NEW YORK: Bruno Mars went six for six at the Grammys, winning all of the awards he was nominated for with his energetic and upbeat 90s-inspired R&B album.
Mars won album of the year for “24K Magic”, record of the year for the title track, and song of the year for the No.1 hit, That’s What I Like, on Sunday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
“Oh my God. Thank you guys so much. Wow,” said Mars. “I’d like to dedicate this award to (songwriters like Babyface, Teddy Riley Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis).”
Mars has now won 11 career Grammys.
Mars gave an energetic and colourful performance of Finesse with breakthrough rapper Cardi B; Pink was a vocal powerhouse while she sang Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken; and Rihanna, DJ Khaled and Bryson Tiller teamed up for a vibrant performance of Wild Thoughts.
Cara, who was shaking as she accepted the award for best new artist, beat out SZA, Julia Michaels, Khalid and Lil Uzi Vert.
“Thank you to my parents and my brother for believing in me,” she said, also urging the crowd to “support real music and real artists because everyone deserves the same shot”.
Best New Artist @AlessiaCara:"Support real music and real artists. Everyone deserves the same shot" https://t.co/WhULZWKA7Y pic.twitter.com/88gY8oTM0H
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) January 29, 2018
(Video Twitter/@THR)
Chris Stapleton won three awards, including best country album, best country song and best country solo performance.
“We always try to make great records ... and I guess this is a testament to that,” Stapleton said.
The Rolling Stones picked up their third career Grammy -- for best traditional blues album for “Blue & Lonesome”, while Ed Sheeran won best pop vocal album. Emmy and Golden Globe winner Childish Gambino, who picked up best traditional R&B performance, gave a smooth and sultry performance of Terrified in all-white featuring screeching high notes. Gambino was joined by young singer-actor, JD McCrary, who matched his vocals and sings on the original track.
Little Big Town, who sang their Taylor Swift-penned No. 1 hit Better Man, also won best country duo/group performance with the song. Lady Gaga won over the audience with a rousing performance of the songs Joanne and Million Reasons, while Sam Smith gave a powerful performance of the song Pray.
The Weeknd, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Reba McEntire, LCD Soundsystem, Portugal the Man and Shakira also won early awards. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, both Oscar and Tony winners, won best musical theatre album for “Dear Evan Hansen,” shared with Tony winner Ben Platt.
Chappelle won best comedy album during the televised show.
“I am honoured to win an award, finally, and I wanted to thank everyone at Netflix, at Saturday Night Live, at The Chappelle Show,” he said.
#GRAMMYs: Dave Chapelle wins Best Comedy Album for his first stand up special in 12 years https://t.co/uA29ceagat pic.twitter.com/6H0rxcureQ
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) January 29, 2018
(Video Twitter/@THR)
Puppies were passed to the losers of best comedy album, including Jerry Seinfeld, Sarah Silverman and Jim Gaffigan.
Posthumous Grammys were also handed out to actress Carrie Fisher, singer Leonard Cohen and engineer Tom Coyne, who worked on Mars’ “24K Magic” album. Double winners included Jason Isbell, Justin Hurwitz and CeCe Winans.