Katelyn Benschoter-

The Grammys are a time for music’s biggest stars to come together and celebrate the art that they have made over the past year. The Grammys are often criticized and can be viewed as a mere popularity contest. At the end of the day, while there may be some truth to that, The Grammys are a time to celebrate music. Without fail, there is always drama that comes with award shows, but despite whatever criticism may arise, they are an important form of media. Award shows like The Grammys tend to reflect our society’s beliefs and values through popular music. Watching the Grammys is also a great way to stay informed of music history. So, with that being said, let’s recap the 2025 Grammys!

The past year has been an exciting one for music. From pop perfection to diss tracks, it has been memorable. Therefore, I was very intrigued going into awards season. Particularly with categories like “Album of the Year” it felt nearly impossible to predict who was going to win. The range of music types nominated was vast. From club hits off brat to sad girl summer with The Tortured Poets Department, this year’s Grammys had it all. The coveted album of the year went to Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter. Beyoncé taking home Album of the Year may not seem shocking, seeing as she is one the most awarded female artists ever. Yet, prior to this year, Beyoncé had never taken home the coveted Album of the Year award. 

For Beyoncé to win with Cowboy Carter in particular was surprising. It is a Beyoncé album, so popularity naturally comes with its release, but to win the category with a country album is historic. Cowboy Carter is only the sixth country album to win the category in the 67 years of the Grammys. On top of that, a Black female winning Album of the Year has also never been done before. I personally am not the biggest Beyoncé fan, but can recognize when something is historic; Beyoncé finally taking home one of the most coveted music-based awards with an album like Cowboy Carter is important to the industry. That being said, this felt as a surprise as other nominees in the category –like Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft– had numerous popular songs on the charts, as well as constantly being played on the radio. They also had a much deeper lyrical depth in comparison to Cowboy Carter. In the aftermath of the Grammys, many fans were upset by Beyoncé’s win. 

One of my most anticipated awards to watch was the Best New Artist award. This is where society gets to see future breakout stars. Former winners have been people like Adele and Olivia Rodrigo, who have gone on to become massively successful. Therefore, there is an immense amount of weight and importance to this category. Like many of the categories this year, the nominees were stacked. At the end of the day, the spunky Pink Pony Club singer Chappell Roan took home the award. This award was a standout moment for me as Roan has been putting out music for quite some time, but just recently has come into the popstar that she is. She noted in her speech that she put out Pink Pony Club five years ago in 2020 and now gets to perform it on the Grammys stage. She is an artist who has genuinely worked hard to get to the place that she is today; it was lovely getting to see her recognized on a large scale. Her speech after winning has also sparked a lot of conversation. She advocated for smaller artists to be able to make a liveable wage. She tells the story of when she signed so young, but was suddenly dropped by her label and found herself with no job experience. She was poor, had no health insurance, and no real experience to get a job. She outlines the importance of providing a liveable wage to smaller artists. Just because they choose a path of art does not mean they deserve to not have access to valuable resources such as health insurance. Roan is an avid activist for the causes she cares about and is not afraid to talk about them. I was looking forward to her speech for this reason in particular, and she delivered. Music is one thing, but the reason people make their art is another. Roan’s speech reminds us of the work and drive all of the nominated artists put in order to get to this point.

Switching gears, one of the more surprising aspects of this year’s Grammys was Kendrick Lamar’s Song “Not Like Us” winning all five awards it was nominated for. “Not Like Us” was made as a diss track and part of the very public feud between Drake and Lamar. The song is cleverly written, but the fact that this song won five very prestigious awards has been surprising to many, and is also very telling. As I mentioned previously, awards like the Grammys reflect what society at that time wants or needs from music. Society has been loving the drama between the two rappers, and in general, has a deep love of messy drama. Humans can’t help but watch “the car crash” and crave entertainment. Hence “Not Like Us” winning not one, but five Grammys, is extremely telling and notable of the time that we are living in. But it goes deeper than the drama. Lamar is known for his activism through his art, seen most recently in the SuperBowl HalfTime show. He has been making waves with his impressive songwriting for a while, but in the past year he has blown up. I can vouch that I do not frequently listen to rap music, but he has made his way into my Spotify. Lamar winning all 5 awards, especially in the non-rap centered categories, is a massive deal. Through songs like “Not Like Us” that combine his witty songwriting and a clear purpose, he has become a recognized artist, not just a recognized rap artist. 

This would not be a proper recap of the 2025 Grammys if I did not mention the current queen of pop, Sabrina Carpenter. Carpenter is truly the moment and the pinnacle of pop music right now. She has had a huge year of music due to her hit song “Espresso”, which she also performed on the Grammys stage. Her performance was perfect. She was effortlessly funny playing into technical errors that have happened while on tour, while still sounding fantastic. She was born to perform, and it is really that simple. Carpenter has been releasing music since 2015, but this was her first year being nominated for a Grammy. She was not nominated for just one, but six different awards. At the end of the night, she took two Grammys home including Best Pop Album. As a long-time Sabrina fan (I own her first album on CD, not to brag), I am so excited for her. She has a beautiful voice and is a witty and hilarious songwriter. I can sense that this is only the beginning of her journey and I can’t wait to see what is next for her. 

Well, that concludes the 2025 Grammys and some of the biggest moments. No matter how much criticism award shows like the Grammys may get, I think there are certain aspects of these shows that are important to our society. The Grammys is a place where history is made, and it’s a great way to look back at past music history as well. You can look back at different Grammy awards throughout the years and see how popular music has changed and evolved. Just think, one year in the future, fellow music nerds will be looking back at this year’s awards. It has been a great year for music, and I can’t wait to see what the next year will hold.