No Grammy show is complete without a scandal. The 2025 ceremony was haunted by the absence of . Despite a blockbuster year with After Hours: Dawn FM Part II , the singer refused to submit his work, citing the Academy’s opaque “nomination review committees” which he claims cost him a nod in 2021. This boycott forced the Academy to address its credibility in real-time. Host Trevor Noah quipped, “We invited him. He left us on ‘read’—which is, frankly, a very Grammy thing to do to artists.” The joke landed awkwardly, highlighting the generational divide between the Academy’s older voting bloc and younger, streaming-native artists who see the Grammys as increasingly irrelevant.
February 16, 2025 Time: 8:00 PM EST Location: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles The 67th Annual Grammy Awards -2025-2025
Within 24 hours of the ceremony, the was evident. Spotify streams for RAYE increased by 400%. SZA’s Lana returned to #1 on the Billboard 200. Lana Del Rey’s 2012 album Born to Die re-entered the top 10 of the iTunes chart, purely on nostalgia. No Grammy show is complete without a scandal
on stage, underscoring the evening's theme of "music as a gift" to a struggling community. This boycott forced the Academy to address its
The 2025 Grammys will be remembered as the year Beyoncé finally secured the top prize, cementing her legacy in a new genre (Country), and as a celebration of the West Coast hip-hop dominance of Kendrick Lamar. It was also a landmark year for "Brat" culture, with Charli XCX winning Best Dance Pop Recording. Beyond the awards, the night succeeded in turning a celebration of music into a significant fundraiser for a city in crisis.