Watch highlights from the 2025 GRAMMYs on live.GRAMMY.com.
The 2025 GRAMMYs telecast was reimagined to raise funds to support those impacted by the wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area. The Recording Academy and MusiCares launched a dedicated campaign to support affected music professionals, and we need your help. Donate now.
With awe-inspiring performances and incredible cultural moments, the 2025 GRAMMYs delivered an unforgettable experience for millions of music fans. The show generated 102.2 million social media interactions, the highest traffic ever recorded for a TV broadcast. Even critics came away impressed, with Variety calling the show “the best in years.”
Beyond reviews and ratings, however, the show proved that the Recording Academy‘s work in advancing and evolving the music industry has paid off. Diversity initiatives, a more equitable voting process, and support for upcoming and established artists prove that the organization is in healthy hands.
Below, revisit the ways that Music’s Biggest Night showed just how bright the Recording Academy’s future will be.
Helping Communities In Need
Amid the sorrow and devastation caused by the Los Angeles wildfires, the GRAMMYs became a celebration of the city and a rallying point for assistance, not just for the music world but for the entire L.A. community at large. As performers such as Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Dawes, and Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga celebrated SoCal through music, and Kendrick Lamar, one of its proudest native sons, took home five GRAMMYs, including Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year, the awards moments and powerful acceptance speeches further amplified the charitable appeals and support for victims. They also gave visibility to the important work being done year-round by MusiCares, the largest U.S. nonprofit devoted to the overall health and well-being of the music community, and other Academy affiliates.
That experience made the GRAMMY weekend campaign even more effective. With plenty of opportunities to donate offered throughout the lead-up to GRAMMY Sunday and during the ceremony itself, the Academy and MusiCares raised more than $24 million for wildfire relief through its MusiCares Fire Relief initiative; almost $9 million of that was raised on GRAMMY Sunday alone. The Academy also gave airtime to local small businesses impacted by the fires, letting the likes of Paliskates, Two Dragons Martial Arts Studio, Rhythm of the Village, Lost Stuffy Project, and Orla Floral Studio advertise during the ceremony — further using the GRAMMYs’ global platform to support those in need.
On Jan. 31, two days before the telecast, MusiCares hosted its annual Persons of the Year gala, celebrating the creative and philanthropic work of the Grateful Dead while raising a record amount of money.
“MusiCares partnering with the GRAMMYs gave us an incredible platform to reinforce our 35-year mission to help the humans behind music because music gives so much to the world. Due to the extraordinary need following the L.A. area wildfires, the MusiCares Fire Relief effort also raised funds and awareness for California Community Foundation, Direct Relief and Pasadena Community Foundation. Together, our organizations will help all impacted communities,” MusiCares Executive Director Laura Segura told GRAMMY.com.
“The record-breaking generosity at MusiCares’ Persons of the Year, Clive Davis’ & Recording Academy’s Pre-GRAMMY Fundraising Event and the GRAMMYs telecast is a testament to the compassion of the music industry and the impact we can make together,” she added. “We’re grateful for the opportunity to continue expanding awareness so that even more music professionals know we are here for them — now and always.”
In addition to fundraising efforts, the Recording Academy partnered with Musically Fed, a nonprofit organization that works with music industry organizations to donate unused backstage meals to community organizations supporting those in need, to deliver hundreds of meals to organizations including Van Ness Recovery House, Hawks Transitional Housing for Women & Children, Midnight Mission, and LA Rescue Mission. The meals, repurposed from various 2025 GRAMMY Week events, including the Clive Davis’ & the Recording Academy’s Pre-GRAMMY Fundraising Event, the annual Premiere Ceremony, and the 2025 GRAMMYs telecast, went to those facing homelessness, hunger, and food insecurity, including direct food donations to those impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires. The Academy also supported a domestic violence shelter for women and children fleeing abusive households.
Inviting More Voters & More Perspectives
“As selected by the 13,000 Voting Members of the Recording Academy…” may have been the most common refrain heard during the GRAMMYs ceremony. It’s a sentence that reflects the real gains made in making the GRAMMYs more reflective of the entire music community; those 13,000 Voting Members, a body composed of artists, songwriters, producers, engineers, and other music creatives across a wide swathe of genres and disciplines, are the ones selecting GRAMMY nominees and GRAMMY winners.
Today, 66 percent of the GRAMMYs voting electorate is new since the Recording Academy advanced its new membership model in 2019. More than 3,000 of those Voting Members are women, surpassing goals set by the Academy to add 2,500 women Voting Members by 2025. And 38 percent of the Academy’s voting body identifies as people of color, a 65 percent increase since 2019.
“I’m incredibly proud of the strides the Recording Academy has made in diversifying its membership over the last few years,” Kelley Purcell, Vice President of Membership & Industry Relations for the Recording Academy, said in an interview with GRAMMY.com. “With more women, more people of color, and a broad representation of diverse genres and crafts, it’s the most diverse and representative GRAMMY electorate ever.”
