Covid has taken a major toll on the entertainment industry, but even in the midst of a global pandemic, music continues to thrive. Many events have been canceled this past year due to Covid, but on Mar. 14, the music community was able to come together and celebrate the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.

Compared to other award shows’ altered virtual formats to accommodate for social distancing, the Grammys conducted a well-organized layout that allowed the ceremony to include many of its adored aspects. Instead of taking place inside the Staples Center as it has in the past, the awards were presented outside at the Los Angeles Convention Center, where the artists sat socially distanced from one another. The performances took place inside the venue with limited capacity inside. While only small groups of the nominees were able to watch each other in person, many of the artists expressed their excitement for the opportunity to perform. Dua Lipa said, “I’m just so excited and so grateful to just be on that stage again.”

Hosted by comedian Trevor Noah, the show had a large focus on diversity, especially the Black Lives Matter movement. 

In his performance of “The Bigger Picture,” Lil Baby got political by reenacting police brutality scenes that gained much attention last summer. In a video portion of the performance, Tamika Mallory called out President Biden and the White House, telling them to take action to bring an end to police brutality and racism. 

H.E.R. won Song of the Year for “I Can’t Breathe,” this song also referring to the Black Lives Matter movement and the death of George Floyd. 

Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak performed “Leave the Door Open,” and returned for the In Memoriam segment along with Lionel Richie, Brandie Carlile, Chris Martin, and Brittany Howard to pay respects to those in the music industry that passed away this year. 

Megan Thee Stallion’s performance of “Body” into “Savage Remix” stole the show and was one of the most talked-about moments from the night. While she did bring home three awards for Best New Artist, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap Performance, fans and fellow nominees were surprised that the upcoming artist did not win Record of the Year. 

The award went to Billie Eilish for the second year in a row. Eilish went up on the stage shaking her head and said, “This is really embarrassing for me. Megan, girl, I was gonna write a speech about how you deserve this, but then I was like, ‘There’s no way they’re gonna choose me.’ I was like, ‘It’s hers, you deserve this.’”

The awards for “Savage Remix” along with two additional wins for “Black Parade” and “Brown Skin Girl” set the legendary Beyonce to new records. She now holds the title for the most Grammys won by a female artist, having a total of 28. In one of her acceptance speeches, she mentioned celebrating the black role models who inspire her. 

Another first was achieved by Mickey Guyton as the first black female artists nominated to be nominated in a country category. Guyton gave an impactful performance speaking on BLM with her song, “Black Like Me”.

Harry Styles also left a memorable impression with his opening performance. Styles wore a black leather ensemble,

completing the outfit with a green feather boa for his performance of “Watermelon Sugar.” The British singer won his first award for the pop single later in the night, this year also being the first time Styles has been nominated for a Grammy.

Taylor Swift performed a medley of three songs (“Cardigan,” “August,” and “Willow”) from the two albums she released during quarantine. Swift also took home the Grammy for Album of the Year, making her the only female artist to have won the award three times.

President and Chairman of the Recording Academy, Harvey Mason Jr., delivered a speech promoting working together with the music community to make the Recording Academy more diverse. The industry is often criticized for its lack of representation and recognition, so many appreciated the speech. Manson said, “This is not the vision of tomorrow but the job for today,” so while the statement has been made, there is now an expectation for the Recording Academy to live up to its promise.   

The complete list of winners and nominees can be found here.