By Mattie Cieplak, Guest Writer

The 64th annual Grammy Awards took place in Los Vegas at MGM Grand Garden Arena on  Sunday. Hosted by Trevor Noah, the show celebrated the biggest winners in music from the past year. 

The most distinguished awards of the night are Song of the Year, Album of the Year and Record  of the Year, which each celebrate a specific work across all genres of music for its excellence.  

The Song of the Year winner is meant to capture the essence of the year in just a few minutes.  The award focuses on musical composition and is ultimately awarded to the songwriter for their work.  

This year’s nominees for Song of the Year included: 

• Ed Sheeran, “Bad Habits”
• Alicia Keys feat. Brandi Carlile, “A Beautiful Noise”
• Olivia Rodrigo, “drivers license”
• H.E.R., “Fight for You”
• Billie Eilish, “Happier Than Ever”
• Doja Cat feat. SZA, “Kiss Me More”
• Silk Sonic, “Leave The Door Open”
• Lil Nas X, “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”
• Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon, “Peaches”
• Brandi Carlile, “Right On Time” 

Olivia Rodrigo was a commonly-predicted frontrunner due to the success of her first studio album, Sour.  

Ultimately, Silk Sonic took home the award for “Leave The Door Open.” 

The Album of the Year award examines an entire album as a whole, specifically its quality and  artistry. The award goes to main artists, featured artists, songwriters, producers, recording  engineers, mixers and mastering engineers who contributed to 33% or more of the  album. 

Nominees for the 2022 Grammys for Album of the Year included: 

• Jon Batiste, WE ARE
• Tony  Bennett and Lady Gaga, Love for Sale
• Justin Bieber, Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe)
• Doja Cat, Planet Her (Deluxe)
• Billie Eilish, Happier Than Ever
• H.E.R., Back of My Mind
• Lil Nas X, Montero
• Olivia Rodrigo, Sour
• Taylor Swift, Evermore
• Kanye West, Donda

Swift won for Album of the Year at the 63rd annual Grammys, and Eilish took home the prize at the 62nd. Both faced a good chance of repeating their wins with these albums. West, due to his recent public controversy with Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson, was also a dark horse contender. Debut albums like Planet Her, Sour and Montero also took the charts by storm, leaving many reasonable contenders for this award.  

Somewhat unexpectedly, given the amount of well-known names among the nominees, the  award ended up going to Batiste for his album WE ARE. 

The Record of the Year distinguishes a single track from an album and goes to multiple people involved in one project: artists, producers and engineers who conceived a particular  recording. 

Nominees for Record of the Year included: 

• ABBA, “I Still Have Faith In You”
• Jon Batiste, “Freedom”
• Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, “I Get a Kick Out of You”
• Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon, “Peaches”
• Brandi Carlile, “Right On Time”
• Doja Cat feat. SZA, “Kiss Me More”
• Billie Eilish, “Happier Than Ever”
• Lil Nas X, “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”
• Olivia Rodrigo, “drivers license”
• Silk Sonic, “Leave The Door Open” 

Eilish won Record of the Year at the 62nd and 63rd annual Grammys, which made her a sizable frontrunner for the award this year. Lil Nas X may have faced difficulty because of the  controversy surrounding “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name).” Conversely, the well-loved Tony Bennett had a solid chance of stealing the hearts of the judges, as this awards show was his final stand as an artist. 

The award went to Silk Sonic for “Leave The Door Open.” 

A notable result of these awards was BIPOC artists taking the forefront of the music industry. Batiste was the most-nominated artist for the 2022 Grammys, with a whopping 11 nominations. Silk Sonic, at their first Grammy Awards as a duo, took home two of the three biggest awards in music.