On Sunday night (Monday morning for most of us), the Recording Academy hosted the 64th edition of the annual Grammy Awards. Dubbed The Biggest Night In Music, all roads led to the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas for a star-studded affair that saw Black Coffee claim his first-ever Grammy award, while big African names like Wizkid and Burna Boy walked away with their heads held high despite not winning in their respective categories.
With so much to unpack from this year’s ceremony, I had to enlist the help of some well-placed friends across the continent to lend their thoughts and opinions on the events of last night – which many viewers will only be getting the chance to watch for the first time in a few hours.
From the host’s performance to those of the billed performers, to the biggest shocks and upsets of the night without of course forgetting about the red carpet action!
We took a look at all this and more to give you the ultimate recap of this year’s Grammys. Let’s dive in:
Rating Music’s Biggest Night
Trevor Noah as Master of Ceremonies – By Tinashe Venge
I’ve said this a couple of times and I don’t mind repeating it once more – following last week’s headline-grabbing dramatics at the Oscars, Trevor Noah had a delicate line to tread with his delivery this week. However, he handled his task with expertise as the world watched and waited for the comedian to slip up with a joke that would see him cancelled in the next 24-hours.
Trevor began by making light of the Oscars saga, declaring at the beginning of his Grammys monologue that he’d be keeping “other people’s names out of his mouth” – to the relief of many in Hollywood, most of his gags on the night were met with laughter instead of slaps.
Beyond the jokes, Trevor stood up to the task impressively, handling every element of the ceremony with the usual lightness and relatability we’re used to seeing from him on The Daily Show.
While some might have felt as if he was too “safe”, many will agree that in the context of the last week, his tone was exactly what the Grammys needed last night.
Red Carpet Review – By Samkelisiwe Mhlongo-Setshedi of @FashionSpaces_
Firstly, let me just say that we saw too many outrageous and traumatising looks than we care too mention at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards red carpet that took place on the 3rd of April 2022. There were gems in between the mess, but you had to really comb through to see them. The gowns were there in all their glory. Some were a miss and others a hit.
THE BEST GLAM GOWNS
Snoh in custom Atelier Versace
Sleek,gorgeous detail. The fit was perfect and a neckpiece would have made it even better.
Valentina Ferrera in Givenchy.
Loved the shimmer Givenchy number.The detailing at the hem was unexpected but it works.
Tiffany Haddish in custom Prada.
Gorgeous! Everything worked here,Tiffany looked amazing.
THE GOWNS THAT WERE NOT SO GLAM
Paris Hilton in Atelier Zuhra
The bejewelled cape was on overkill.
Cynthia Erivo in Louis Vuitton
She disappointed.There was too much going on with her dress. So much detail.
Chloe Bailey in Valentino
The cape made a bad dress even worse.
THE BEST SUITS
Trevor Noah
Trevor’s pastel blazer looked amazing. His whole look was fitted and it worked.
Diplo
Loved the clean,minimalist and monochrome look.
THE WORST SUITS
Justin Bieber in Balenciaga
It was ill-fitting.We get the oversized silhouette but sometimes it doesn’t work.
Anthony Mackie
Outdated suit.It looks like he had no clue what to wear until the last minute.
THE COLOUR OF THE NIGHT
Most stars wore shades of pink and this colour dominated. Some looks were amazing and others not so much.
THE BEST LOOK IN PINK
Saweetie in Valentino
Her look was amazing but I wish the hem had been done well and that she would have shown us the shoe. She wore a look off the runway, Maison Valentino Fall 2020.(below)
THE WORST LOOK IN PINK
Billy Porter
The floor length frilly top just did nothing for this look.
AFRICAN SUPERSTARS
We were well represented at the Grammys. From Angelina Kidjo who shone in her tassels bright pink assemblage with a head wrap. Tinashe and her fishtail, bow gown in pastel pink. Black Coffee wore a custom Amiri by Mark Amiri suit with his son Esona. They also wore Louis Vuitton shoes from Virgil as a tribute to the late Creative Director.
BEST DRESSED
The best looks on the Grammys red carpet were very few but those who nailed it, pulled out all the stops. We got the fashion we deserved.
These were some of the best looks of the night:
Doja Cat in the Versace gown.
Chrissy Teigen in the fuscia Nicole+Felicia Couture gown.
Lady Gaga in a black and white Giorgio Armani Privé gown.
Tiffany Haddish in custom Prada.
Saweetie in Valentino
Trevor Noah
Diplo
Snoh in Atelier Versace
Valentina Ferrera in Givenchy
WORST DRESSED
The looks that had us cringing were far too many but we are going to mention a few.
Avril Lavigne in Moi Moi Paris
H.E.R in Dundas
Meg The Stallion in Roberto Cavalli
Anthony Mackie
Justin Bieber in Balenciaga
Paris Hilton in Atelier Zuhra
Cynthia Bailey in Louis Vuitton
Chloe Bailey in Valentino
TRENDS WE SPOTTED
-The gloves were definitely a key accessory this year
-Shades of pink – shocking pink/fuschia
-Appliqué on dresses
-Monochromatic suits
Grammys Live Performances – By Ugandan singer-songwriter, Maro
As a performer myself, I take performances very seriously when I’m watching them live on stage. Maybe because I’m a singer too, but I am always watching what’s happening on a deep level and last night was no different.
I expected more from the likes of Justin Bieber (who sang Peaches) as well as Silk Sonic. Silk Sonic might have won a Grammy or two on the night but they really didn’t choose the best song from their album. A lot of other performances were kind of forgettable, but Billie Eilish deserves a mention. She’s such a strong live vocalist. Lil Nas X’s triple medley was a lot of fun and so was BTS’ electric “Butter” performance
Biggest wins and biggest snubs – By Tracy Wanjiru
Where do I even begin? Okay, the winners who deserved to win like Black Coffee from South Africa (congrats guys) and Angelique Kidjo from Benin (yay) were deserved. But others are really questionable. I can’t understand how Wizkid and Burna Boy, between the two of them, didn’t even win a single award? Something was up there!
I know Tinashe is happy about Tyler the Creator but I need to admit that Kanye West deserved to win Best Rap Album for DONDA, this was such a disappointment! On another level, I thought that Billie Eilish should have won more, but the Grammys seemed to prefer Olivia Rodrigo.
I’m very surprised Lil Nas X didn’t have a big night, considering the amount of work he put into his album Montero.
Overall there weren’t any massive shocks, even if I wanted specific winners to win!