Where do celebrities start and end fights, ride on giant pink horses surrounded by clowns and backflip off pianos while staying perfectly on key? The answer is, of course, the 2025 annual Grammy Awards.

The 67th Annual Grammy Awards took place on Feb. 2 in Los Angeles. Some of the biggest stars in music took the stage, performing in front of their own inspirations as well as 15.4 million viewers at home. “I really liked all the performances, especially Doechii’s,” said senior Liliana Katz-Hollander. During the Grammys, Doechii and others, including Shakira, Cynthia Erivo, Janelle Monét and The Weeknd showcased their talent and played some iconic songs from the past and present.

This year, each of the Best New Artist nominees were given the opportunity to perform at least one of their hits. This means Sabrina Carpenter, Doechii, Benson Boone, Khurangbin, Shaboozey, RAYE, Teddy Swims and Chappell Roan each gave their case for why they could be the best new artist of the year by actually showcasing their songs. This process was new this year and gave the spotlight to exciting, upcoming artists who may not have as much recognition as some other stars this early in their careers.

The Big Four Grammy Awards are: Best New Artist which recognizes an artist who released music that gave them a career breakthrough this year, Record of the Year which encompasses the artistry and production of a song, Song of the Year which acknowledges the best written song and Album of the Year for the best album as voted on by the Recording Academy. Of these awards, Best New Artist went to Chappell Roan, Record and Song of the Year went to ‘Not Like Us’ by Kendrick Lamar and Album of the Year went to ‘Cowboy Carter’ by Beyoncé. This marked only the ninth time in Grammy history that both Record and Album of the Year went to Black artists. 

There was some controversy around the big four awards this year, but it is important to recognize that music is subjective and the Recording Academy has a variety of criteria to take into consideration when deciding awards. “I personally feel as if ‘Cowboy Carter’ was very important but I don’t think it should have won just because it wasn’t Beyoncé’s best work in my opinion,” said freshman Karmaan Saxena. However, whether or not it fits each person’s individual taste, it is essential to acknowledge the album’s significance and celebrate the hard work every artist put into their music this year.

In addition to these awards, there are a variety that are not televised. “There’s so many winners that people don’t know about,” said piano and guitar teacher Mark Koons. These include winners of genre specific awards, like Best Dance Pop Recording and Best Reggae Album, as well as Music Educator of the Year for music teachers who make an impact on their students. “What I tell students is to look up the winners along with watching the Grammys because there’s a lot of great musicians beyond great musicians who are on TV,” said Mr. Koons. 

The Grammys are truly about uniting the musical community to recognize artists across genres for their hard and outstanding work throughout the year. Music is critical in bringing people together, a fact we should all recognize as we tune in, now and in the future.