Jan. 28, 2018 marked one of the most historical and controversial Grammy ceremonies so far. Bruno Mars was the night’s biggest winner, with six awards. Jay-Z, who was nominated for eight awards (most nominations of the year) and SZA, who was nominated for five categories, did not take home any awards this Grammys. With accusations of bias against women and Kendrick Lamar finally winning an award, this Grammys was one for the books.

Lamar, a Compton-based rapper, was nominated for seven awards. He opened the Grammys with a politically charged performance, rapping “XXX” off of his latest album.

“I thought his performance was really powerful,” Lamar fan Sophia Pan said.

David Chappell stood off to the side, making commentary during the song breaks. He made remarks about the oppression that the African-American population faces now. Kendrick closed his performance by listing off groups that were currently under oppression in America, and as he did, one of the background dancers fell to the ground to the sound of a gunshot.

“He used his time up on stage to shed light on problems Americans face today, he could have just shown off with his recent success,” Pan said. “He took a riskier route.”

Lamar was just the first of many political marks made on the Grammys. Lamar went on to win Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. After years of nominations for good kid, m.A.A.d city and To Pimp a Butterfly, fans all around the world were delighted to see him finally receive the recognition they had been anticipating for years.

Although Lamar’s Grammys were a first, the lack of females on the winners list was not. Music icons held white roses on the red carpet, which represented female empowerment, but were let down once again by the small number of women being recognized by the Recording Academy. Neil Portnow, Recording Academy President, said that women needed to “step up.” He was denounced for these remarks, and defended it by claiming he failed to express the true meaning of what he was trying to say.

Portnow issued a second statement at the outrage, trying to calm the public, which consisted of many people calling for his resignation.

“A new task force will review every aspect of what we do as an organization and identify where we can do more to overcome the explicit barriers and unconscious biases that impede female advancement in the music community,” Portnow said in his second statement.

Regardless of what this may mean, hundreds of thousands of angry tweets with the hashtag #GrammysSoMale flooded twitter shortly after the awards show.

Music’s biggest night brought major wins for some, and hard losses for others. The Grammys will continue to serve as one of the most anticipated award shows of the year, even as the award show continues to grow and change with the changing public.