Written by: Airyl J. | Photo: NYDJLive
The 2023 Grammy Awards are now over, and as is the case with every year, we’re now ready to celebrate the many winners and nominees of the various awards. Unlike last year, where most awards had clear cut winners and not too many contentious results, 2023 has proven to be a bit back and forth. Between huge upsets and great victories, let’s get into the biggest winners of the 65th Annual Grammys!
Record of the Year
- “About Damn Time” — Lizzo — Winner
- “Don’t Shut Me Down” — ABBA
- “Easy on Me” — Adele
- “BREAK MY SOUL” — Beyoncé
- “Good Morning Gorgeous” — Mary J. Blige
- “You and Me on the Rock” — Brandi Carlile featuring Lucius
- “Woman” — Doja Cat
- “Bad Habit” — Steve Lacy
- “The Heart Part 5” — Kendrick Lamar
- “As It Was” — Harry Styles
Despite stiff competition, the plus size queen of positiveness Lizzo manages to bag the Grammy for Record of the Year with “About Damn Time.” The upbeat, 80’s retro-inspired tune is a powerful ballad, an anthem for people everywhere to be proud of themselves. It’s catchy, surprisingly thoughtful, and serves as one of the biggest hits of 2023. It comfortably earns its spot on the winner’s list.
Despite this, there’s been some discourse around Lizzo’s win. Many netizens believe that although Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” is a great song, nominees like Beyoncé, Steve Lacy and Kendrick Lamar left more of an impact with their music. Others argued that Adele and ABBA brought superior music to the table, featuring more originality and skill to the table. Still, Lizzo’s win is probably one of the less contentious for the 2023 Grammys.
Album of the Year
“Harry’s House” — Harry Styles — Winner
“Voyage” — ABBA
“30” — Adele
“Un Verano Sin Ti” — Bad Bunny
“RENAISSANCE” — Beyoncé
“Good Morning Gorgeous (Deluxe)” — Mary J. Blige
“In These Silent Days” — Brandi Carlile
“Music of the Spheres” — Coldplay
“Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers” — Kendrick Lamar
“Special” — Lizzo
Moving on to album of the year, we have another win that sparked many internet discussions, that being “Harry’s House” by Harry Styles. Released early in 2022, “Harry’s House” is often seen as the first big release of the year, and it would impressively stay on the charts for the rest of the year. It’s also the origin of the mega smash hit “As It Was,” a fantastically poppy tune that’s fun and buoyant.
Unfortunately, this one’s another pretty perplexing choice for most people. While Harry’s House is a fun album that’s catchy and enjoyable, many said it’s not as big as; “Voyage” by ABBA and “RENAISSANCE” by Beyonce, which were both big moments, reinventing their artists and being musical statements of power and perseverance.
The biggest question mark looming over the award however is the overlooking of Kendrick Lamar’s “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.” Of the nominees, Kendrick’s album is easily the most stunning, with plenty of new ideas and groundbreaking advancements in storytelling through music. It’s one of Kendrick’s most impressive works in a discography of near perfect albums, and deserved the win.
Song of the Year
- “Just Like That” — Bonnie Raitt, songwriter (Bonnie Raitt) — Winner
- “abcdefu” — Sara Davis, GAYLE & Dave Pittenger, songwriters (GAYLE)
- “About Damn Time” — Melissa “Lizzo” Jefferson, Eric Frederic, Blake Slatkin & Theron Makiel Thomas, songwriters (Lizzo)
- “All Too Well” (10 Minute Version) (The Short Film) — Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)
- “As It Was” — Tyler Johnson, Kid Harpoon & Harry Styles, songwriters (Harry Styles)
- “Bad Habit” — Matthew Castellanos, Brittany Fousheé, Diana Gordon, John Carroll Kirby & Steve Lacy, songwriters (Steve Lacy)
- “BREAK MY SOUL” — Beyoncé, S. Carter, Terius “The-Dream” Gesteelde-Diamant & Christopher A. Stewart, songwriters (Beyoncé)
- “Easy on Me” — Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)
- “GOD DID” — Tarik Azzouz, E. Blackmon, Khaled Khaled, F. LeBlanc, Shawn Carter, John Stephens, Dwayne Carter, William Roberts & Nicholas Warwar, songwriters (DJ Khaled featuring Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, JAY-Z, John Legend & Fridayy)
- “The Heart Part 5” — Jake Kosich, Johnny Kosich, Kendrick Lamar & Matt Schaeffer, songwriters
Another big upset, the much coveted title of Song of the Year went to Americana artist Bonnie Raitt’s “Just Like That.” A heartbreaking song about how difficult it can be to move on from losing a loved one and celebrating their life through hardship, it wasn’t considered a huge hit in the music world. While it’s an emotionally stunning tune in a non-mainstream genre, it’s difficult to see it surpassing the competition.
