The 2025Grammy Awardswas a great year for performances. From Billie Eilish to Doechii, there were an array of genres packed into the night. While the night’s biggest stars, like Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, didn’t perform, they were caught on camera dancing the night away in the audience. Many of the performances even acted as a tribute to the recent California fires. The show’s host, Trevor Noah, heavily emphasized the fires throughout the night, regularly asking for donations. The Grammys even invited the Los Angeles Fire Department to present the Album of The Year award.
It was alsoa big night for debut performances, because 2024 was the year for breakout stars. Singers likeSabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, and Charli XCX have worked in the music industry for years but only received recognition last year. Their excitement about finally being at the Grammys radiated throughout the room. However, there were some stars who had performed at the Grammys before and were happy to return. Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, and The Weeknd brought equal excitement into the room. One thing’s for sure: this was one of my favorite years for performances in Grammy history.
11Dawes: “I Love LA”
The Rock Band Opened The Grammys
To open the special tribute show, Dawes was joined by John Legend, Sheryl Crow, Brad Paisley, Brittany Howard, and St. Vincent. The group sang a cover of Randy Newman’s “I Love LA,” which brought a joyful beginning to an unforgettable show. Despite the fires' horrifying effects,the group raised the energy, reminding everyone, myself included, that Los Angeles is resilient and will rebuild. The performance showcased how much these musicians love the city that made their dreams come true and how devoted they are to seeing LA shine again. Still, it’s hard to stand against the show’s other performances.
10Billie Eilish: “Birds Of A Feather”
Eilish Honored Her Hometown
After the special Los Angeles tribute, Billie Eilish was the first performer of the night. The singer performed her hit “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” alongside her brother Finneas. The performance was set in a wilderness background, honoring the beauty of California, where the two grew up. The screens behind Eilish also flashed a few childhood photos,showcasing Eilish’s deep love and connection to the city. It was a beautiful tribute and a soothing way to kick off the show. The theatrics of other performances, however, made them stand out more than this one.
9The Weeknd: “Cry For Me” & “Timeless”
The Weeknd Ended His Grammys Boycott
In 2021, The Weeknd felt he was snubbed for his lack of Grammy nominations. To bring attention to the lack of diversity, the singer boycotted all future shows. However, he made his long-awaited return this year after the Recording Academy made much-needed changes to its administration. Before his performance, Harvey Mason Jr., the CEO of the Recording Academy, explained the changes that were made formore inclusivity in the nominations and wins. The singer performed “Cry for Me” and “Timeless” from his recent albumHurry Up Tomorrow.Rapper Playboi Carti joined him on stage for the latter song.
8Chris Martin: “All My Love”
Martin Paid Tribute To The Artists Who Passed Away In 2024
Chris Martin led this year’s “In Memoriam” performance with a heart-wrenching rendition of Coldplay’s “All My Love.” An orchestra joined Martin on stage and began the sorrowful tribute with a video montage of late One Direction singer Liam Payne. The boy band member’s 2024 death shocked and devastated fans around the world.
I felt the deep emotion through Martin’s vocalsas the screen behind him showed everyone the industry lost in 2024. Kris Kristofferson, Cissy Houston, and Tito Jackson were also among the artists honored in the beautiful performance. Martin did an outstanding job reminding viewers of how many icons had passed away in the last year. Even if other performances still managed to outshine this one, its significance isn’t diminished in the slightest.
7Shakira: “Ojos Asi” & “Bzrp Music Sessions Vol 53”
Shakira Returned To The Grammys Stage After 18 Years
Shakira has been bringingrepresentation of Latin music to the industry for over 30 years, and she continued the tradition at the 2025 Grammys. Shakira sang two songs off her nominated albumLas Mujeres Ya No Lloran.She performed"Ojos Asi" and “Bzrp Music Sessions Vol 53” dressed in gold, doing her signature belly dancing before a group of dancers joined her for further choreography. Her performance was met with a standing ovation from stars like Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and Beyoncé. It was classic Shakira, but other more inventive performances managed to shine just a bit brighter.
6Charli XCX: “Von Dutch” & “Guess”
Charli XCX Turned The Grammys Brat
Charli XCX is an outlier amongst other Grammy artists, as her dance-club music style hasn’t always been taken seriously in the industry. However, this year, the UK-born singer made herself seen and heard by the Recording Academy. The singer started her performance backstage before moving into the arena with her hits “Von Dutch” and “Guess.“Charli XCX had the entire crowd up on their feetas strobes blared into the audience and her 2024 summer-defining music blasted through the venue. TheBratsinger also took home two Grammys for the first time, proving her decade of hard work paid off.
