It was a night of nostalgia and reinvention as both bands secured wins. The Beatles took home Best Rock Performance for ‘Now and Then,’ the long-awaited “final” Beatles song, pieced together using an unfinished John Lennon demo, with contributions from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and even a recording of the late George Harrison’s guitar work.

Meanwhile, The Rolling Stones claimed Best Rock Album for ‘Hackney Diamonds,’ their first album of original material in nearly two decades. The record, featuring guest appearances from Paul McCartney, Lady Gaga, and Elton John, reaffirmed the Stones’ staying power in a genre they helped define.

The resurgence of these two titans of rock wasn’t just a coincidence. The Beatles harnessed the power of AI to bring ‘Now and Then’ to life, blending the past and present in a way no one had ever quite done before. Meanwhile, The Rolling Stones embraced their blues-rock roots while pushing forward with fresh material, proving that their swagger and grit remain intact. A collaboration with Lady Gaga gave the album a tantalisingly modern twist. 

It’s rare for both bands to be celebrated at the same Grammys, let alone to win in the same night. The Beatles’ last Grammy nomination was in 1997, making this their first in 28 years. The Stones, while having been nominated 12 times, had not won a Grammy since 1995. This moment marked a reunion of sorts—not just for fans of either band but for the ongoing debate of Beatles vs. Stones that has fueled rock discourse for six decades.

Sixty years on from the peak of their rumoured rivalry, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones are still shaping the music world. Their victories at the 2025 Grammys aren’t just about nostalgia—they’re about relevance, innovation, and the lasting impact of truly great music. As Paul McCartney reminds us with his repeated warnings against AI having too much power in the music industry, the world is constantly evolving, and there is something comforting, even poetic, about seeing these legends of a simpler time back at the top, reminding us that rock and roll never dies—it just gets better with age.

The Scottish singer took to her social media channels to post a statement outlining the reasons for the termination of the tour.

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In the statement the ‘Suddenly I See’ singer related her fears to a previous incident involving hearing loss during her 2018 tour whilst thanking her fans for their continued support. Within the statement the singer also announces her unfortunate withdrawal from her US tour dates with Hall and Oats, the rescheduled tour saw the singer recruited to support legendary pop duo. The outfit responsible for such hits as ‘Maneater’ and ‘I Can’t Go for That |(No Can Do)’ will still be hitting this road this summer under the name Daryl Hall + John Oates, joined by with special guests Squeeze.

Tunstall has stated that she previously experienced hearing issues a decade prior, the artist’s left ear incurred high-frequency issues. Tunstall has stated that she then developed tinnitus, a hearing-loss condition, that includes symptoms such as ringing, roaring and humming sounds in the ears. The condition is said to affect 15-20% of people, the issue has also been described as a permanent ailment among people diagnosed.

Earlier in the year, the singer addressed her fears on the threat of hearing loss, the singer attributed her concerns to her underuse of ear protection whilst listening to loud music. The 46-year-old singer provided the following description of her relationship with live music and her subsequent issues with tinnitus. “I’d never been particularly careful about my hearing over the years, especially as a clubber through my 20s and cranking the volume up on bad monitors at my early gigs, The kicker is, I still have the tinnitus, even in a deaf ear, I’ve adapted really well and can still perform and record, but if I could do it all again, I would definitely make sure I was going for regular hearing checks from a young age.”

KT Tunstall first rose to fan with the release of her 2005 single, ‘Black Horse and the Cherry Tree’. The track landed at number 28 within the UK singles charts and was the lead single from the singer’s debut studio album, ‘Eye to the Telescope’ released in 2004, the album was later re-released under Relentless Records in 2005. The track was performed live in 2004 on the popular TV show, ‘Later… with Jools Holland’, the solo performance garnered public attention for the singer and showcased the artist’s original talents. Tunstall was soon winning awards and being nominated for various accolades, such nominations include the 2005 Mercury Prize and the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance in 2007.

Tunstall has also been nominated for various awards at the Brit award ceremonies, in 2006 the singer was nominated for the categories Best British Live Acts and BRIT Award for Best Breakthrough Act. Tunstall would go on to win multiple Brit Awards in 2006 for two categories, Best British Female Artist and the European Border Breakers Award. The multitalented singer has also worked within the film industry, Tunstall has written soundtracks for a variety of films. She has penned the score and music for such films as ‘The Kid’, the Disney sports biographical drama ‘Million Dollar Arm’ and ‘Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast’. Tunstall also wrote two pieces of music for the Blockbuster film ‘Bad Moms’, entitled ‘Band Moms (Suite)‘ and ‘Enough Is Enough (Suite)’.

Exposure to loud music is an issue in which the World Health Organisation wish to address and have provided guidance regarding prevention and care. Such precautions suggested include carefully controlled settings of volume levels on phones and other mobile devices and noise-cancelling headphones. The World Health Organisation has also suggested safety measures for live music such as wearable ear protection.

