LOS ANGELES, CA. — Sam Smith, Beck and Beyonce were among the big winners of the 57th annual Grammy Awards Sunday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Sam Smith probably summed up his night the best.
Upon receiving the song of the year honor for his hit “Stay With Me,” the British singer said, “I’m having a really, really really good night.”
He sure was. He also took home the first honor of the night: best new artist.
Taylor Swift — a former loser in the category — handed him the gramophone award.
“I’m going to try to say something without crying,” Smith said before thanking his record label and his mom and dad. “I won a Grammy, thank you!”
Smith beat out some top-notch talent: Iggy Azalea, Bastille, Brandy Clark and HAIM.
He also walked away with best pop vocal album and gave a touching speech about trying to make it in music industry — he tried to lose weight, but the music was still “awful,” he admitted.
“It was only when I started to be myself that the music started to flow and people started to listen,” said Smith, who later took the stage to sing with collaborator Mary J. Blige.
Another big winner of the night? Beck. He scored best rock album and album of the year for “Morning Phase,” his 12th studio release. The album of the year win was a bit of a surprise — as signs were pointing to others in the category, including Smith, Sheeran or Beyonce. Even Beck looked shocked to hear his name called.
“We made this record at my house…I like to thank my kids to let me keep them awake a little longer,” he said onstage.
The best R&B performance Grammy went to hot music couple Beyonce and Jay Z for “Drunk in Love.”
“This is such an honor,” Beyonce said before raving about the year she’s had. “I love you deep,” she said to Jay Z. She also gave a shout-out to daughter, Blue Ivy, who was watching.
Pharrell Williams scored the honor for best pop solo performance for his massive hit, “Happy,” topping Smith, Taylor Swift, Sia and John Legend.
“I’m not going to make this awkward and long…I was so prepared for everybody who is so talented in that category to walk away with that award,” he said.
The night was filled with a batch of performances. AC/DC kicked off things off with a big dose of rock and roll. The Australian group played a medley of songs that included “Highway to Hell” — all of which got the audience members on their feet and dancing.
“We’re only going up from there,” said host LL Cool J following the performance. And it arguably did.
Ariana Grande showed off her vocal chops, slowing things down with “Just a Little Bit of Your Heart.”
Miranda Lambert — the night’s best country album winner — brought some country twang to the show with her upbeat performance of “Little Red Wagon.” Country singers Eric Church and Brandy Clark also performed.
Madonna showcased her new single, “Livin’ For Love,” with a dance-heavy performance that resembled the video for the track. She urged the crowd to get out of the seats near the end of the song for a sing-along, too.
Musical duets and collaborations made up a lot of the three-and-a-half-hour show. Ed Sheeran performed “Thinking Out Loud” with John Mayer, Herbie Hancock and Questlove.
AC/DC wasn’t the only veteran rock outfit at the show. ELO’s Jeff Lynne took the stage to perform “Mr. Blue Sky” and “Evil Woman,” with Sheeran joining him on guitar and vocals. The crowd got into this one, too. Well, at least Paul McCartney did. Who else caught him in the audience rocking out to “Evil Woman” before realizing he was the only one standing? He quickly sat down.
Gwen Stefani and Adam Levine — both judges on “The Voice” — sang “My Heart is Open,” while Jessie J performed with Tom Jones, and Usher took the stage with Stevie Wonder. Irish singer Hozier brought out Annie Lennox for his breakout hit “Take Me to Church.” The pair then teamed up for a sultry rendition of “I Put a Spell On You.”
Grammy winners Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett brought their classic duets to the stage, too. Beck and Chris Martin of Coldplay dueted together as well.
And on the heels of their recent collaboration, Rihanna, McCartney and Kanye West all hit the Grammy stage.
With her back to the audience, Sia performed her hit song “Chandelier” with none other than actress Kristen Wiig — who showed off some spot-on dancing skills.
The Bee Gees and the late George Harrison received the evening’s Lifetime Achievement Awards.
President Barack Obama even made an appearance at the ceremony — to relay a message about sexual assault as part of “It’s on Us,” an anti-domestic violence campaign the Obama administration launched last year. In a taped video message, he said that rape is “not OK — and it has to stop.”
Mr. Obama’s speech led into Katy Perry’s performance of “By the Grace of God.”
Meanwhile, a batch of honors were handed out ahead of the televised ceremony. Rosanne Cash scored three Grammys, and Beyonce, Pharrell, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar each walked away with two before the awards show even started.
Beyonce won best R&B song for “Drunk In Love” and surround sound album for her self-titled album. Pharrell’s “G I R L” nabbed best music video for the ubiquitous jam, “Happy.”
Eminem won best rap album, topping Iggy Azalea. He also won best rap/sung collaboration for “The Monster” with Rihanna.
The late Joan Rivers won best spoken word album for “Diary of a Mad Diva.”
Her daughter, Melissa Rivers, accepted the honor, saying, “If my mother was here tonight, she would not only be honored and thrilled to be holding her first Grammy, she would most likely have it copied and on the air on QVC by 11.”
Chick Corea and the “Frozen” soundtrack also scored two awards each. The hit Disney film won best compilation soundtrack for visual media.
On the red carpet multiple nominee Smith said, “I’m just happy people know who I am. Last year, no one knew who I was.”
Going into the ceremony, Smith, Beyonce and Pharrell led the pack of nominees this year with six nods each, including album of the year. Iggy Azalea, Beck, Eric Church, engineer Tom Coyne, Drake, Gordon Goodwin, Jay Z, Miranda Lambert, Sia, Usher and Jack White were not far behind with four nominations each.
A couple of nomination milestones took place this year. Beyonce makes history this year by becoming the most-nominated female artist in Grammy history. U2 is now the most-nominated group in history — as the Irish band will be competing for best rock album for “Songs of Innocence.” Miley Cyrus, meanwhile, is in the running for her first Grammy — “Bangerz” is up for best pop vocal album.
Presenters include Taylor Swift, Dierks Bentley, James Corden, Jamie Foxx, Barry Gibb, Dave Grohl, Jennifer Hudson, Enrique Iglesias, Nick Jonas, Anna Kendrick, Shia LaBeouf, Katharine McPhee, Gwyneth Paltrow, Pentatonix, Smokey Robinson, Nile Rodgers, Gina Rodriguez, Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor, Keith Urban, The Weeknd and Stevie Wonder.
