The 2025 GRAMMY celebrated a landmark year in music, recognizing a diverse range of talent across genres. From historic wins to captivating performances, the ceremony showcased the power and evolution of music.
The 2025 GRAMMY Awards marked a historic moment in the music world, featuring unforgettable wins and electrifying performances. Beyoncé made history by winning her first-ever Album of the Year GRAMMY for COWBOY CARTER and became the first Black woman to secure the Best Country Album award. Kendrick Lamar also shone brightly, taking home all five of his nominations, including Record of the Year for “Not Like Us.”
Historic Wins and Standout Performances
Category
Winner
Significance
Album of the Year
Beyoncé – COWBOY CARTER
First Album of the Year win for Beyoncé; Historic win for a Black woman in Country category
Best Country Album
Beyoncé – COWBOY CARTER
First Black woman to win in this category
Record of the Year
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
Dominant performance in rap categories
Best New Artist
Chappell Roan
Advocate for industry fairness
Export to Sheets
The night was filled with electrifying performances, including:
Doechii
Chappell Roan
Coldplay’s Chris Martin & Grace Bowers (In Memoriam tribute)
Stevie Wonder & Janelle Monáe (Quincy Jones tribute)
The night also celebrated incredible talent across a range of genres. Chappell Roan won Best New Artist and used her platform to advocate for fairer practices in the music industry. Performances from artists like Doechii and Chappell Roan energized the crowd at Crypto.com Arena, amplifying the excitement. The evening also featured a touching In Memoriam tribute, with Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Grace Bowers, and a star-studded tribute to Quincy Jones, with Stevie Wonder and Janelle Monáe paying their respects.
Key Category Winners
Pop & Dance/Electronic
Category
Winner
Best Pop Solo Performance
Sabrina Carpenter – “Espresso”
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die With A Smile”
Best Pop Vocal Album
Sabrina Carpenter – Short n’ Sweet
Best Dance/Electronic Recording
Justice & Tame Impala – “Neverender”
Best Dance Pop Recording
Charli xcx – “Von Dutch”
Best Dance/Electronic Album
Charli xcx – BRAT
Rock, Metal & Alternative
Category
Winner
Best Rock Performance
The Beatles – “Now and Then”
Best Metal Performance
Gojira, Marina Viotti & Victor Le Masne – “Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!)”
Best Rock Album
The Rolling Stones – Hackney Diamonds
Best Alternative Music Performance
St. Vincent – “Flea”
Best Alternative Music Album
St. Vincent – All Born Screaming
R&B, Rap & Spoken Word Poetry
Category
Winner
Best R&B Performance
Muni Long – “Made For Me (Live On BET)”
Best Traditional R&B Performance
Lucky Daye – “That’s You”
Best R&B Song
SZA – “Saturn”
Best Progressive R&B Album
Avery*Sunshine – So Glad to Know You (TIE) & NxWorries – Why Lawd? (TIE)
Best R&B Album
Chris Brown – 11:11 (Deluxe)
Best Rap Performance
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
Best Melodic Rap Performance
Rapsody Featuring Erykah Badu – “3”
Best Rap Song
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
Best Rap Album
Doechii – Alligator Bites Never Heal
Best Spoken Word Poetry Album
Tank and The Bangas – The Heart, The Mind, The Soul
Jazz, Traditional Pop, Contemporary Instrumental & Musical Theater
Category
Winner
Best Jazz Vocal Album
Samara Joy – A Joyful Holiday
Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Chick Corea & Béla Fleck – Remembrance
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
Dan Pugach Big Band – Bianca Reimagined: Music for Paws and Persistence
Best Latin Jazz Album
Zaccai Curtis, Luques Curtis, Willie Martinez, Camilo Molina & Reinaldo de Jesus – Cubop Lives!
Best Alternative Jazz Album
Meshell Ndegeocello – No More Water: The Gospel Of James Baldwin
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
Norah Jones – Visions
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
Taylor Eigsti – Plot Armor
Best Musical Theater Album
Hell’s Kitchen
Country & American Roots Music
Category
Winner
Best Country Solo Performance
Chris Stapleton – “It Takes A Woman”
Best Country Duo/Group Performance
Beyoncé Featuring Miley Cyrus – “II MOST WANTED”
Best Country Song
Kacey Musgraves – “The Architect”
Best Country Album
Beyoncé – COWBOY CARTER
Best American Roots Performance
Sierra Ferrell – “Lighthouse”
Best Americana Performance
Sierra Ferrell – “American Dreaming”
Best American Roots Song
Sierra Ferrell – “American Dreaming”
Best Americana Album
Sierra Ferrell – Trail Of Flowers
Best Bluegrass Album
Billy Strings – Live Vol. 1
Best Traditional Blues Album
The Taj Mahal Sextet – Swingin’ Live at The Church in Tulsa
Best Contemporary Blues Album
Ruthie Foster – Mileage
Best Folk Album
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – Woodland
Best Regional Roots Music Album
Kalani Pe’a – Kuini
Gospel & Contemporary Christian Music
Category
Winner
Best Gospel Performance/Song
Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Erica Campbell & Israel Houghton Featuring Jonathan McReynolds & Jekalyn Carr – “One Hallelujah”
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
CeCe Winans – “That’s My King”
Best Gospel Album
CeCe Winans – More Than This
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
DOE – Heart Of A Human
Best Roots Gospel Album
Cory Henry – Church
Latin, Global, Reggae & New Age
Category
Winner
Best Latin Pop Album
Shakira – Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran
Best Música Urbana Album
Residente – LAS LETRAS YA NO IMPORTAN
Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
Rawayana – ¿Quién trae las cornetas?
