Sources from Los Angeles stated that women and rap triumphed at the Grammys as female acts took home top prizes including album of the year and best new artist, and Childish Gambino made history when his hit "This Is America" became the first rap based track to win record and song of the year. Accordingly Kacey Musgraves' country pop release “Golden Hour" won album of the year, and British singer Dua Lipa won best new artist, a year after female voices were somewhat muted at the 2018 ceremony and the Grammys were criticized for the low number of female nominees.
Meanwhile the Grammys kicked off with a group of powerful women, including Michelle Obama, describing the role of music in their lives. “Music has always helped me tell my story," said Obama, who surprised the audience with her appearance. "
Earlier at the 2018 Grammys, male acts dominated in nominations, and the only woman competing for the top award, Lorde, did not get a chance to perform onstage. When recording Academy CEO Neil Portnow, who last year said women need to "step up" and later acknowledged that it, was a "poor choice of words," seemed to address his 2018 comments during Sunday's show.