Perhaps the most discussed nominee online was Taylor Swift, who continues to barely miss out on winning the Song of the Year award. Her 10 minute long version of “All Too Well,” is attached to an exceptionally crafted short film, and it’s an emotional roller-coaster all throughout. For most fans and casual onlookers, it was the shoe-in to win Song of the Year.
Kendrick’s “The Heart Part 5” however is the true snub as far as we’re concerned. Speaking out about the culture surrounding hip-hop with fantastic production and some of Kendrick’s slickest bars, we’re surprised it didn’t win. Other bizarre snubs include Adele’s powerful ballad “Easy on Me,” and Steve Lacy’s fantastically innovative sounding “Bad Habit.” Despite all this, netizens were happy to see “abcdefu” by GAYLE not win the award in spite of its popularity.
Best Dance/Electronic Music Album
- “RENAISSANCE” — Beyoncé — Winner
- “Fragments” — Bonobo
- “Diplo” — Diplo
- “The Last Goodbye” — ODESZA
- “Surrender” — RÜFÜS DU SOL
Despite missing out on the biggest awards, Beyoncé would win big, bagging both the Best Dance/Electronic Music Album and Best Dance/Electronic Recording awards. On the back of her other Grammys, Beyoncé is now the most decorated artist in Grammy history. With 32 Grammy awards, she has won the most awards, also tying for most nominations with her husband Jay-Z.
Best Alternative Music Album
- “Wet Leg” — Wet Leg — Winner
- “WE” — Arcade Fire
- “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You” — Big Thief
- “Fossora” — Björk
- “Cool It Down” — Yeah Yeah Yeahs
In a surprising twist, indie band Wet Leg manage to secure the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album with their self-titled debut. They manage to beat out industry darlings in Björk and Arcade Fire, as well as fan favourite Big Thief. While some voiced dismay at Big Thief’s loss in this category, many others were happy to see Wet Leg gaining recognition for their excellent work on their self-titled.
Not seen in the nominees was the album “Ants From Up There” by Black Country, New Road. Netizens were surprised to see the album missing from any of the nominations. On online ratings, it’s usually seen as one of, if not the best album of 2022, so seeing it not even get a nod in Best Alternative Music Album is odd.
Best Rap Album
- “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” — Kendrick Lamar — Winner
- “God Did” — DJ Khaled
- “I Never Liked You” — Future
- “Come Home the Kids Miss You” — Jack Harlow
- “It’s Almost Dry” — Pusha T
Unsurprisingly, Kendrick Lamar would go on to sweep every single Rap category, as he rightfully deserved. Unlike with almost every other category, no one would question Kendrick’s domination of the Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Record categories, especially with a lack of truly strong competition. While Pusha T and Future put out decently good albums, they couldn’t dethrone “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.”
Best Música Urbana Album
- “Un Verano Sin Ti” — Bad Bunny — Winner
- “TRAP CAKE, VOL. 2” — Rauw Alejandro
- “LEGENDADDY” — Daddy Yankee
- “La 167” — Farruko
- “The Love & Sex Tape” — Maluma
We haven’t spoken too much about Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti” so far, but it deserves its due respect. Bad Bunny had, by and far, the biggest crossover album of the year. Despite being mostly in Spanish, it would go on to become a smash worldwide, with many of its songs becoming hits in various different countries. It also helps that it’s just a phenomenal sounding album.