5Bruno Mars & Lady Gaga: “California Dreamin'”
Mars & Gaga Covered A Classic Folk Song
Lady Gaga and Bruno Marstopped the charts this year with their collaboration “Die With A Smile.“The pair even took home Best Pop Duo Performance for the song. However, they chose to do a rendition of “California Dreamin'” by The Mamas & the Papas for their performance in honor of the recent fires. The two crooned through the folk song with impressive vocals for a heartwarming tribute to the city that makes dreams come true.
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I could feel their deep appreciation for Los Angeles throughout their performance, which made it one of the most powerful of the night. The pair also proved themselves a powerful duo that could likely succeed together again in the future. This certainly helped to make it one of the best performances of the entire show, too, behind only a handful of others.
4The Quincy Jones Tribute
Artists United To Honor The Music Industry Legend
When Quincy Jones passed away on November 4th, 2024, it was a major loss to the music industry and fans worldwide.Jones was a mastermind producerwho worked with legends like Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson. I was a fan of so many of the songs he produced throughout his career, so his passing had a tremendous impact. It would have been a shame not to include a tribute to him at the 2025 Grammy Awards. Luckily, the Recording Academy pulled together some incredibly talented performers to honor the industry legend.
Cynthia Erivo, Herbie Hancock, Lainey Wilson, Stevie Wonder, and Janelle Monáe banded together to pull off a heartwarming performance. While Erivo sang a beautiful cover of Sinatra’s “Fly Me To The Moon,“Wonder reminded everyone of the powerful anthem “We Are The World,“which felt extra special in today’s climate. Wonder was even backed by a choir of students who recently lost their schools in the LA fires.
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Wilson contributed her vocals and outgoing stage presence to a cover of Ray Charles' “Let The Good Times Roll” with Grammy nominee Jacob Collier on the piano. To complete the tribute, Monáe moonwalked across the stage andbrought the crowd to their feet for a rendition of Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.“I felt moved by each performance as the singers put their all into honoring the music industry legend.
3Chappell Roan: “Pink Pony Club”
Roan Made Her Grammys Debut
WhenChappell Roantook over the music scene in 2024, it seemed as if she were an overnight success. However, the singer had actually been working for years in the industry before having her big break.Roan had many hits last year, with “Hot to Go!” and “Good Luck, Babe” blowing up. However, for the Grammys, she chose to honor Los Angeles with “Pink Pony Club.” As a big Chappell Roan fan, her performance was one of the few that I was most excited about, and the singer did not disappoint.
Roan combined the atmosphere of a West Hollywood drag club with her Midwestern roots as, in the song, she sings of leaving Tennessee for LA. The Grammy winner started her performance on a large pink horse before making her way around the stage, surrounded by backup dancers dressed as cowboy and cowgirl clowns. However, the highlight of the singer’s performance was after the bridge whenshe held her microphone out to the audience for them to singthe chorus. This is something Roan regularly does when she performs the song at music festivals.
It’s a special part of the song, because there’s a popular video of Roan singing “Pink Pony Club” in public with just her keyboard. Going from singing alone in the park to singing for hundreds of thousands of people and now to the biggest stars in the music industry is surreal.It’s a testament to Chappell Roan’s hard workand dedication to making her dreams come true. I felt inspired watching the performance and understood just how special Los Angeles is.
2Best New Artist Medley
The Grammys’ New Format Worked Well
The Grammys tried something new this year for their best new artist’s performances, and it worked quite well. In order to make room for all the nominees to perform, they cut out a slot where each artist performed part of their biggest hit one after the other.It was a great way to get the artists seen and entertain the crowdwithout overwhelming everyone with too many performances. While Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan had big enough years to do individual performances, Benson Boone, Doechii, Khruangbin, Raye, Shaboozey, and Teddy Swims all took advantage of the new format.
The sequence kicked off with a soft-rock rendition of Khruangbin’s song “May Ninth” before Benson Boone began his performance from the audience. Starting off in a suit, model Heidi Klum and comedian Nikki Glaser helped Boone rip it off, revealing a sparkly light blue bodysuit. He made his way to the stage singing “Beautiful Things,” doing his signature flip off the piano. Immediately after,Doechii blew the audience away with a choreography-heavy performanceof “Catfish” and “Denial Is A River,” proving why she was the perfect winner for Best Rap Album.
While I don’t listen to much rap music, I was impressed by the production of Doechii’s performance and her magnetic stage presence. It felt like a number out of a Broadway show and was even jokingly compared toMatilda the Musicalon social media. Next,Teddy Swims brought a rock edge with “Lose Control,“and Shaboozey brought country twang with “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”. Raye closed out the segment with a powerful vocal performance of her song “Oscar Winning Tears.” The impressive variety-style performance is something the Recording Academy should consider continuing in the future.
