jazz

Best Improvised Jazz Solo
Best Jazz Vocal AlbumSecrets are the Best Stories – Kurt Elling featuring Danilo PérezONA – Thana AlexaModern Ancestors – Carmen LundyHoly Room: Live at Alte Oper – Somi With Frankfurt Radio Big BandWhat's the Hurry – Kenny Washington
Best Jazz Instrumental AlbumTrilogy 2 – Chick Corea, Christian McBride & Brian BladeOn the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment – Ambrose AkinmusireWaiting Game – Terri Lyne Carrington and Social ScienceHappening: Live at the Village Vanguard – Gerald ClaytonRoundAgain – Redman Mehldau McBride Blade
Best Large Jazz Ensemble AlbumData Lords – Maria Schneider OrchestraDialogues on Race – Gregg AugustMonk'estra Plays John Beasley – John BeasleyThe Intangible Between – Orrin Evans and The Captain Black Big BandSongs You Like a Lot – John Hollenbeck with Theo Bleckmann, Kate McGarry, Gary Versace and The Frankfurt Radio Big Band
Best Latin Jazz AlbumFour Questions – Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz OrchestraTradiciones – Afro-Peruvian Jazz OrchestraCity of Dreams – Chico PinheiroViento y Tiempo – Live at Blue Note Tokyo – Gonzalo Rubalcaba & Aymée NuviolaTrane's Delight – Poncho Sanchez

Gospel/contemporary Christian music

Best Gospel Performance/Song"Movin' On"
  • * Darryl L. Howell, Jonathan Caleb McReynolds, Kortney Jamaal Pollard & Terrell Demetrius Wilson, songwriters
  • "Wonderful is Your Name"
  • * Melvin Crispell III, songwriter
  • "Release "
  • * David Frazier, songwriter
  • "Come Together"
  • * Lashawn Daniels, Rodney Jerkins, Lecrae Moore & Jazz Nixon, songwriters
  • "Won't Let Go"
  • * Travis Greene, songwriter
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song"There Was Jesus"
Best Gospel AlbumGospel According to PJ – PJ Morton2econd Wind: ReadY – Anthony Brown & group therAPyMy Tribute – Myron ButlerChoirmaster – Ricky DillardKierra – Kierra Sheard
Best Contemporary Christian Music AlbumJesus Is King – Kanye WestRun to the Father – Cody CarnesAll of My Best Friends – Hillsong Young & FreeHoly Water – We the KingdomCitizen of Heaven – Tauren Wells
Best Roots Gospel AlbumCelebrating Fisk! – Fisk Jubilee SingersBeautiful Day – Mark Bishop20/20 – The Crabb FamilyWhat Christmas Really Means – The ErwinsSomething Beautiful – Ernie Haase & Signature Sound

Latin

Best Latin Pop or Urban AlbumYHLQMDLG – Bad BunnyPor Primera Vez – CamiloMesa Para Dos – Kany GarcíaPausa – Ricky Martin 3:33 – Debi Nova
Best Latin Rock or Alternative AlbumLa Conquista del Espacio – Fito PáezAura – BajofondoMONSTRUO – CamiSobrevolando – Cultura ProféticaMiss Colombia – Lido Pimienta
Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)Un Canto por México, Vol. 1 – Natalia LafourcadeHecho en México – Alejandro FernándezLa Serenata – Lupita InfanteBailando Sones y Huampangos con Mariachi Sol De Mexico De Jose Hernandez – Mariachi Sol De Mexico De Jose HernandezAYAYAY! – Christian Nodal
Best Tropical Latin Album40 – Grupo NicheMi Tumbao – José Alberto "El Ruiseñor"Infinito – Edwin BonillaSigo Cantando al Amor – Jorge Celedon & Sergio LuisMemorias de Navidad – Víctor Manuelle