Best Rock Album
- “Patient Number 9” — Ozzy Osbourne — Winner
- “Dropout Boogie” — The Black Keys
- “The Boy Named If” — Elvis Costello & The Imposters
- “Crawler” — IDLES
- “Mainstream Sellout” – Machine Gun Kelly
- “Lucifer on the Sofa” — Spoon
Far more contentious is the Best Rock Album category, won by Ozzy Osbourne’s “Patient Number 9.” While “Patient Number 9” is considered a solid album and already well loved by Ozzy fans, many felt it didn’t outperform some of the other nominees in any meaningful way. “Dropout Boogie” by The Black Keys tends to come up in discussion, but is held in the same regard or lower than “Patient Number 9.”
“Crawler” by IDLES is another strong contender, recontextualizing the band’s strengths and putting on a strong showing. Perhaps the biggest snub however is Spoon’s “Lucifer on the Sofa,” which was widely seen as one of the best rock record releases of the year.
Best Pop Solo Performance
- “Easy on Me” — Adele — Winner
- “Moscow Mule” — Bad Bunny
- “Woman” — Doja Cat
- “Bad Habit” — Steve Lacy
- “About Damn Time” — Lizzo
- “As It Was” — Harry Styles
Adele takes Best Pop Solo Performance with “Easy on Me,” an emotional early-2022 hit that showcased the singer’s impressive range. We were surprised that this is Adele’s only award this year, considering she’s usually an industry darling. “30” was also seen as one of Adele’s finest works even outside of the critical journalism circles, so it’s a shame she didn’t win more.
Best Americana Album
- “In These Silent Days” — Brandi Carlile — Winner
- “Things Happen That Way” — Dr. John
- “Good to Be…” — Keb’ Mo’
- “Raise the Roof” — Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
- “Just Like That…” — Bonnie Raitt
Surprisingly, Brandi Carlile manages to beat out Song of the Year winner Bonnie Raitt with her Americana album, “In These Silent Days.” There’s a lot to like about the album, though we’re surprised to see Brandi beat out favourites like Robert Plant and the aforementioned Bonnie Raitt. We’re happy to see it however, especially with Brandi Carlile’s album doing more to push the Americana sound forward.
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
- “Unholy” — Sam Smith and Kim Petras — Winner
- “Don’t Shut Me Down” — ABBA
- “Bam Bam” — Camila Cabello featuring Ed Sheeran
- “My Universe” — Coldplay and BTS
- “I Like You (A Happier Song)” — Post Malone and Doja Cat
This one has been hotly contested online, discussing whether a song should win by impact or by sound. “Unholy” by Sam Smith and Kim Petras was huge in 2022, pushed along by hype from the LGBTQIA+ community. Despite this, many found the song itself to be wholly simple and not all too interesting, especially in the face of some of the other nominees.
“Don’t Shut Me Down” by ABBA was the biggest contender, considering their legacy and the quality of the single. It’s another emotionally powerful song, given extra weight thanks to the background of ABBA as a band. With that said, many netizens were happy to see the LGBTQIA+ community take a win at the Grammys, while also keeping the discussion around its win rife and active.
Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
- “MOTOMAMI” — Rosalía — Winner
- “El Alimento” — Cimafunk
- “Tinta y Tiempo” — Jorge Drexler
- “1940 Carmen” — Mon Laferte
- “Alegoría” — Gaby Moreno
- “Los Años Salvajes” — Fito Paez
The collective internet were extremely pleased to see Rosalía’s efforts rewarded, taking home the Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album award for her work on “MOTOMAMI.” Widely seen as one of the best crossover albums from the Latin side of the world with widespread appeal, it charted on many ‘Best of 2022’ lists. Rosalía is well on her way to becoming a critical darling if she keeps up this level of quality.
The 2023 Grammys Conclusion
That just about covers all the biggest winners of the 65th Annual Grammys, and what a list of winners we’ve had this year. It’s difficult to really pinpoint any specific trend this year, and as with any year, discussions are rife online about the many big upsets in the biggest categories. It’s definitely been one of the most unpredictable Grammys so far, and the show this year was excellent!
For the next Grammys, we’re hoping to see better recognition of talent regardless of size, especially for the bigger categories. We also want to see whether the impact of songs will be held in higher regard in the future, or whether Grammy voters will assume more metric stances in the future. Regardless, it’s an exciting time to be a music fan!
