Every performance at the 2024 Grammy Awards, ranked from worst to best

Appearing draped in darkness, Travis Scott strived to create a sense of heightened drama with his medley of “My Eyes” and “Fe!n.”Eventually illuminated by faux lightning and fireballs, Scott paced in circles, fitfully concluding his performance by smashing a stack of folding chairs, which felt less like an outburst than one last attempt to not drown in the murk of his own creation.

Broadcasting live from the Sphere, U2 played a part in the night’s biggest news—they presented the Best Pop Vocal Album award to TaylorSwift, paving the way to her announcement of the April release of her new album, The Tortured Poet’s Department—but U2 in no way felt like they were part of the program. The frenetic rendition of “Atomic City”—a single released back in September that has yet to crack the Billboard Hot100—showcased some of the vertigo-inducing overkill of the Sphere, yet the images don’t seem intoxicating at home, they just seem gaudy and perhaps a bit too desperate to dazzle.

Too many noteworthy musical figures passed in the last year, so it follows that the In Memoriam section of the Grammys occupied a significant portion of the show; there were many musicians to honor. The package started with Stevie Wonder performing a duet on his song “For Once In My Life” with a Tony Bennett preserved on video—an earnest enough gesture that Stevie easily trumped with a rendition of “The Best Is Yet To Come,” whose ebullience didn’t quite square with the mournful subject at hand. Then Annie Lennox, backed by Wendy & Lisa, Prince’s primary collaborators in the Revolution, steered the segment back toward sobriety to salute Sinead O’Connor with a version of “Nothing Compares 2 U” so stately it could support the late singer’s anti-war protest at the end of the song. Jon Batiste did an admirable job with a pair of Bill Withers songs(“Ain’t No Sunshine,” “Lean on Me”) in honor of Clarence Avant, the “Black Godfather” of the music biz, before Fantasia Barrino brought the package to a rousing conclusion with a roaring tribute to Tina Turner that conjured no small portion of the magic of the Queen of Rock & Roll.

Burna Boy hardly is an unknown, especially as far as Grammys go—he took home the trophy for Best Global Music Album in 2021, an award he lost in 2024—but the current king of Afrobeats isn’t quite a household name. That’s why he got an assist from Brandy and 21 Savage, who helped bring attention to an artist who deserves a larger audience. Burna Boy’s short performance didn’t skimp on his charisma and flair for infectious rhythms; ultimately, he didn’t need either guest to make an impression.

Dua Lipa kicked off the 64th Grammys with an old-fashioned spectacle, one filled with literal and figurative pyrotechnics. Surrounded by writhing dancers, dazzling lights, and rolling scaffolding, the neo-disco singer worked hard, striving to start the ceremony on a high note while simultaneously pushing her forthcoming album: the recent hit “Houdini” played a prominent role, as did the yet-to-be-released “Training Season.” Lipa’s desire to stop the show before it started meant that it was possible to see the singer sweat; this was not an effortless performance. That evident labor gave the medley some welcome grit, making it seem earthier than most self-styled extravaganzas.

Miley Cyrus revealed in the video package introducing her performance that “I’ve only performed this song live twice,” which is remarkable considering what a seismic hit “Flowers” was in 2023. Cyrus also claims that she’s doing the performance so she can lay back in bed and watch it on Monday, so it’s no surprise that she plays to the rafters: every move is exaggerated, her eyes bugging out, the lyrics punctuated by quips culminating with Miley’s celebratory exultation “I just won my first Grammy!” It’s a performance where Cyrus is a rockstar by way of Vegas, delivering larger-than-life gestures that work because they’re so grand and stylized—and because they’re accompanied by a song as irresistible as “Flowers.”

In some ways, SZA’s performance functioned as an answer to Dua Lipa’sfull-throttle opener: it was every bit as big a production but less eager to please. The staging for “Snooze,” the first segment of the two-part medley, took the track’s slow-burn literally: SZA performed in a back alley with fires smoldering in the dumpsters. Once the performance shifted toward “Kill Bill,” the stage lightened and expanded, finding space for dancers miming swordplay—including one bastard who ascends skyward after tangling with SZA—a direct nod to the song’s cinematic inspiration that nevertheless conveyed the track’s sense of queasy unease.

The grand finale of the 2024 Grammys was the return of Billy Joel, performing “Turn the Lights Back On,” his first new song in over 30 years. Joel’s comeback is momentous, but “Turn the Lights Back On” doesn’t feel triumphant. It’s a ballad that hails back to his days as an introspective young singer/songwriter. The key phrase in the chorus is “Did I wait too long/To turn the lights back on?” and both the song and his sinewy, stately performance find Joel answering his own question: he didn’t wait too long at all. That said, everybody involved recognized that the sturdy ballad ended the show on something of a down note, so it makes sense that he returned to close the evening with the sure-fire “You May Be Right,” sounding every bit as muscular as it did on those many nights he played it at Madison Square Garden.

Supported by her brother Finneas and a string section, Billie Eilish sang the Barbie ballad “What Was I Made For” seated next to the piano: her most dramatic movement was removing the sunglasses she sported at the start of the song. It was the quietest moment in the first hour of the Grammys which hardly means it was dull. Watching Eilish sing with such a masterly sense of control is compelling.

The crowd nearly drowns the first lines out of Tracy Chapman’s mouth as she launches into “Fast Car” with Luke Combs, the country singer who turned her 1988 single into one of the biggest hits of 2024. Combs wisely cedes the spotlight to Chapman—he stands to the side of the stage, armed with nothing but his mic stand, singing along off-mic as she drives the song forward. There’s a genuine warmth to this duet: Combs seems thrilled to be sharing the stage with his idol, while Chapman seems delighted by the palpable enthusiasm from the audience.

Let’s start at the ending: “Vampire” concluded with the backdrop behind Olivia Rodrigo starting to bleed, a deliciously over-the-top conclusion to a melodramatic masterpiece. It wasn’t the first time Rodrigo played with fake blood while onstage. As she built the tension on “Vampire,” she smeared it over her face and neck, a subtle gesture on a song that doesn’t bother with nuance. That’s a feature, not a bug: “Vampire” roils and boils, building to a cathartic release, and the crimson-clad Rodrigo teased out every bit of its overheated emotions.

Joni Mitchell’s first-ever Grammy appearance isn’t her first performance after her brain aneurysm in 2015—earlier in the day, she won the Best Folk Album for Joni Mitchell At Newport, a document of her 2022 return to the stage—but it is effectively a re-introduction to the public at large. Mitchell decided to sing “Both Sides Now,” an early song of hers turned into a standard by Judy Collins in 1968. The passing years give “Both Sides Now” a new, bittersweet dimension, especially when delivered by an 80-year-old woman who proudly wears her wisdom. Seated with a cane, Mitchell sounded strong and clear, and not much different than she did 24 years ago when she debuted this slow-burning torch arrangement on the Grammy-winning Both Sides Now album. The basic contours of the song sound similar but the feeling is deeper and richer: it’s a quiet triumph, easily the most moving moment of the night.