Music | , | February 12, 2019

 

Award shows are kind of a slog to watch. They go on for hours. They give out swaths of awards you don’t care about. They force celebrities into awkward transitionary skits. It all comes together in a wet pile of dull and overlong pageantry that could have been spent doing pretty much anything else.

 

That being said, the Grammys were actually pretty good this year! A lot of our faves ended up walking home with awards and the night was filled with performances we didn’t at all mind sitting through.

 

So, in case you missed it, here are the biggest moments you need to know about from this year’s Grammys.

 

1. Cardi is the first woman to win Rap Album of the Year

 

Cardi B is one of music’s biggest superstars right now, so it’s no surprise that she was all over this year’s ceremony. Alongside the performance of her track “Money,” Cardi made headlines for her Rap Album of the Year win, making her the first woman to take the award in Grammy history.

 

 

2. Drake got cut off

 

Drake, along with Kendrick Lamar and Ariana Grande, was among the artist to publicly turn down performing at the Grammys this year. Still, he ended up showing up, won an award, and got onstage to accept it only to have the show cut to commercial while he was mid-speech. It might have just been a technical mistake, or it could have been the Grammys getting back at Drake. You decide.

 

 

3. Janelle Monae brought choreo back

 

If this year’s Grammys did anything, it reminded us that Janelle Monae is one crazy good performer. Taking the stage to perform latex-heavy take on “Make Me Feel,” Janelle served up the kind of choreographed showmanship we want from music’s biggest night.

 

 

4. Donald Glover dominated the night’s biggest categories

 

Donald Glover wasn’t actually present at least night’s show, but that still didn’t stop him from taking some of the night’s biggest awards. He scooped up Record of the Year and Song of the Year for “This Is America.” Very well deserved, Donald. Wherever you are.

 

5. Ariana Grande didn’t show up, but we still couldn’t stop talking about her

 

Speaking of no-shows, Ariana Grande also decided to skip this year’s ceremony but still made waves, even from home. Not only did she win her first Grammy for her album “Sweetener,” she also made headlines when she blasted off some tweets suggesting she was upset Cardi B beat out Mac Miller in the Rap Album category.

 

 

6. Dua Lipa and St. Vincent gave us the performance we didn’t know we needed

 

This was, without a doubt, the night’s most random pairing. The two played a medley of Dua’s “One Kiss” and St. Vincent’s “Masseduction” that ended up producing one of the most surprisingly satisfying performances of the night. Who would’ve thought?

 

 

7. Jennifer Lopez did a motown tribute for some reason

 

If J.Lo is the first artist you think of when you think of motown, then this bizarre misfire of a pairing is exactly what you deserve.

 

8. XXXTentacion is snubbed in memoriam

 

Many fans noticed that X was noticeably absent from the night’s in memoriam segment. Nothing’s been officially confirmed, but the Grammy producers apparently had an issue memorializing the late rapper due the multiple abuse allegations made against him before he died.

 

9. Michelle Obama (full stop)

 

The cameo of the night. The former First Lady appeared onstage alongside Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith and Jennifer Lopez to give a speech on the power of music, and also to remind America of just how good they used to have it. Miss you, Michelle.

 

 

 

Image credit: Twitter @enews

 

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