First off, huge congratulations to all of this year’s Grammy winners! But I have to say, I was especially happy to see Tems take home the award for Best African Music Performance with Love Me JJ. This is actually her second Grammy—her first was for Wait for You with Future and Drake—but this time, it’s her first solo win! That’s a major achievement, and she absolutely deserves it.
Another big congrats to Muni Long! She won a Grammy for Made for Me, and what makes this win even crazier is that she wasn’t even sure she’d be nominated because of some submission deadline issues. But in the end, she got the recognition she deserved. Love that for her!
Chris Brown Wins a Grammy—Is He No Longer Blacklisted?
Now, let’s talk about the shocker—Chris Brown winning Best R&B Album for 11:11 Deluxe. I’ll be real, I did not expect this. He’s been blackballed from certain industry spaces for a long time, and for obvious reasons. His past controversies—especially the situation with Rihanna—completely changed his reputation, and for years, it felt like the industry had moved on without him.
But if we’re being honest, Chris Brown has stayed resilient, and there really hasn’t been another male R&B artist in this generation to take his spot. Some have tried—Josh Levi is super talented, and Jacquees? Listen, he really gave it his all. Y’all remember when he straight-up declared himself the King of R&B? That was delusional, but I respect the confidence.
Of course, we’ve got Frank Ocean, Bryson Tiller, Lucky Daye, Kehlani, and plenty of other amazing R&B artists. But Chris? He operates on a whole different level. Say what you want about him, but he’s put in the work, and this Grammy win just proves he’s still a major force in the industry.
“Like Drake? Is that why you’re dancing to it?
I’d really love to see SZA and Doechii, both fresh off Grammy wins, connect even more with their TDE family. SZA won Best R&B Song for Saturn—which I absolutely love—so big congrats to her! Meanwhile, Doechii took home Best Rap Album for Alligator Bites Never Heal and put on an incredible performance at the show. She’s insanely talented, and I have to give her credit for that. She works hard and deserves all the recognition coming her way. That being said, I’ll be honest—her rise doesn’t feel entirely organic. But hey, she has a strong team backing her, and I respect that.
Right after her Grammy win, she dropped a new track called Nose Bends, and… yeah. It sounds exactly like Nicki Minaj. From the flow to the accent, even the beat choices—it’s all there. Doechii has always pulled inspiration from different artists, which I’ve pointed out before. At different times, she reminds me of Nicki, Azealia Banks, Doja Cat, Bri Runway, and La 47. There’s nothing wrong with being inspired, but I just hope she doesn’t lose her own unique style. That’s what makes an artist stand out in the long run.
Now, let’s talk about the real story of the night—Kendrick Lamar. He completely swept the Grammys, winning five major awards for his Drake diss track Not Like Us. Yes, you read that right. A diss track won Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and every other category it was nominated for. He even beat Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter and Birds of a Feather by Billie Eilish—two of the biggest songs of the year. I won’t lie, I was shocked. When has a diss track ever been awarded this highly?
Listen, I love Kendrick. I’m excited for his Super Bowl performance and everything else he has coming up. But seeing a diss track get this much praise at such a corporate level? It feels… weird. Rap beefs usually stay within hip-hop culture, but now, they’re being honored like they’re Grammy-worthy art? What made it even wilder was seeing Lucian Grainge—one of the biggest execs in the music industry—celebrating Kendrick’s win alongside Dr. Dre.
If you don’t know, Drake is currently in a legal battle with Universal Music Group. He believes they pulled some shady moves to push Not Like Us and is taking legal action, basically saying the industry is out to get him. And after seeing Lucian Grainge proudly backing Kendrick? It’s starting to look like Drake might actually have a point. I know a lot of people are Team Kendrick—and I get it, he won the battle fair and square—but this feels like a calculated takedown. It reminds me a lot of what happened with Nicki Minaj. The difference? With Drake, they’re coming for him on an even bigger scale.
What really threw me off, though, was how everyone was singing along to Not Like Us at the Grammys—including other artists. Taylor Swift was in the crowd, drunk as ever, dancing like her life depended on it. And I’m just saying… one of these days, we need to have a real conversation about Taylor and her love for getting wasted at award shows. She’s always the life of the party, but sometimes, it makes me wonder if there’s more to it.
