The 60th Grammy Awards are over, with a ceremony attended by some of the biggest artists in the world at Madison Square Garden in New York City - for the first time in 15 years.
Performances from Bruno Mars and Cardi B, Kesha, and Kendrick Lamar were just some of the evening's highlights, along with an appearance by U2 on a floating stage on the Hudson River.
Jay Z - who incited the rage of Donald Trump following a CNN interview earlier this weekend - led this year's nominations with a grand total of eight including album, song and record of the year but failed to pick up any of the major prizes.
British singer Ed Sheeran missed out on the big nods for latest record Divide, instead receiving recognition in the categories of best pop vocal album and best pop solo performance for “Shape of You.”
This liveblog is now closed
Live Updates
Got Grammys fever? Good news - we'll be with you every step of the way from the red carpet arrivals to the ceremony's biggest moments!
Grammy Award nominations 2018 - list in full
Jay Z leads the way with eight nominations, including album, song and record of the year. Kendrick Lamar follows with a close seven nominations, while Ed Sheeran - despite being hotly tipped - only lands two. The troubadour's album Divide was expected to scoop multiple awards, yet the singer was only nominated for best pop vocal album and best pop solo performance for "Shape of You". See the full list of nominees below. Record Of The Year:
Mura Masa interview: 'Last year I had to prove myself'
The IndependentIt’s been a long time since Mura Masa did what he refers to as a “proper release”. Sat in a cafe in Peckham, south London, where a cool breeze is floating in through the door (some respite on one of the hottest days of the year so far) we’re talking about his forthcoming debut album, something that has taken around three years to put together. It was recorded “all over the place”, the 21-year old born Alex Crossan says, which suits the collaborative mood.
Khalid interview: American teen talks early fame, touring with Lorde and celebrating youth
The IndependentWhen American Teen was released, Khalid told himself that his life was about to change. He wasn't wrong. On top of the success of his enormous hit “Location” – a sultry, flirty jam that went platinum and currently boasts over 190 million streams on Spotify – the 19-year-old has also released his debut album and appeared on tracks by Kendrick Lamar and Calvin Harris. He's in London after a pop-up show on a roof in Dalston, where fans could text into find out his location and see him perform a few songs.
Jack Antonoff: 'I feel as though I've had a few lives already'
The Independent“It’s been one of the most exciting years I’ve had.” In an unusual room at a hotel in London, with narrow walls and mirrored panels that seem to stretch like a scene from Inception, Jack Antonoff (who “literally just watched that movie”) picks at some food laid out for him from the other side of a wide wooden desk.
Portugal. The Man interview: 'We're all in a f***ing bubble'
The Independent“I think the last tour had the best show that we’ve ever played. Manchester, that was the best show. Small punk-rock club, no barriers.” Portugal. The Man don’t really do barriers, they prefer to knock them down. That’s why, to everyone’s surprise – the band’s included – they found themselves sat alongside Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift in the pop charts with their massive hit “Feel It Still”, with the expectation being that it would perform well in the alternatives.The first Grammy winners are being announced right now in a non-televised ceremony, and Carrie Fisher just won a posthumous award for Best Spoken Word Album with The Princess Diarist!
Carrie Fisher awarded posthumous Grammy for The Princess Diarist
The IndependentCarrie Fisher has won a Grammy for "Best Spoken Word Album" for The Princess Diarist. Her nomination was a surprising addition to the category. Before her untimely death, the Star Wars actress recorded an audio version of her memoir in 2017.
60th Grammy Awards 2018, a playlist by Independent Arts on Spotify
SpotifySome of the best artists and songs nominated at this year's Grammy Awards
The 30 best albums of 2017
The IndependentAfter last year’s spate of surprise releases from the likes of Beyoncé, Rihanna, Radiohead and Kanye West, 2017 has been more about anticipation. From the build-up to Kendrick Lamar dropping DAMN. and the frenzy ahead of Taylor Swift’s long-awaited sixth album reputation, to a wealth of long-awaited debuts: this year artists took their time to recover from political and social upheaval, and gave us something to look forward to. Here are our 30 favourite albums of 2017.
Alessia Cara took home the prize for Best New Artist, which many saw as a surprise for favourites Khalid and SZA. However the Canadian-born singer did give a moving, heartfelt speech about how "everyone should get a shot", and paid tribute to artists who don't always receive the recognition they deserve, appearing to refer to her fellow nominees.
Arguably the most powerful performance of the night came from Kesha who played “Praying”, flanked by a chorus of fellow female artists including Cyndi Lauper and Camilla Cabello, the latter of whom went onto introduce a show by U2 from a floating stage on the Hudson River.
But it was Bruno Mars who ultimately triumphed, taking home the awards for Record of the Year and Album of the Year. In a speech accepting Album of the Year the R&B singer acknowledged his fellow nominees, who struggled to hide looks of disappointment as the camera closed in for their reactions. The prize was widely believed to be set for Lamar or Lorde, each of whom enjoyed critical and commercial success with their 2017 releases.
Follow Independent Culture on Facebook
- More about:
- Grammys 2018
- Grammys
- Bruno Mars
- Jay-Z
- Kendrick Lamar
- Live blogs
Reuse content