Beyonce has won the coveted album of the year prize at this year’s Grammy Awards.

Despite being the most nominated artist in Grammy history, this was her first win in the top category, which has evaded her four times previously.

Just three women of colour have won album of the year before her, the last being Lauryn Hill 26 years ago.

Read more: The full list of Grammy 2025 winners

Members of the Los Angeles Fire Department presented her with the award and were given a standing ovation as they took to the stage.

Beyonce was joined by her 13-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carter to accept the prize for her chart-topping album Cowboy Carter, saying said she felt “honoured” to receive the prize, adding: “It’s been many, many years and I just want to thank the Grammys, every songwriter, every collaborator, every producer, all the hard work.”

It was tough competition this year, with female stars including Charli XCX, Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan and Taylor Swift in the mix. Andre 3000 and Jacob Collier were also in the running.

Earlier in the night, a stunned Beyonce told the audience she was “still in shock” after winning best Country album – becoming the first black female artist to take the prize.

After being handed the award by Taylor Swift, the Texas-born star said: “Wow, I really was not expecting this. I want to thank God that I’m able to do what I love after so many years.”

She went on: “Genre is a code word to keep us in place as artists, and I just want to encourage us to do what we’re passionate about.”

Beyonce has previously been vocal about the lack of wins in the big Grammy categories for artists of colour, who she said were largely relegated to the genre categories.

Last year her husband, rap star Jay-Z, addressed the oversight, telling the audience: “I don’t want to embarrass this young lady, but she has more Grammys than everyone and never won album of the year. So, even by your own metrics, that doesn’t work.”

Beyonce had already made history earlier in the night, winning best country duo/group performance for II Most Wanted featuring Miley Cyrus, but was pipped at the post by Kacey Musgraves, who took best Country song for The Architect.

Ahead of the ceremony, Beyonce announced on social media that she would be taking Cowboy Carter on tour.

Diss track triumph for Lamar

Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar also dominated the night, taking both song and record of the year for his much-talked-about diss track, Not Like Us.

He dedicated his record of the year win “to the city,” and later said he was “starstruck” to be handed his best song award by Diana Ross.

The California-born star had already won three awards earlier in the night.

The first award of the main ceremony, best rap album, went to Doechii for Alligator Bites Never Heal, who became tearful on stage as she became only the third woman ever to take the prize. She later gave a jaw-dropping, high-energy performance.

Her award was presented by Cardi B, one of those past winners, who told the audience: “Rap helped me find my voice, rap helped me find my story, but most of all rap changed my life.”

Thanks mum!

Best pop vocal album went to Sabrina Carpenter for Short N’ Sweet, she said she “might cry” for her first Grammy win, thanking her mum for “driving me to every voice lesson,” before going on to apologise for saying “Hell” three times during her acceptance speech.

Carpenter’s gong was presented by Red Hot Chilli Peppers band members Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith, who sang a burst of their 1991 hit Under The Bridge, in tribute to the City Of Angles – LA.

The evening had a very different tone to previous shows following the devastating Los Angeles wildfires. Black was a common theme on the red carpet and the evening kicked off by highlighting the city’s resilience.

Host Trevor Noah’s opening speech spoke of the “entire communities burned to the ground”, going on, “it’s often said in the darkest time the best of humanity shines through…tonight we’re not only celebrating our favourite music but celebrating the city that brought us our favourite music”.

Raising money for those affected by the disaster, Noah said advertising space had also been given to local LA businesses affected by fire.

The first performance of the night celebrated first responders. I Love LA by Dawes, whose members were directly affected by the Eaton fire, were backed by John Legend, Brad Paisley, Sheryl Crow, Brittany Howard and St Vincent.

Chappell Roan calls out the labels

Best newcomer went to Chappell Roan, who wore a giant cone hat with a veil spouting from the top to accept her award, which threatened to fall as she accepted her gong.

The 26-year-old singer gave an empassioned speech as she accepted her first Grammy saying: “I told myself if I ever won a Grammy and I got to stand up here in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry profiting millions of dollars off of artists would offer a liveable wage and healthcare, especially to developing artists.”

She went on to describe the strain of being signed young, and then dropped by her label, struggling to afford health insurance.

She said “It was so devastating to feel so committed to my art and feel so betrayed by the system and so dehumanised… And if my label would have prioritised artists’ health, I could have been provided care by a company I was giving everything to.

She finished by saying: “So record labels need to treat their artists as valuable employees with a liveable wage and health insurance and protection. Labels, we got you, but do you got us?”

Earlier, her rocking Pink Pony Club performance had featured a giant pony and host of cowboy clowns.

During the show, Billie Eilish performed on an LA hillside set, and Sabrina Carpenter giving it some old-school Hollywood glamour, with a bit of tap dance thrown in for good measure.

Other performances included Bensoon Boone who used the piano to assist a backflip, British star Raye giving a soulful performance of Oscar Winning Tears, Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars who sang California Dreamin’, and a belly-dance inspired performance from Hips Don’t Lie star Shakira.

The Weeknd also returned to the Grammys after several years of boycot in protest at what he saw as a flawed voting system after his 2020 album After Hours failed to receive a single nomination.

Other notable early wins of the night included some nostalgic British acts – The Beatles, who took best rock performance for Now And Then, and The Rolling Stones who won best rock album for Hackney Diamonds.

Charli XCX scored her first Grammys for best dance/electronic album and best dance/pop recording, following her culture-shaping Brat album, which was the talk of the summer. She later worked her way through the arena in a performance, which featured Julie Fox and a large haul of knickers, and which Charlie joked might be so racy “it might not make the edit”.

Politics amid the music

Jennifer Lopez presented best Latin pop album, which went to Shakira for Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran. Shakira hugged her two sons as she went to collect her prize, dedicating it to “all my immigrant brothers and sisters in this country – you’re loved, you’re worth it, and I will always fight with you.”

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars won best pop duo/group performance for Die With A Smile, paying their respects to one anothers career achievements in their acceptance speech.

Gaga also spoke out for trans rights, saying, “Trans people are not invisible. Trans people deserve love. The queer community deserves to be lifted up. Music is love.”

Alicia Keys – who is now an 18-times Grammy-winning artist – was also awarded the Dr Dre Global Impact Award by rapper and singer Queen Latifah. Taking one of her children on stage to accept her award, she paid tribute to a host of female artists who she said had “opened the doors” before her.

In a nod to politics, she went on to say DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) was “not a threat, but a gift” adding, “When destructive forces try to burn us down, we burn like a phoenix”.

In the US, the Trump administration is currently calling for the rollback of DEI programs.

Remembering those who are gone

Stars including Will Smith, Cynthia Erivo, Stevie Wonder and Janelle Monae headlined a tribute to the late, legendary producer Quincy Jones, featuring jazz musician Herbie Hancock on the piano, and rendidtions of We Are The World and Thriller.

Led by Coldplayer frontman Chris Martin, the In Memoriam section began by remembering Liam Payne who died in October aged 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina. It also included actress and singer Marianne Faithful, who passed away over the weekend.

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