On Jan. 28, James Corden hosted the 60th annual Grammy Awards in Madison Square Garden, New York City. The awards highlight the best music of the previous year in many categories including best music video, best rap song, best choral performance and so on. These awards are often where top artists of the music industry compete for dominance over their genre. Big artists and productions like Kendrick Lamar, Shakira and the musical Dear Evan Hansen won grammys in their respective fields. However it is also a place for viewers and music fans to discover lesser-known genres as well as unknown artists who managed to climb to the top.

In terms of music, this years Grammys were business as usual with a few “upsets”. It was the addition of politics that drew attention to the awards even from non-music fans. Around two hours into the show, actress and songwriter Janelle Monae, during her introduction of pop star Kesha, made a statement about gender based income inequality, discrimination and sexual harassment in the industry and in society as a whole.

Many artists and producers wore white roses as a symbol of unity. These are all linked to a movement called #MeToo that started at the Golden Globes in January. This all comes at a time when powerful men, especially in the entertainment industry, are being accused of abusing their power and sexually assaulting people. Nonetheless, this trend of Hollywood activism is spreading across Hollywood and the Grammys were simply joining the mass.

Former presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton also read from a book called Fire and Fury, a book about President Donald Trump, in a skit showed at the show. No heated debate occurred but some Republicans and White House officials did not take the skit with open arms, including UN ambassador Nikki Haley, saying that it ruined the show in a tweet sent out soon after.

Largely unchanged since its inception in 1959, the Grammy Awards continues to be one of, if not the most influential awards show in the music industry. However it is in decline, losing 10 million viewers in 2018 compared to last year, or 24 percent of last year’s viewership. Only time will tell whether the Grammys continue on for another 60 years.