American roots

Best American Roots Performance"I Remember Everything" – John Prine
Best American Roots Song"I Remember Everything"
Best Americana AlbumWorld on the Ground – Sarah JaroszOld Flowers – Courtney Marie AndrewsTerms of Surrender – Hiss Golden MessengerEl Dorado – Marcus KingGood Souls Better Angels – Lucinda Williams
Best Bluegrass AlbumHome – Billy StringsMan on Fire – Danny BarnesTo Live in Two Worlds, Vol. 1 – Thomm JutzNorth Carolina Songbook – Steep Canyon RangersThe John Hartford Fiddle Tune Project, Vol. 1 – Various Artists
Best Traditional Blues AlbumRawer than Raw – Bobby RushAll My Dues are Paid – Frank BeyYou Make Me Feel – Don BryantThat's What I Heard – Robert Cray BandCypress Grove – Jimmy "Duck" Holmes
Best Contemporary Blues AlbumHave You Lost Your Mind Yet? – Fantastic NegritoLive at the Paramount – Ruthie Foster Big BandThe Juice – G. LoveBlackbirds – Bettye LaVetteUp and Rolling – North Mississippi Allstars
Best Folk AlbumAll the Good Times – Gillian Welch & David RawlingsBonny Light Horseman – Bonny Light HorsemanThanks for the Dance – Leonard CohenSong for Our Daughter – Laura MarlingSaturn Return – The Secret Sisters
Best Regional Roots Music AlbumAtmosphere – New Orleans NightcrawlersMy Relatives 'nikso' Kowaiks – Black Lodge SingersCameron Dupuy and The Cajun Troubadours – Cameron Dupuy and the Cajun TroubadoursLovely Sunrise – Nā Wai ʽEhāA Tribute to Al Berard – Sweet Cecilia

Reggae

Best Reggae AlbumGot to Be Tough – Toots and the MaytalsUpside Down 2020 – Buju BantonHigher Place – Skip MarleyIt All Comes Black to Love – Maxi PriestOne World – The Wailers

Global music

Best Global Music AlbumTwice as Tall – Burna BoyFu Chronicles – AntibalasAgora – Bebel GilbertoLove Letters – Anoushka ShankarAmadjar – Tinariwen

Children's

Best Children's AlbumAll the Ladies – Joanie LeedsBe a Pain: An Album for Young Leaders – Alastair Moock And FriendsI'm an Optimist – Dog On FleasSongs for Singin' – The Okee Dokee BrothersWild Life – Justin Roberts

Spoken word

Best Spoken Word Album Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth – Rachel MaddowAcid for the Children – A Memoir – FleaAlex Trebek – The Answer Is... – Ken JenningsCatch and Kill – Ronan FarrowCharlotte's Web – Meryl Streep and Full Cast

Comedy

Best Comedy AlbumBlack Mitzvah – Tiffany HaddishI Love Everything – Patton OswaltThe Pale Tourist – Jim GaffiganPaper Tiger – Bill Burr23 Hours to Kill – Jerry Seinfeld

Musical theater

Best Musical Theater AlbumJagged Little Pill – Kathryn Gallagher, Celia Rose Gooding, Lauren Patten & Elizabeth Stanley, principal soloists; Neal Avron, Pete Ganbarg, Tom Kitt, Michael Parker, Craig Rosen & Vivek J. Tiwary, producers Amélie – Audrey Brisson, Chris Jared, Caolan McCarthy & Jez Unwin, principal soloists; Michael Fentiman, Sean Patrick Flahaven, Barnaby Race & Nathan Tysen, producers; Nathan Tysen, lyricist; Daniel Messe, composer & lyricist American Utopia on Broadway – David Byrne, principal soloist; David Byrne, producer Little Shop of Horrors – Tammy Blanchard, Jonathan Groff & Tom Alan Robbins, principal soloists; Will Van Dyke, Michael Mayer, Alan Menken & Frank Wolf, producers [The Prince (musician)|Prince of Egypt (musical)|The Prince of Egypt] – Christine Allado, Luke Brady, Alexia Khadime & Liam Tamne, principal soloists; Dominick Amendum & Stephen Schwartz, producers; Stephen Schwartz, composer & lyricist Soft Power – Francis Jue, Austin Ku, Alyse Alan Louis & Conrad Ricamora, principal soloists; Matt Stine, producer; David Henry Hwang, lyricist; Jeanine Tesori, composer & lyricist

Music for visual media

Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual MediaJojo Rabbit – Various artistsA Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood – Various artistsBill & Ted Face the Music – Various artistsEurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga – Various artistsFrozen 2 – Various artists
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual MediaJoker – Hildur Guðnadóttir, composerAd Astra – Max Richter, composerBecoming – Kamasi Washington, composer1917 – Thomas Newman, composerStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – John Williams, composer
Best Song Written for Visual Media"No Time to Die"

Composing/Arranging

Best Instrumental Composition"Sputnik"
Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella"Donna Lee"
Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals"He Won't Hold You"

Package

Best Recording PackageVols. 11 & 12
  • * Doug Cunningham & Jason Noto, art directors Everyday Life
  • * Pilar Zeta, art director Funeral
  • * Kyle Goen, art director Healer
  • * Julian Gross & Hannah Hooper, art directors On Circles
  • * Jordan Butcher, art director
Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition PackageOde to Joy