The Recording Academy said in a statement; “Over the summer we held discussions with artists, ethnomusicologists, and linguists from around the world who determined that there was an opportunity to update the best world music album category toward a more relevant, modern, and inclusive term … The change symbolises a departure from the connotations of colonialism, folk, and ‘non-American’ that the former term embodied while adapting to current listening trends and cultural evolution among the diverse communities it may represent.”

Wait this is pretty cool! The category has been renamed to “Best Global Music Album” from “World Music” https://t.co/fk4H0LTRNr

— Iman Mekonen (@childishimanino) November 3, 2020

The term “world music” originated in the UK to help market music from non-western artists in 1987. The Grammys went on to create their “Best World Music” category in 1992. In recent years it has been realised how this term isn’t appropriate with many publications deciding to not to use the phrase anymore.

This comes after many organisations decided to no longer use the term “urban”. In June, The Recording Academy decided to change the name of the “Best Urban Contemporary Album” category to “Best Progressive R&B Album” because the term was mostly used to describe music made by a black person. The Grammys still use the word urban to describe Latin awards in their category best “Latin Pop or Urban Album Award.”

In July it was reported that Spotify would no longer use the phrase to describe music made by a black artist. The playlists containing the word urban are now named based of the genre they fit into.

This appeal comes in the wake of last week’s Blackout Tuesday, a grassroots social media campaign instigated by music professionals Brianna Agyemang and Jamila Thomas that urged the industry to halt their ‘business as usual’ online presence in solidarity with the worldwide protests sparked by the death of George Floyd. Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed black man, was suffocated to death on the 25th of May whilst under arrest by several officers of the Minneapolis Police Department. 

Echoing Agyemang and Thomas’ desire to hold to account a multi-billion dollar industry “that has profited predominantly from black art”, the letter highlighted how despite the music industry having “long profited from the rich and varied culture of black people for many generations”, it nevertheless “has failed to acknowledge the structural and systematic racism affecting the very same black community”. The letter also repurposed a phrase originally spoken by American actor and DJ Amanda Seales and later quoted by radio broadcaster Clara Amfo, accusing the industry of “effectively enjoying the rhythm and ignoring the blues”.

BBC 1 Radio host Clara Amfo recently delivered a moving speech addressing how the death of George Floyd had impacted her mental health.

Another notable demand was for the words ‘urban music’ be dropped as an industry term and be replaced by ‘black music’ with immediate effect. The descriptor has long been a hotbed for controversy owing to accusations that it demarcates (and thus implicitly subordinates) the work of black artists into a separate category from their white counterparts. 

January’s 62nd Grammy Awards faced harsh criticism from its own recipients on this very issue. Tyler, the Creator, winner of 2020’s Best Rap Album, lamented that despite a nod from a major awards academy, he felt his album IGOR had been miscategorised as ‘rap’ (the album mostly comprises of sung vocals) based on the colour of his skin. “Whenever we – and I mean guys that look like me – do anything that’s genre-bending or anything, they always put it in a rap or urban category”, he said whilst backstage after accepting his award. “I don’t like that ‘urban’ word. It’s just a politically correct way to say the N-word … why can’t we just be in pop?”, he asked in frustration, presumably referencing fellow award winner Lizzo whose album Cuz I Love You was nominated for the Best Urban Contemporary Album category, rather than as an entry for Best Pop Vocal Album. 

Following in the footsteps of major label Republic Records, who on Friday announced they would no longer be using the term ‘urban’, as of today the Grammy Awards announced that they would be renaming their ‘Best Urban Contemporary Album’ category to ‘Best Progressive R&B Album’. Curiously however, ‘Best Latin Pop Album’ (a category that was mired in its own controversies this year) has also been renamed ‘Best Latin and Urban Pop Album’.

Read the full letter published online by IQ Magazine here.

One of the most exciting shows looks to be at O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 13^th May – the first tour date. Tickets will be available for general purchase at 12pm on 21^st February on SeeTickets or for pre-sale at 10am on 20^th February. The full tour dates are as follows:

13/05/2020 – O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire – London
14/05 – Academy 2 – Manchester
16/05 – O2 Academy 2 – Birmingham
17/05 – St Luke’s – Glasgow

MY DEBUT ALBUM COVER.

‘BEFORE LOVE CAME TO KILL US’
MARCH 27. pic.twitter.com/VVjbHYOFaV

— Jessie Reyez (@Jessiereyez) January 22, 2020

Besides these shows, the singer will perform at numerous festivals this summer, including both Sunday shows at Coachella – 12^th and 19^th April. Her next appearance is as a headliner at Summerfest on 27^th June as a guest to Khalid. Reyez will also have a set at Canada’s Osheaga Music and Arts Festival on 31^st July.

It is likely that a mixture of new music and previous songs can be expected, including singles ‘Love in the Dark’, ‘Crazy’, and ‘No Sweat’ from the latest album. The latter two songs have both surpassed 3 million streams on Spotify, with ‘Love in the Dark’ gaining 7 million views on YouTube for its artistic music video.