The Academy’s recent efforts in diversifying its membership helped restore its relationship with four-time GRAMMY winner The Weeknd, who returned to the GRAMMY stage following a nearly four-year boycott to deliver a surprise performance. The artist had demanded “transparency” for himself and his fans after a shocking nominations shutout in 2020, and as Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. detailed before The Weeknd’s appearance, the organization listened.
“Criticism is ok,” Mason jr. said. “I heard him. I felt his conviction. What we all want is an organization dedicated to the well-being of all music makers, and one that reflects the entire music community, for now and for future generations.”
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Standing Behind Diversity
Along with making its membership more diverse and inclusive, the Academy has recognized the need to strengthen and defend the gains made through its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Alicia Keys said it best in her acceptance speech for the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, presented by the Black Music Collective.
“This is not the time to shut down the diversity of voices,” she said. “We’ve seen on this stage talented, hard-working people from different backgrounds, with different points of view, and it changes the game. DEI is not a threat, it’s a gift — and the more voices, the more powerful the sound.”
The Recording Academy proudly trumpeted its diversity initiatives on Music’s Biggest Night, with Harvey Mason jr. shouting out Women in the Mix, Academy Proud and the Black Music Collective in his speech. These initiatives are only expanding: In August 2024, the Academy unveiled RAA+D (Recording Academy Accessibility + Disability), ensuring that disabled music makers are given all the support and resources they need to participate fully in the music community. In November, the Academy also launched its Indigenous Peoples Network, dedicated to preserving and boosting Indigenous musical practices and presences in the music community.
These are all networks that are being worked on under the umbrella of the DEI team’s “Diversity Reimagined by Engaging All Music Makers” (DREAM) initiative, which also houses Gold Music Alliance, a network for the Pan-Asian music community, and others to be launched soon.
“True diversity, equity and inclusion are not just ideals but actions — continuous efforts to ensure every voice is heard, every individual is valued, and every opportunity is accessible,” Ricky Lyon, Director of DEI at the Academy, told GRAMMY.com. “The Recording Academy aims to ensure we are representative of the music industry and our efforts will continue to grow with more opportunities for the underserved.”
Making Music Heard In The Halls Of Power
The Academy also used the platform of the GRAMMYs to reach out to lawmakers to ensure the music community has a voice in the nation’s capital. The Recording Academy’s Advocacy arm hosted over a dozen lawmakers from across the country to experience GRAMMY Week in order to educate them about the music community’s importance to our country and how the GRAMMYs can act as a force for positive change.
Academy members such as singer/songwriter Maggie Rose and two-time GRAMMY-winning producer Giles Martin met with members of Congress at briefing sessions held at the GRAMMY Museum, where they discussed issues such as the ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI) in music and the HITS Act. Lawmakers were also briefed on the work MusiCares and the Academy have been doing to support fire relief in Los Angeles. And on GRAMMY Sunday, they were given a behind-the-scenes look at the final preparations for the GRAMMYs telecast.
Supporting The Next Generation Of Industry Players
The past year saw the emergence of a trio of major female pop stars at the highest levels of the music industry — Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Charli xcx — and all three performed and received awards at the 2025 GRAMMYs. It should be emphasized that none of the three are overnight successes; each of them spent years developing their craft and honing their talents. Roan even emphasized her struggles after being dropped from her former record label in her acceptance speech, saying “It was so devastating to feel so committed to my art and feel so betrayed by the system.”
Proud Tampa native Doechii also became part of rap history on the telecast, with her Best Rap Album win marking the third time in GRAMMY history that a female artist has won in the Category. Her inspirational speech — as well as her dynamic performance that was praised as one of the night’s best — was a testament to the remarkable crop of fresh talent that was honored with this year’s nominations.
Of course, awards are only a part of the Academy’s efforts to shape the music industry’s next generation. During GRAMMY Week, GRAMMY U, the Academy’s program for emerging music industry professionals and creatives pursuing careers in music, helped 14 GRAMMY U Representatives and over 150 GRAMMY U Members be part of the events both as attendees and support behind the scenes.
Several new experiences were offered for GRAMMY U this year: 2 Representatives worked as press on the Persons of the Year Gala red carpet; 55 Members attended the Clive Davis’ & Recording Academy’s Pre-GRAMMY Fundraising Event (sponsored by Mastercard); 2 Members worked the Premiere Ceremony as front of house support; all 14 Representatives worked as talent escorts on the GRAMMYs red carpet; and 98 Members had the opportunity to attend the telecast.
These initiatives gave unprecedented access and opportunity to young and aspiring music professionals like never before. From artists on stage to the crew behind the curtains, the Recording Academy continues to ensure that the industry’s next generation is well-prepared to inspire and excel — helping the organization do the same from the GRAMMYs stage and beyond.
