In a disappointing yet unsurprising feat, Harry Styles’ “Harry’s House” won the Album of the Year Grammy over Beyoncé’s “Renaissance.”
This year, the former One Direction member earned six Grammy nominations: Record of The Year, Song of The Year, Best Music Video and Best Pop Solo Performance for his hit single “As It Was,” as well as Best Pop Vocal Album and Album of The Year for “Harry’s House.”
Aside from Styles and Beyoncé, Bad Bunny, Adele, Lizzo, ABBA, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, Brandi Carlile and Coldplay were also up for the Album of the Year award.
After performing “As It Was” on the Grammys stage earlier Sunday, Styles gave a brief acceptance speech, in utter shock like many of us were.
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Stating that he’s inspired by many artists in the category, he said, “There’s no such thing as best in music … This doesn’t happen to people like me very often.”
Styles is a nine-time Grammy nominee. Before Sunday’s award ceremony, the singer had one win under his belt: Best Pop Solo Performance for his single “Watermelon Sugar” in 2021. “Harry’s House” is the third studio album by Styles.
Many fans saw Styles’ win as yet another instance of the Recording Academy unduly praising a white artist who maintained the status quo, citing Adele’s “25” winning over Beyoncé’s “Formation” in 2017. While “Harries” were elated online, many saw this as a slap in the face to Beyoncé and Black artists.