Historical

Best Historical AlbumIt's Such a Good Feeling: The Best of Mister Rogers
  • *Lee Lodyga & Cheryl Pawelski, compilation producers; Michael Graves, mastering engineer Celebrated, 1895–1896
  • *Meagan Hennessey & Richard Martin, compilation producers; Richard Martin, mastering engineer Hittin' the Ramp: The Early Years
  • *Zev Feldman, Will Friedwald & George Klabin, compilation producers; Matthew Lutthans, mastering engineer 1999 Super Deluxe Edition
  • *Michael Howe, compilation producer; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer Souvenir
  • *Carolyn Agger, compilation producer; Miles Showell, mastering engineer Throw Down Your Heart: The Complete Africa Sessions
  • *Béla Fleck, compilation producer; Richard Dodd, mastering engineer

Production, non-classical

Best Engineered Album, Non-ClassicalHyperspace
Producer of the Year, Non-ClassicalAndrew Watt
Best Remixed Recording"Roses "

Production, immersive audio

Best Immersive Audio AlbumSoundtrack of the American Soldier
  • * 'Leslie Ann Jones, immersive mix engineer; Michael Romanowski, immersive mastering engineer; Dan Merceruio, immersive producer Dear Future Self
  • * Fritz Hilpert, immersive mix engineer; Jason Banks, Fritz Hilpert and David Zeigler, immersive mastering engineers; Tom Ammerman, Arno Kammermeier and Walter Merziger, immersive producers Fryd
  • * Morten Lindberg Mutt Slang Li - A Wake of Sorrows Engulfed in Rage''
  • * Elliot Scheiner, immersive mix engineer; Darcy Proper, immersive mastering engineer; Alain Mallet and Elliot Scheiner, immersive producers

Production, classical

Best Engineered Album, Classical"Shostakovich: Symphony No. 13, 'Babi Yar'"
  • * David Frost & Charlie Post, engineers; Silas Brown, mastering engineer
  • "Danielpour: The Passion of Yeshua"
  • * Bernd Gottinger, engineer
  • "Gershwin: Porgy and Bess"
  • * David Frost & John Kerswell, engineers; Silas Brown, mastering engineer
  • "Hynes: Fields"
  • * Kyle Pyke, engineer; Jesse Lewis & Kyle Pyke, mastering engineers
  • "Ives: Complete Symphonies"
  • * Alexander Lipay & Dmitriy Lipay, engineers; Alexander Lipay & Dmitriy Lipay, mastering engineers
Producer of the Year, ClassicalDavid Frost
  • * Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 9
  • * Gershwin: Porgy And Bess
  • * Gluck: Orphée & Eurydice
  • * Holst: The Planets; The Perfect Fool
  • * Muhly: Marnie
  • * Schubert: Piano Sonatas, D. 845, D. 894, D. 958, D. 960
  • * Shostakovich: Symphony No. 13, 'Babi Yar'
  • Blanton Alspaugh
  • * Aspects of America
  • * Blessed Art Thou Among Women
  • * Dvořák: Symphony No. 9; Copland: Billy The Kid
  • * Glass: The Fall Of The House Of Usher
  • * Kahane: Emergency Shelter Intake Form
  • * Kastalsky: Requiem
  • * Massenet: Thaïs
  • * Smyth: The Prison
  • * Woolf, L.P.: Fire And Flood
  • Jesse Lewis
  • * Gunn: The Ascendant
  • * Harrison, M.: Just Constellations
  • * Her Own Wings
  • * Hynes: Fields
  • * Lang, D.: Love Fail
  • * Mazzoli: Proving Up
  • * Sharlat: Spare The Rod!
  • * Soul House
  • * Wherein Lies The Good
  • Dmitry Lipay
  • * Adams, J.: Must The Devil Have All The Good Tunes?
  • * Cipullo: The Parting
  • * Ives: Complete Symphonies
  • * LA Phil 100 – The Los Angeles Philharmonic Centennial Birthday Gala
  • * Langgaard: Prelude To Antichrist; Strauss: An Alpine Symphony
  • * Nielsen: Symphony No. 1 & Symphony No. 2, 'The Four Temperaments'
  • Elaine Martone
  • * Bound For The Promised Land
  • * Dawn
  • * Gandolfi, Prior & Oliverio: Orchestral Works
  • * Singing In The Dead Of Night
  • * Whitacre: The Sacred Veil

