The 67th Annual Grammy Awards took place on Sunday at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with Indian-American vocalist Chandrika Tandon emerging as a major winner. Tandon bagged the Grammy for Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant Album for her album Triveni, surpassing notable nominees such as Ricky Kej and Anoushka Shankar.
Tandon shared the prestigious honour with her collaborators—South African flautist Wouter Kellerman and Japanese cellist Eru Matsumoto. The other nominees in the category included Break of Dawn by Ricky Kej, Opus by Ryuichi Sakamoto, Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn by Anoushka Shankar, and Warriors of Light by Radhika Vekaria.
Congratulating Tandon on her win, the Consulate General of India in New York took to social media, stating, “Congratulations to Ms Chandrika Tandon @chandrikatandon on winning the Grammy Award @RecordingAcad in the Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant Album category for Triveni! A mesmerising fusion of ancient mantras, flute, and cello, Triveni bridges cultures and traditions through the universal language of music.”
While the awards ceremony celebrated musical excellence, it was not without controversy. Fans expressed outrage after legendary tabla maestro and four-time Grammy winner Zakir Hussain was excluded from the In Memoriam segment, an annual tradition honouring deceased industry legends.
Hussain, who passed away on December 15, 2024, due to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at a San Francisco hospital, was notably absent from the tribute montage. The omission did not go unnoticed, as fans and members of the music fraternity took to social media to criticise the Recording Academy for the oversight. Hussain made history at the previous Grammy Awards by becoming the first Indian musician to win three Grammys in a single year.
The 2025 Grammys' In Memoriam segment featured tributes to celebrated artists, including Liam Payne, Kris Kristofferson, Cissy Houston, Tito Jackson, Joe Chambers, Jack Jones, Mary Martin, Marianne Faithfull, Seiji Ozawa, and Ella Jenkins. British rock band Coldplay’s frontman Chris Martin, fresh off his India tour, performed the tribute alongside guitarist Grace Bowers.
Apart from the musical highlights, the evening witnessed dramatic moments. Rapper Kanye West and his wife Bianca Censori were escorted out of the venue by police for reasons that remain undisclosed. Additionally, Hollywood star Will Smith made his first televised awards show appearance since the controversial 2022 Academy Awards incident. Smith opened the tribute to Quincy Jones, introducing jazz legend Herbie Hancock, followed by a performance of Fly Me to the Moon by Cynthia Erivo.
Beyoncé finally won the coveted Album of the Year award at the 2025 Grammys after being shut out the last four times she was nominated. She entered the night with the most nominations, 11, for her album Cowboy Carter—becoming the most-nominated artist in Grammy history with 99 throughout her career. In addition to Album of the Year, she also won Best Country Album and Best Country Duo/Group Performance.
Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, Post Malone and Charli XCX received seven nominations this year, while Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan earned six nods. Lamar swept all five categories he was nominated in, winning both Record and Song of the Year. Roan was also a big winner, taking home the award for Best New Artist.
Comedian and former host of The Daily Show Trevor Noah returned to host the ceremony for a fifth straight year. Eilish, Roan, Charli XCX and Carpenter all delivered standout performances, along with a surprise appearance from The Weeknd, who ended a yearslong boycott of the award show that he once called "corrupt." Swift was not a performer this year, but she did present the award for Best Country Album to Beyoncé.
In addition to celebrating the best in music, this year's show also focused on the devastating wildfires that burned through neighbourhoods in the Los Angeles area last month, killing at least 29 people. Throughout the show, Noah reminded viewers and corporate sponsors alike to donate to relief efforts and air time was given to local business owners who lost their establishments in the fires. A group of Los Angeles County firefighters was invited on stage to present the final award of the night and got a standing ovation from the crowd.
The 2025 Grammy Awards were hosted by comedian Trevor Noah for the fifth consecutive year, maintaining his streak as the face of music’s biggest night. With a mix of triumphs and controversies, this year’s event left a lasting impact on the global music industry.
