Once again, the annual Grammy Awards, “biggest night in music,” has come to a close. There were many shocking wins and upsets, with my own predictions ending up for the most part being incorrect. While not everyone will agree with who won certain awards, one thing we all can say is that women in music won big. 

For the third year in a row, a woman won Album of the Year. On top of that, all three of the biggest categories of the night (Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year) were all won by female artists. Most of all, Beyonce cemented her legendary status by becoming the most awarded artist of all time in the history of the Grammys. 

Now, a recap of my predictions, the big winners of the night, and whether or not I agree with the winners of each category I predicted.

Album of the Year

Who won: Folklore – Taylor Swift

Who I thought would win: Future Nostalgia – Dua Lipa

Taylor Swift, who delivered a whimsical medley performance of Folklore, made history at the Grammys by becoming the first female artist to win three Album of the Year awards, the biggest award of the show each year. As someone who is not much of a fan of Taylor Swift, I can appreciate Folklore for being a showcase of Swift’s undeniable songwriting talent accompanied by beautiful production by Jack Antonoff, what isn’t there to like about it? However, in terms of sheer musical impact, artistic evolution, success, and timelessness my original choice still stands; Dua Lipa deserved to take home this award with Future Nostalgia. 

Song of the Year 

Who won: “I Can’t Breathe” – H.E.R.

Who I thought would win: “Cardigan” – Taylor Swift

This was probably one of the most surprising wins of the night. I myself was shocked when H.E.R. took this award home; however, after learning what her song is about I have to agree that she deserved it. The song was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, specifically the events empowered by it that occured over the past summer. After listening to this song, this award, which awards based upon a song lyrics, should not have been as shocking of a win as it was. “Prayin’ for change ’cause the pain makes you tender. All of the names you refuse to remember. I can’t breathe. You’re taking my life from me. I can’t breathe. Will anyone fight for me?”

Record of the Year

Who won: “Everything I Wanted” – Billie Eilish 

Who I thought would win: “Don’t Start Now” – Dua Lipa

Billie Eilish became the second person in history to win Record of the Year at the Grammys two years in a row. Her song “Everything I Wanted,” which she also performed at the opening of the show in an eerie car crash themed set, took home this award. Notably, “Everything I Wanted” was not as big as her smash hit “Bad Guy” and at least in my opinion, did not have as much of an impact as it’s huge predecessor. Record of the Year is an award for the production of a song and performance. Even Eilish herself in her acceptance speech for the award proclaimed Megan Thee Stallion deserved this award with her smash “Savage Remix” (featuring Beyonce). With this being said, I still believe Dua Lipa deserved this award with “Don’t Start Now.” The song ushered in the revival of disco and glittering ‘80s synths in pop music. None of the other nominees, even Billie Eilish, were able to shift the sound of an entire genre with their song and that’s why Dua Lipa should have gone home with this award. 

Best New Artist

Who won: Megan Thee Stallion

Who I thought would win: Doja Cat

Tonight was undeniably Megan Thee Stallion’s night. Whether it be from winning Best New Artist, her show stopping performance of “Savage,” or her and Beyonce making history as the first female artists to win Best Rap Performance for their “Savage Remix.” Megan Thee Stallion, like Doja Cat, had a huge year this past year in music. Whether it be collaborating with Beyonce, releasing her successful album Good News, working with many big names like Doja Cat and Cardi B; she definitely deserved this award. On the other hand, it’s hard to see that Doja Cat walked home empty handed, losing all of her award nominations, when she is objectively one of the biggest breakout artists in recent memory.

Best Pop Vocal Album

Who won: Future Nostalgia – Dua Lipa

Who I thought would win: Folklore – Taylor Swift or any album besides Changes by Justin Bieber 

Shockingly, this was the only win for Dua Lipa tonight, despite numerous other news outlets and prediction websites ranking her at the top in most of the categories she was nominated in. Personally, I wanted her to win, but I expected Taylor Swift to win simply because I mean … it’s Taylor Swift with name recognition alone. Future Nostalgia was the most streamed female album of the year and had the hits to back it up, that’s all I have to say about this one. 

Best Pop Solo Performance

Who won: “Watermelon Sugar” – Harry Styles

Who I thought would win: “Don’t Start Now” – Dua Lipa

Harry Styles winning with “Watermelon Sugar” was something that nobody, besides his fans most likely, saw coming. I fully expected “Don’t Start Now” to come out on top, maybe even “Say So” by Doja Cat… but “Watermelon Sugar? The song itself is not terrible, but there are much better songs from his successful album Fine Line and the song itself is incomparable to the sheer success and impact of “Don’t Start Now” or “Say So.” 

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

Who won: “Rain On Me” – Lady Gaga (with Ariana Grande)

Who I thought would win: “Rain On Me” – Lady Gaga (with Ariana Grande)

Out of all of the predictions I got wrong, this is one of the two that I correctly predicted and in the end I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. “Rain On Me” truly was the antithesis of the year 2020. A moment of two musical legends, Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, coming together to make a carefree pop anthem about surviving terrible times. It’s a song that anyone who’s gone through trauma or lived through 2020 can relate to, we’d all “rather be dry, but at least we’re alive” is all anyone can say. The duo also made history with this win by becoming the first all female collaboration to win Best Pop Duo/Group Performance in history. This award also is the twelfth Grammy to be added on top Gaga’s shelf, second for Ariana Grande. 

Best Alternative Music Album

Who won: Fetch The Bolt Cutters – Fiona Apple 

Who I thought would win: Fetch The Bolt Cutters – Fiona Apple 

Fiona Apple released one of the most critically acclaimed albums in history, but she didn’t attend the award ceremony. Apple is known as a critic of the music industry as a whole and the overall corrupt politics that typically ensues at award shows; they’re typically just not always genuine. While she said that if she won an award she would “smash it with a sledgehammer” she deserved this award the most. In my opinion, out of all the nominees in any category, Fetch The Bolt Cutters is the most unique album and none of them can match the experimental aspects and creativity of which the album perfectly achieved. 

Producer Of The Year; Non-Classical

Who won: Andrew Watt

Who I thought would win: Jack Antonoff 

I did expect Jack Antonoff to win this award as for the past three to four years he has continuously produced the most acclaimed and best albums of each year. His cateologue of productions is almost flawless and fully adored by fans and critics alike. I can see why Andrew Watt won this category though and can fully agree with it. He produced Miley Cyrus’ adored rock-influenced album Plastic Hearts and the smash pop hit, “Break My Heart” by Dua Lipa. He’s slowly becoming a rising star in the music industry and many other names like Justin Bieber, Charli XCX, Post Malone, and even Ozzy Osborne have worked with him just in the past year.