Grammys: Best and Worst Moments of the 2022 Awards

TThe 64th Annual Grammy Awards was broadcast from Las Vegas on Sunday, following a controversial Oscars ceremony that took place one week earlier. It’s been a tough few years for the Recording Academy, which has dealt with internal strife, accusations of backdoor dealing, and the defection of some of music’s biggest stars: Drake and The Weeknd have publicly renounced the Grammy’s legitimacy, while Kanye West was banned from this ceremony due to “concerning online behavior.” But in their place, a younger group of superstars asserted their claim to the center of the pop world at the 2022 Grammy Awards, from Olivia Rodrigo to Billie Eilish to Lil Nas X.

Jon Batiste, who won both for his album and the album cover design awards was among the early big winners. We AreFor composing the music and sound effects for the Disney film Soul. The Foo Fighters mourned the loss of Taylor Hawkins and won all three categories, including Best Rock Album.Medicine at Midnight) and Best Rock Song (“Waiting on a War”). Trevor Noah was the host for the second consecutive year. These are the highlights and the worst of the evening.

Best: Olivia Rodrigo’s debut

It’s been a long fifteen months since Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License” took the internet by storm, breaking all sorts of streaming records and soundtracking countless re-enactments and tributes on TikTok. On Sunday, Rodrigo proved on music’s biggest stage that “Drivers License” wasn’t just a flavor-of-the-month TikTok trend but an era-defining torch ballad. As if she were reliving her own teenage heartbreak, Rodrigo howled in anguish on the set of a tiny town. There was even debris and birds flying around.

On shows like Tiny Desk, Rodrigo has shown that she has huge pipes despite not performing live until last year—and her Grammy debut firmly inserted her into a lineage of great balladeers like Stevie Nicks, Brandi Carlile, and Adele. Rodrigo later won Best New Artist, proclaiming onstage, “This is my biggest dream come true.”

BTS is the most popular in Las Vegas

BTS is a group that was made to perform in Vegas. They are a polished and highly-polished bunch of multihyphenates who love pop culture and perfectionism. So they looked completely in their element in their performance of their #1 hit “Butter,” delivered with the craftsmanship and practiced joy of the most seasoned performers on the strip. V was seen flirting with Olivia Rodrigo (the it-girl) and Jungkook falling from the ceiling.

They donned monochrome suits and began to cosplay. Mission Impossible Here’s What You Can See About MeJumping over laser beams, and throwing cards around the room. They stepped across the ground in shining shoes, with not a single heel kick.

To Cady Lang at cady.lang@timemagazine.com.