Classical

;Best Orchestral Performance"Ives: Complete Symphonies"
Best Opera Recording"Gershwin: Porgy and Bess"
Best Choral Performance"Danielpour: The Passion of Yessuah"
  • * JoAnn Falletta, conductor; James K. Bass & Adam Luebke, chorus masters
  • "Carthage"
  • * Donald Nally, conductor
  • "Kastalski: Requiem"
  • * Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Charles Bruffy, Steven Fox & Benedict Sheehan, chorus masters
  • "Moravec: Sanctuary Road"
  • * Kent Tritle, conductor
  • "Once Upon a Time"
  • * Matthew Guard, conductor
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance"Contemporary Voices" – Pacifica Quartet
  • "Healing Modes" – Brooklyn Rider
  • "Hearne, T,: Place" – Ted Hearne, Steven Bradshaw, Sophia Byrd, Josephine Lee, Isaiah Robinson, Sol Ruiz, Ayanna Woods & Place Orchestra
  • "Hynes: Fields" – Devonté Hynes & Third Coast Percussion
  • "The Schumann Quartets" – Dover Quartet
Best Classical Instrumental Solo"Theofanidis: Concerto for Viola and Chamber Orchestra"
Best Classical Solo Vocal Album"Smyth: The Prison"
  • * Sarah Brailey & Dashon Burton; James Blachly, conductor
  • "American Composers at Play – William Bolcom, Ricky Ian Gordon, Lori Laitman, John Musto"
  • * Stephen Powell
  • "Clairières – Songs by Lili & Nadia Boulanger"
  • * Nicholas Phan; Myra Huang, accompanist
  • "Farinelli"
  • * Cecilia Bartoli; Giovanni Antonini, conductor
  • "A Lad's Love"
  • * Brian Giebler; Steven McGhee, accompanist
Best Classical Compendium"Thomas, M.T.: From the Diary of Anne Frank & Meditations on Rilke"
  • * Isabel Leonard; Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor; Jack Vad, producer
  • "Adès Conducts Adès"
  • * Mark Stone & Christianne Stotijn; Thomas Adès, conductor; Nick Squire, producer
  • "Saariaho: Graal Théâtre; Circle Map, Neiges, Vers Toi Qui Es Si Loin"
  • * Clément Mao-Takacs, conductor; Hans Kipfer, producer
  • "Serebrier: Symphonic Bach Variations; Laments and Hallelujahs; Flute Concerto"
  • * José Serebrier, conductor; Jens Braun, producer
  • "Woolf, L.P.: Fire and Blood"
  • * Matt Haimovitz; Julian Wachner, conductor; Blanton Alspaugh, producer
Best Contemporary Classical Composition"Rouse: Symphony No. 5"

Music video/film

Best Music Video"Brown Skin Girl" – Beyoncé, Saint Jhn & Wizkid featuring Blue Ivy Carter
  • *Beyoncé Knowles-Carter & Jenn Nkiru, video directors; Lauren Baker, Astrid Edwards, Nathan Scherrer & Erinn Williams, video producers
  • "Life Is Good" – Future featuring Drake
  • *Julien Christian Lutz, video director; Harv Glazer, video producer
  • "Lockdown" – Anderson.Paak
  • *Dave Meyers, video director; Nathan Scherrer, video producer
  • "Adore You" – Harry Styles
  • *Dave Meyers, video director; Nathan Scherrer, video producer
  • "Goliath" – Woodkid
  • *Yoann Lemoine, video director; Horace de Gunzbourg, video producer
Best Music FilmLinda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice – Linda Ronstadt

Special Merit Awards

Lifetime Achievement Award">Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award">Lifetime Achievement Award

Trustees Award">Grammy Trustees Award">Trustees Award

[Technical Grammy Award]

  • Daniel Weiss

Music Educator Award

  • Jeffrey Murdock

Multiple nominations and awards

The following received multiple nominations:
Nine:
Six:
Five:
Four:
Three:
Two:
The following received multiple awards:
Four:
Three:
Two:

In Memoriam

Musical artists and industry personnel who had died in 2020 and early 2021 were included in a memorial reel aired during the Grammy telecast. At least 800 individuals were considered by producer Ben Winston for the segment. The Recording Academy was criticized by fans of Naya Rivera, Benny Mardones, Hal Ketchum, Riley Gale, and Frankie Banali for excluding their names from the broadcast, although all of them were included on a longer list of names posted on the Grammys website.
The segment dedicated to Eddie Van Halen was criticized by fans, former bandmates and other figures within the hard rock and heavy metal community who felt that the brief seconds-long tribute was an insult to the guitarist's influence and legacy. Van Halen's son Wolfgang Van Halen revealed that he declined the Academy's offer to play "Eruption" for the segment out of respect for his father, believing that the "In Memoriam" would feature more songs. While disappointed with the brief tribute, Wolfgang was "hurt the most" by Eddie not being mentioned among other late artists remembered at the beginning of the show, attributing the mishap to the declining mainstream popularity in rock music and the Academy's historical lack of interest in the genre. However, Jem Aswad of Variety defended the tribute, opining that longer tributes featuring cover artists still would have failed to meet expectations and praised the subtext behind the segment, which featured a spotlight on Van Halen's signature Frankenstrat guitar with a video of the guitarist playing in the background, that Van Halen's talent could never be replicated.

