12 Stars Who Won Their First Grammy In 2020

Including chart-topping singers, in-demand producers and, oh yeah, the former First Lady.
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Looking through the winners at this year’s Grammys, it’s fair to say it’s been a huge one for new talent.

So many of the stars who took home awards in Sunday night’s ceremony had never done so before, with first-time winners making up a considerable portion of this year’s Grammy recipients.

Here’s a selection of the famous faces who won their very first Grammy at this year’s awards show (starting with the most obvious)...

Billie Eilish

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Kicking things off with the big one, Billie Eilish won an impressive five Grammys on Sunday night, including a clean sweep across the night’s four main categories.

Not only does this make her the youngest artist to ever manage this, she’s also only the second in history to pull it off, and the first in almost 40 years.

In addition to the “big three” and Best New Artist, the 18-year-old beat off stiff competition from Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift in the Best Pop Vocal Album category.

Finneas 

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Billie’s five wins are also matched by her brother, Finneas, her co-writer and producer on all of her music, including the entire When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? album and her upcoming James Bond theme.

However, where Billie scooped Best New Artist as a soloist, Finneas was awarded Producer Of The Year, having also worked with Selena Gomez and Camila Cabello in the last year, as well as his famous sister.

Lizzo 

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She was the most nominated artist at this year’s ceremony, and while she didn’t quite sweep the board, Lizzo still did a stellar job at her first ever Grammys.

The singer ended up taking home three awards, including Best Pop Solo Performance for Truth Hurts and Best Traditional R&B Performance for her album cut Jerome.

It was a big night for Lizzo, who also opened the show with an all-singing, all-dancing, all-flute-playing rendition of her signature tune, Truth Hurts.

Nipsey Hussle

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Sadly, although he was nominated for a Best Rap Album Grammy in his lifetime, rapper Nipsey Hussle’s two wins at the 2020 Grammys were awarded posthumously.

Nipsey died in a fatal shooting in March 2019, with a special tribute performance in his honour airing during this year’s awards show, by DJ Khaled, Meek Mill and John Legend.

DJ Khaled

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After losing out twice in 2012 and 2017, DJ Khaled finally earned his first Grammy this year, for his collaboration with John Legend and the late Nipsey Hussle, Higher.

Khaled dedicated the win to his late friend and peer, later echoing this sentiment on social media:

Lil Nas X

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After last year saw him landing the longest-running US number one single of all time, Lil Nas X is kicking off 2020 with a double win at the Grammys.

He and Billy Ray Cyrus scooped two awards for their Old Town Road remix, one in the Best Pop Duo/Group Vocal Performance category, and another for the track’s iconic music video. 

Billy Ray Cyrus

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Yes, you read that correctly, almost 30 years after Achy Breaky Heart, 2020 was the year that Billy Ray Cyrus finally won himself not one but two Grammys.

He’s now overtaken daughter Miley, who has only one Grammy nomination to her name, for which she lost out to Sam Smith back in 2015.

Tyler, The Creator 

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His Earfquake performance was undeniably one of the stand-out moments of this year’s Grammys, which also saw Tyler, The Creator scooping his first ever award.

Tyler was awarded Best Rap Album for his critically-acclaimed release, Ignor, literally leaping onto the stage to collect the Grammy, with his mum at his side.

Rosalía

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She lost out for Best New Artist to Billie Eilish, but we’re happy to report that Rosalía did not go home empty-handed in 2020.

The Spanish singer took home the Grammy for Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album, having already recently won three awards at last year’s Latin Grammys. 

Koffee

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Jamaican singer Koffee’s first win at the Grammys is also a historic one.

Not only is she the youngest ever recipient of Best Reggae Album, she’s also the only solo woman to ever receive the accolade.

Hildur Guðnadóttir 

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If the Icelandic composer’s name sounds familiar, that’s because she just won the Golden Globe for her work on the score of Joker (and looks set for another victory at the upcoming Oscars).

At the Grammys, Hildur was recognised for her contributions to the score of the TV series Chernobyl, her first win and the first win for any solo female musician in the Best Score Or Soundtrack For Visual Medium category.

Michelle Obama

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Yes, actual Michelle Obama. She won her first Grammy in the Best Spoken Word Album category, for the audiobook version of her autobiography, Becoming.

Her award will look lovely next to husband Barack Obama’s existing two Grammys, both in the same category, for his abridged audiobook readings of his two autobiographies Dreams From My Father and The Audacity Of Hope.