Best Música Mexicana Album (Including Tejano)
Carín León – Boca Chueca, Vol. 1
Best Tropical Latin Album
Tony Succar, Mimy Succar – Alma, Corazón y Salsa (Live at Gran Teatro Nacional)
André 3000 – “I Swear, I Really Wanted To Make A “Rap” Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time”
Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
Jacob Collier Featuring John Legend &
The winners were chosen by the Recording Academy’s voting members, a group of music creators, ensuring that the GRAMMYs remain one of the most prestigious honors in the industry. The 2025 ceremony also reflected the Academy’s commitment to inclusivity and progress, with several category updates and eligibility adjustments aimed at better representing the evolving music landscape.
Other notable winners included Sabrina Carpenter, who won Best Pop Solo Performance for Espresso, and her album Short n’ Sweet which took home Best Pop Vocal Album. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With a Smile” earned Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Neverender by Justice and Tame Impala won Best Dance/Electronic Recording, and Charli xcx’s BRAT claimed Best Dance/Electronic Album. The Beatles’ Now and Then was honored with Best Rock Performance, while Gojira, Marina Viotti, and Victor Le Masne won Best Metal Performance for “Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!).”
In the R&B categories, Muni Long’s Made For Me (Live On BET) earned Best R&B Performance, and Lucky Daye’s “That’s You” took home Best Traditional R&B Performance. SZA’s Saturn won Best R&B Song. Avery*Sunshine’s So Glad to Know You and NxWorries’ Why Lawd? tied for Best Progressive R&B Album. Chris Brown’s 11:11 (Deluxe) won Best R&B Album, while Rapsody featuring Erykah Badu claimed Best Melodic Rap Performance for “3.” Doechii’s Alligator Bites Never Heal was named Best Rap Album, and Tank and The Bangas’ The Heart, The Mind, The Soul earned the award for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album.
The jazz category saw wins for Samara Joy (Best Jazz Vocal Album), Chick Corea & Béla Fleck (Best Jazz Instrumental Album), and Dan Pugach Big Band (Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album). Other genre-specific winners included Sierra Ferrell (Best American Roots Performance, Best Americana Performance, and Best Americana Album), CeCe Winans (Best Gospel Album and Best Contemporary Christian Music Song for “That’s My King”), and Shakira (Best Latin Pop Album). In the global music categories, Sheila E. featuring Gloria Estefan & Mimy Succar’s “Bemba Colorá” won Best Global Music Performance, and Matt B with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s ALKEBULAN II won Best Global Music Album. The Bob Marley compilation album Bob Marley: One Love – Music Inspired By The Film (Deluxe) won Best Reggae Album.
The GRAMMYs also recognized excellence in visual media, with Maestro: Music By Leonard Bernstein winning Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media and Dune: Part Two earning Hans Zimmer the award for Best Score Soundtrack. Olivia Rodrigo’s “Can’t Catch Me Now” from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes won Best Song Written for Visual Media, while Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” secured Best Music Video. Jon Batiste’s American Symphony won Best Music Film.
Other notable awards included Best Recording Package for Charli xcx’s BRAT, Best Album Notes for John Culshaw’s John Culshaw — The Art Of The Producer – The Early Years 1948-55, and Best Engineered Album wins for Lucky Daye’s Algorithm (Non-Classical) and Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7; Bates: Resurrexit (Classical). Elaine Martone was named Classical Producer of the Year, and Peter Gabriel’s i/o (In-Side Mix) won Best Immersive Audio Album. André 3000’s “I Swear, I Really Wanted To Make A “Rap” Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time” took home Best Instrumental Composition, while Jacob Collier featuring John Legend & Tori Kelly’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” won Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella. Säje featuring Regina Carter’s “Alma” won Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals.
In the classical category, the Los Angeles Philharmonic won Best Orchestral Performance for Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina, and the San Francisco Symphony’s Saariaho: Adriana Mater won Best Opera Recording. The Crossing’s Ochre won Best Choral Performance, and Caroline Shaw & Sō Percussion’s Rectangles and Circumstance won Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. Other classical wins included Víkingur Ólafsson for Bach: Goldberg Variations (Best Classical Instrumental Solo), Karen Slack’s Beyond The Years – Unpublished Songs Of Florence Price (Best Classical Solo Vocal Album), and Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic for Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina (Best Classical Compendium). Gabriela Ortiz was honored with Best Contemporary Classical Composition for Revolución Diamantina.
