The best moments from the 2023 Grammys, from Beyoncé’s GOAT status to Wet Leg’s giddy wins
The Grammys are over for another year, taking with them more incredible performances, history-making moments and well-deserved wins for an eclectic range of artists. This year saw some huge records broken and victories that reflected the progress we’re making in the outside world, as well as some fun, sweet events. Here are some of the best moments from the 2023 Grammys.
Wet Leg won two awards in typically Wet Leg fashion
Probably the fastest-rising indie band of the last few years, Wet Leg showed just how far they’ve come by winning not one, but two Grammys. Since bursting onto the scene with ‘Chaise Longue’, the Isle Of Wight duo have become known as a band who always seem to be having fun, giggling their way through monumental career milestones, interviews and more. The Grammys was no different. “This is so funny,” Rhian Teasdale said as they collected Best Alternative Music Performance. “What are we doing here? I dunno!”
That mood only got sillier as they were called up again moments later as the winners of Best Alternative Album, with Rhian and Hester Chambers laughing in the background as drummer Henry Holmes took over acceptance duties. Among all the seriousness and emotion of the night, it was refreshing to see some giddiness in the mix.
Viola Davis became an EGOT
There are only 18 people in the world who have achieved the biggest feat in entertainment – winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. Now, Viola Davis is part of that elite circle. The actor completed her set with a win for Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling for her autobiography Finding Me.
“I just EGOT!” she exclaimed to the crowd during the premiere ceremony and, later, received a standing ovation as she presented an award during the main ceremony. As she should.
Beyoncé cemented her place as a Grammys GOAT
Going into the night, Beyoncé was up for a whopping nine awards, including three of the big four. While she didn’t win any of those latter group, she did still collect four shiny new trophies – which helped her sail ahead to breaking another record in her illustrious career. Now, Bey is the artist with the most Grammy wins of all time with 32, beating classical musician Georg Solti’s previous record of 31. With her career far from over, too, it’s thrilling to imagine just how many more awards she could rack up in the years to come. No wonder Lizzo called her “the artist of our lives”.
Harry Styles accepted his Album Of The Year award from a fan and it was hugely endearing
Throughout the ceremony, the Recording Academy enlisted the help of super fans of the artists up for Album Of The Year to argue the case for their favourite star. Harry Styles was represented by an elderly lady, who told Trevor Noah she’d give him all the awards on offer tonight if she could. That might have been unrealistic but, when Styles was announced as AOTY king, she was given the chance to hand over the trophy to him herself. What followed was one of the most endearing moments of the night, the pop star taking the time to thank her and celebrate with her, before giving his speech.
Hip-hop was celebrated in one of the best Grammys moments in recent memory
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip-hop and the monumental moment was celebrated in style with one of the best Grammys performances in recent memory. Numerous icons from across the genre came together to chart its history up until the modern day, including the likes of LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Run DMC, Nelly, Queen Latifah, Missy Elliott, Salt N Pepa, Lil Baby and GloRilla. With so much star power on one stage, the performance was never going to miss, but its brilliance was a fitting tribute to a culture that has changed the world and become a global force to be reckoned with.
Kim Petras and Sam Smith continued ‘Unholy’’s domination
In 2022, one song was almost inescapable, whether you were scrolling through TikTok or out and about on a weekend. ‘Unholy’ continued its domination at the 2023 Grammy, with Kim Petras and Sam Smith beating out some tough competition to collect the award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. In doing so, Petras became the first transgender woman to win the award – a moment she and Smith celebrated fittingly later on with a fiery version of the song introduced by Madonna.
The post The best moments from the 2023 Grammys, from Beyoncé’s GOAT status to Wet Leg’s giddy wins appeared first on NME.
Rhian Daly
NME
