The Beyoncé Grammys Were Awkward

wo categories into last night’s Grammy Awards broadcast, Beyoncé found herself once again achieving an awkward status within the universe of the Recording Academy. For one, she was late to the ceremony—reportedly owing to traffic—and unable to collect a historic trophy. In winning Best R. & B. Song for “Cuff It,” a highlight from her 2022 album, “Renaissance,” she tied with the conductor Georg Solti for the highest number of Grammy wins. But it was a complicated achievement when considered against the backdrop of Beyoncé’s Grammys history, in which she has also been one of the Recording Academy’s most overlooked artists, racking up smaller genre-based wins yet mostly losing out in the awards’ headlining categories. When Adele won Album of the Year over Beyoncé, in 2017, there was such a sense of cosmic injustice that Adele herself could not bear the result. “I can’t possibly accept this award,” she told the crowd. “I’m very humbled . . . but my artist of my life is Beyoncé. The ‘Lemonade’ album was so monumental.”

This year, in the wake of “Renaissance,” Beyoncé’s long-awaited follow-up to “Lemonade,” the Grammys broadcast seemed intent on correcting the course, or at least distracting the viewer from it. Even if the Recording Academy voters have not always properly honored Beyoncé’s work, the show and its host, Trevor Noah, worked overtime this year to remind the audience of the Grammys’ respect for her towering greatness, and the historic nature of the evening. During his opening monologue, Noah quickly reminded the crowd of what the ceremony’s narrative would be: giving Beyoncé, who was nominated for nine awards but needed only four wins to break the record, her due. “I was so inspired by the lyrics of ‘Break My Soul’ that I actually quit my job,” he joked. When Beyoncé finally arrived at the arena, he found her at her table and personally handed her the trophy she hadn’t earlier been able to accept. “You know, when you equal a record, there’s no way you don’t get to hold your Grammy in your hand and celebrate that. The queen is officially in the building. Ladies and gentlemen, Beyoncé Knowles,” he said. She forced a grin, looking uncomfortable, while her husband, Jay-Z, chewed his food. It was almost a foregone conclusion that Beyoncé, with her nine nominations, would break Solti’s record. This was the overt story line of the evening, but the louder subtext was the question of whether the Recording Academy was finally prepared to give Beyoncé the major awards.