There’s the Superbowl, and then there’s the Superbowl for the music and celebrity-obsessed: The Grammys. The 66th Annual Grammy Awards Ceremony—the most prestigious awards in music — was held on February 4, 2024. With female artists taking home every award in the main ceremony and queer women being notably celebrated, this year’s ceremony was unlike any other. Here’s a recap of every queer woman who shined bright during the Grammys:
boygenius wins big during the premiere ceremony
The supergroup, boygenius — comprised of Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker — won three of their six nominations during the Grammys Premiere Ceremony. Dacus led their sprint onto the stage to accept their award for Best Rock Performance for “Not Strong Enough,” with Bridgers and Baker closely behind, victoriously spinning in each other’s arms. “Music saved my life,” Baker said during their acceptance speech, “Everyone can be in a band. This band is my family.” The trio then took home the awards for Best Rock Song for “Not Strong Enough” and Best Alternative Music Album for “the record,” which were also nominated for Record and Album of the Year, respectively. In addition to her three wins with boygenius, Bridgers won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with SZA for their collaboration, “Ghost in the Machine.” With her four Grammys, Bridgers walked away as the most-awarded artist of the night.
Tracy Chapman performs “Fast Car” with Luke Combs
Tracy Chapman gave a nostalgic performance of her 1988 hit, “Fast Car” alongside country artist Luke Combs, whose cover of the song peaked at No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2023 and was nominated for Best Country Solo Performance at the 2024 Grammys. Chapman, the four-time Grammy award winner, first performed “Fast Car” at the Grammys in 1989. Her return to the Grammys stage is a rare treat from the artist, who has stepped back from the spotlight after her last album was released in 2008.
Allison Russell’s win is a win for everyone
Allison Russell took home the Grammy for Best American Roots Performance for “Eve was Black.” Russell gave a touching dedication during her acceptance speech: “All colors, all ages, all abilities, all orientations, all genders, [this award] is for everybody.” She also thanked Brandi Carlile, a fellow sapphic artist, “who kicked open the doors of this industry for artists like me.” Russell and Carlile performed alongside Joni Mitchell later in the evening.
Brandy Clark wins after a decade of nominations
Brandy Clark — who was previously the most Grammy-nominated country artist to never win a Grammy — earned the award for Best Americana Performance for “Dear Insecurity” alongside Brandi Carlile, who is featured on the song. Recalling Allison Russell’s speech, Clark thanked Carlile “for championing so many of us.” Clark also delivered an emotional performance of the song.
Miley Cyrus wins her first (and second) Grammy
Miley Cyrus took home the award for Best Pop Solo Performance for her song “Flowers.” While performing the song shortly after, she changed the lyrics of the song’s climax, excitedly declaring, “I started to cry, then remembered I just won my first Grammy!” At the night’s end, “Flowers” also scored the highly coveted Record of the Year award and Cyrus shouted out her “main gays” during her acceptance speech.
Victoria Monét is our Best New Artist—15 years into her career
Victoria Monét won Best R&B Album, Best Engineered Album, and Best New Artist for her album JAGUAR II. During her tearful acceptance speech for Best New Artist — one of the night’s most prestigious awards — she described her win as “a 15-year pursuit.” Monét’s other nominations included Best R&B Song and Record of the Year for “On My Mama.” In addition to her personal music career, Monét is known for writing music for other artists, including Blackpink and Ariana Grande.
Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” represents girlhood
Billie Eilish received five of her six nominations this year for “What Was I Made For?” written for the Barbie movie soundtrack. At the end of the night, she walked away with two new Grammys for her shelf: Best Song Written for Visual Media and Song of the Year. During her red-carpet interview alongside her brother Finneas, Eilish said she didn’t expect to receive even one nomination for the song. “This was supposed to be an off year,” she added, describing how the song was her only release of 2023, “It’s surreal. It’s amazing.” In true Barbie fashion, the Grammys stage illuminated pink as she performed the song.
Between the array of talented winners and captivating performers, this year’s “biggest night in music” was one for the queer history books. The 66th Grammy Awards: prestigious, exciting, and for the sapphics.