And then there was Beyoncé. She was vibing to Not Like Us too, and I couldn’t help but think, “Wait a minute… Bey? What did Drake ever do to you?” Like, he’s always shown her love. He wrote Mine for her. He co-wrote Heated. So why was she celebrating so hard? It just made everything feel even more suspicious.
And that’s when I started to realize… something bigger is going on here.
“Night Like Us” is one of those tracks that instantly gets stuck in your head. What’s even more interesting though, is how everyone, including the industry, just embraced it without hesitation. No one cared about the drama around it, even though it was a clear diss track aimed at Drake. It’s fascinating how unapologetic people were about it—almost a little messed up, but hey, it tells you something.
Then there’s Beyoncé. The night belonged to her in so many ways. She picked up three Grammys for Cowboy Carter, including Best Country Duo/Group Performance alongside Miley Cyrus for II Most Wanted. Honestly, it was well-deserved—such a standout track from the album. She also took home Best Country Album, presented by none other than Taylor Swift. And Beyoncé’s reaction? Pure shock. It was one of those “Did this really just happen?” moments. You could tell she wasn’t expecting it, and I bet she didn’t even campaign for it. But the voters spoke, and she won. That was a moment to remember.
Then came the real kicker—Beyoncé’s win for Album of the Year with Cowboy Carter. This is the big one, the most prestigious Grammy. She’d been nominated for this many times before, but never won. She’d been chasing this moment for years, and seeing her finally get it? It was huge.
And the records didn’t stop there. Beyoncé now has the most Grammy wins of any artist, with 35 trophies under her belt. She’s also the fourth Black woman to win Album of the Year, joining the ranks of Natalie Cole, Whitney Houston, and Lauryn Hill. But here’s the real shocker: the last time a Black woman took home this award was 1999! That’s a 26-year gap! And to do it with a country album? That’s groundbreaking in itself. Major props to her.
Now, I’ll be real—I don’t think Cowboy Carter should’ve been the album that got Beyoncé her AOTY win. Lemonade was the album that should’ve taken that trophy. That album was a cultural shift, a true masterpiece that was deserving of the win. In comparison, Cowboy Carter was… fine, but not as strong. Billie Eilish’s album, for instance, was so much more impactful. You could even see Billie’s reaction when Beyoncé won—she was definitely bummed out.
It feels like the Grammys gave Beyoncé this win to make up for years of snubs. After all the criticism for not recognizing her, this was kind of like their apology. Jay-Z’s speech last year calling out the Academy definitely had an influence. He pointed out that while Beyoncé had more Grammys than anyone, she’d never won the top award. That doesn’t make sense, right?
So yeah, I do think his words had an effect on the voters. And while this win might have been a long-overdue fix, Beyoncé absolutely earned it. Even if it should’ve happened for Lemonade, I’ll still take it as a victory for that album, because it was Lemonade that truly deserved Album of the Year.
Beyoncé Announces the “Cowboy Carter” Tour!
It’s official—Beyoncé’s going on tour again! But this time, there’s more behind it than just the excitement of new music. Sure, the tour will rake in the cash, but there’s also a bigger reason for it. A lot of people think she’s going back on the road because of Jay-Z’s business deal. He has a 10-year contract with Live Nation, and part of that deal involves pushing out big tours. Instead of doing it himself, he’s sending other artists like Beyoncé to bring in the revenue. And let’s be real—Beyoncé is his top money maker, so it makes sense to get her out there.
But Jay-Z isn’t just focused on Beyoncé. He’s also involved in the Kendrick and J. Cole tour, not to mention their big Super Bowl Halftime Show appearance, which was all about boosting their public profile. On top of that, Jay-Z’s got his hands in the sponsorship pot too, thanks to Cash App, which sponsors the tour. He sits on the board of Square, Cash App’s parent company, so he’s got that connection on lock.
Behind the scenes, Jay-Z’s pulling all the strings—keeping everyone busy while he sits back and collects the checks. And if you think it’s all about Beyoncé now, wait until Blue Ivy starts working. She’s going to be his backup plan once Beyoncé decides she’s had enough of the tour life. But for now, I don’t think that’s happening anytime soon—Beyoncé is too valuable to stop touring, and Jay-Z needs her out there to keep things rolling. Plus, let’s be honest, it helps keep some of the family drama out of the spotlight… but who knows what’s really going on there, right?
Anyway, what do you all think? Leave a like, comment, and share if you care! Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you next time. Bye!