Reception

Pre-ceremony

Following the release of the nominations, Canadian singer the Weeknd accused the Grammys of corruption after he failed to receive any nominations. Based on the success of his album, After Hours, the Weeknd had been expected by many critics and publications to receive a large number of nominations, including Album of the Year as well as several nods for his single "Blinding Lights". Expressing his disappointment, the Weeknd tweeted "The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency...". He further explained that he was expecting nominations due to discussions between his team and the Grammys to perform at the ceremony but it was later reported by Rolling Stone that these discussions broke down due to the Weeknd also performing at the Super Bowl LV halftime show. In response, the Grammys released a statement saying that they "empathized" with the Weeknd's disappointment but that some "deserving" artists miss out every year. Recording Academy president Harvey Mason Jr. later expanded on this by explaining that "we understand that the Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated. I was surprised and can empathise with what he's feeling. Unfortunately, every year, there are fewer nominations than the number of deserving artists. To be clear, voting in all categories ended well before the Weeknd's performance at the Super Bowl was announced, so in no way could it have affected the nomination process". Several days later, the Weeknd stated that "I personally don't care anymore. I have three Grammys, which mean nothing to me now, obviously. I suck at giving speeches anyways. Forget awards shows. It's not like, 'Oh, I want the Grammy!' It's just that this happened, and I'm down to get in front of the fire, as long as it never happens again".
American singer Halsey spoke out in solidarity with the Weeknd after her 2020 album, Manic, received no nominations. Taking to Instagram, Halsey wrote "The Grammys are an elusive process. It can often be about behind the scenes private performances, knowing the right people, campaigning through the grapevine, with the right handshake and 'bribes' that can be just ambiguous enough to pass as 'not bribes.'" The singer went on to share that speaking out against The Grammys could very well get an artist blacklisted. Halsey, who only has 2 nominations throughout her entire career, was the center of conversation when her song "Without Me", which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, was passed up for a nomination at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.
Justin Bieber expressed his disappointment with the academy following his album Changes receiving nominations in the Pop field rather than the R&B field. He explained that he is "very meticulous and intentional about my music. With that being said I set out to make an R&B album. Changes was and is an R&B album. It is not being acknowledged as an R&B album which is very strange to me". The Grammys later responded to Bieber, stating that "we always want to respect the artist's wishes. Art's a funny thing because it's so subjective, and at the Academy our goal is to honor excellence. At some point, decisions have to be made as to how to compare different things, and it is a very tough process and one I don't think we get right every time. We use our best efforts to get people where they wanna be and where they should be and try to evaluate them as best as we can. If he felt that was that type of a record, then, you know... I'll just leave it at that. We try really hard to make sure people's art is respected and evaluated in the right category".
Five days before the ceremony, British artist Zayn Malik posted a tweet criticizing the Grammys and their voting procedures stating that "unless you shake hands and send gifts, there's no nomination considerations. Next year I'll send you a basket of confectionary". After confusion from fans and the media, who noted that Malik's third album, Nobody Is Listening, was ineligible for the 63rd Grammy Awards as it was released after the eligibility period ended in August, Malik stated his intentions in a follow-up tweet, explaining that his prior post was "not personal or about eligibility but was about the need for inclusion and the lack of transparency of the nomination process and the space that creates and allows favoritism, racism, and networking politics to influence the voting process".

Ceremony

During the ceremony, Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion performed the song "WAP." Grammys host Trevor Noah prefaced the performance with, "If you have small children in the room, just tell them it's a song about giving a cat a bath", and the chorus "wet and gushy," was changed to "wet, wet, wet". Billboard ranked it as the best performance of the ceremony, commenting that "this had to be one of the most insane television debut performances of all time." Music critic Jon Caramanica called the performance "wildly and charmingly salacious, frisky and genuine in a way that the Grammys has rarely if ever made room for". However, the performance received criticism for being "non-family-friendly".

Viewership

The broadcast received an average of 8.8 million viewers in the United States, with a 2.1 Nielsen rating among adults aged 18 to 49, marking a more than 50 percent decline from the previous year's ceremony, and making it the least-viewed telecast in the history of the Grammys. Conversely, the live streaming audience for the show was up 83 percent over 2020 and the hashtag, #Grammys trended for 18 hours and peaked in the number one position.