The Grammy Awards made history last night.
Bad Bunny was the first non-English language singer to win Album of the Year.
He’s American — from Puerto Rico — and playing the Super Bowl this Sunday.
His win on CBS, the network whose legacy has been disgraced by Trump pals taking it over, was remarkable.
But the Recording Academy must have had some sense of his potential to win, especially as he’s Donald Trump’s foe. They placed him front and center in the audience, looking sharp in a designer tux, and included him into two “bits” with host Trevor Noah.
Bunny — Benito Ocasio — literally cried when his name was read.
Even Lady Gaga — who’s never won Best Album though she deserved it last night — leapt to her feet and started clapping.
Meantime, Billie Eilish and brother Finneas won Best Song for a song no one really knows and was included on her album from last year. “Wildflower” should not have been eligible, but it was released as a single well after the album it was from, “Hit Me Hard and Soft,” came and went in the 2025 Grammys. Ridiculous.
Justin Bieber performed, albeit singing karaoke, and in his underwear. Not cute at 32 with a 1 year old at home. Time to grow up. His mental health should be of concern.
Best Record went to Kendrick Lamar’s “Luther.” It’s a pastiche rap song based on the later Luther Vandross’s cover of the song, “If This World Were Mine.” This is how far we’ve fallen. Not mentioned or thanked was the legendary Marvin Gaye, who wrote the song in 1967 and a hit with it with Tammi Terrell.
Somehow, Marvin Gaye has become the most abused composer of this generation. His heirs had to sue Robin Thicke when he stole “Got to Give It Up” for “Blurred Lines.” They won that one. Thicke ripped off other Gaye songs, too. They lost a suit they should have won against Ed Sheeran for “Thinking Out Loud.” Composers are not valued anymore.
Otherwise last night’s Grammy broadcast was top notch. Sadly, it seemed like a third of the show was dedicated to people who’d died in the last year. Every time you thought the In Memoriam was over, it kept going. The graphics were so disorganized, David Johansson’s name appeared twice!
Still, the tributes were brilliant, especially those for Ozzy Osbourne and Roberta Flack But there was scant mention of Sly Stone, and no card for Angie Stone.
The Grammys leave CBS now for ABC, where who knows what will happen.
more to come…