She’s previously released two EPs ‘Kiddo’ and ‘Being Human in Public’ which was nominated for a Grammy Award and won a Juno Award in her native Canada. The singer has also collaborated with the likes of Eminem, Lewis Capaldi, Normani and Kehlani. Plus she’s written a number of songs including huge hit ‘Promises’ by Calvin Harris and Sam Smith.

Jessie Reyez is a Canadian-Colombian singer and song-writer who began her career in 2014, releasing singles which she either wrote herself or collaborated on. Collaborations to date include Sam Smith, Eminem, Calvin Harris, and Lewis Capaldi. In 2017, her single ‘Figures’ premiered and peaked at number 58 on the Canadian Hot 100, going double platinum in Canada.

This was also the year when the artist first addressed sexism within the music industry, creating a short film called ‘Gatekeeper’. She based it on her experience with music producer Noel Fisher, known as ‘Detail’. The producer has been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women working in the music industry.

She has since made inspirational strides in the music industry, releasing two Eps, signing with Island Records, and appearing in the Netflix movie ‘Someone Great’. Reyez received her first Grammy nomination in 2020 for Best Urban Contemporary Album for EP ‘Being Human in Public’, though it lost to Lizzo’s ‘Cuz I Love You’.

The Grammys are set to return in January. President of The Recording Academy and Grammy Chief said in a statement about the nominations “I’m inspired by this year’s nominees and the incredible talent each possesses,” said Neil Portnow, President of the Recording Academy. “Their recordings are a true testament to how creatively alive and meaningful our music industry has become. Each nominee uses their craft to inspire, uplift, and tell stories of our world through their artistry. They provide a vibrant soundtrack that represents the highest level of excellence and continues to impact and reflect our culture.” He continued with “The beauty of our process begins and ends with the participation of music professionals,” said Bill Freimuth, Recording Academy Senior Vice President of Awards. “Our nominations reflect the expertise and passion of Recording Academy voting members.”

You can see the list of the main Grammy Award nominations below:

Record Of The Year:

Redbone — Childish Gambino

The Story Of O.J.’— JAY-Z

HUMBLE. — Kendrick Lamar

The MC won awards for Best New Artist, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Album, finding success in three of the seven awards he was nominated for. Chance also performed at the ceremony in LA, playing a medley of songs from his highly acclaimed third mixtape Coloring Book. Backed by a full gospel choir, Chance played the tracks  ‘How Great’, ‘All We Got’, as well as snippets of ‘Blessings’ and hit single ‘No Problem.

Did you guys catch @chancetherapper with @kirkfranklin and @DAVIDANDTAMELA? #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/Biv6UNcWW4

— Rightway Management (@rwmsgroup) February 13, 2017

Chance gave an impassioned speech upon receiving the award for Best New Artist, “I claim this victory in the name of the lord. I thank God for my mother and my father who have supported me since I was young,” Chance said. “And for all of Chicago.”

Elsewhere at the Grammys, Daft Punk performed a duet with The Weeknd, playing their song ‘I Feel it Coming’. Tributes were also paid to fallen artists, with Bruno Mars saluting Prince, purple suit and all, whilst Adele insisting on restarting her emotional dedication to George Michael, saying “I’m sorry, I can’t mess this up for him.’

There were also a spate of performances taking a stand against President Trump, in the shape of Katy Perry’s rendition of her new song ‘Chained to the Rhythm, whilst Busta Rhymes raised a few eyebrows when referring to Trump as ” President Agent Orange” during his performance with A Tribe Called Quest.

The singer’s music has been absent from most streaming sites for nearly two years, and was only available on Jay-Z’s site Tidal. However, the exclusivity deal that Tidal have in place is due to expire in February, around the time of the Grammys, and Billboard reports that Prince’s estate are close to agreeing a deal to reinstate his music to sites like Spotify. Indeed, it is thought that the Grammys themselves may be used as a platform to make the announcement, coupled with the ceremony’s tribute to Prince. Sources close to billboard report that so far The Weeknd, Rihanna, and Bruno Mars have been approached to perform during the tribute to the Purple one.

Amid the speculation that these reports have caused, Spotfiy themselves has stoked the rumours, by releasing an all purple advert, clearly alluding to Prince, in Manhattan today, as seen in the tweet below.

Do these purple Spotify ads mean what everyone thinks they mean? (That would be, Prince). https://t.co/lfF8JYp1v0 pic.twitter.com/kcqNLqaY6H

— GoMN (@GoMNNews) January 30, 2017

As well as this, Pitchfork and their sources also report that Prince’s estate could well allow his music to return to Apple’s services “very soon”. In November, it was confirmed that Prince’s estate had cleared the way for a potential return to streaming services, when they signed a deal with Universal music, for the singer’s entire catalogue.