The music industry’s biggest night is also its most volatile—where legends are born, careers rise (or fall), and the world gets a front-row ticket to the wildest, craziest, and most jaw-dropping pop culture moments.
1. M.I.A. Performs Nine Months Pregnant
Forget getting a break—M.I.A. stormed the 2009 Grammy stage on her very due date, contractions and all, playing “Swagga Like Us” in a nude-colored polka-dot dress with Jay-Z, T.I., Lil Wayne, and Kanye West. Three days later, she had the baby, but not before giving everyone an idea of what commitment means. As she explained to the red carpet, her baby was just “getting his swagga on” (Vogue).
2. Lady Gaga Emerges from an Egg
In 2011, Lady Gaga appeared within a huge, climate-controlled egg, emerging only to sing “Born This Way.” She subsequently admitted to staying 72 hours before preparing for the performance. That’s commitment to the bit (Vogue UK).
3. Nicki Minaj’s Exorcism Routine
Nicki Minaj arrived with a pretend pope as her guest in 2012, followed by a full-scale exorcism on stage during “Roman Holiday.” The Catholic League termed it “tasteless” and “vulgar,” but Minaj dismissed it as work for a movie she was scripting (Vogue UK).
4. Jennifer Lopez’s Green Versace Dress Breaks the Internet
J.Lo’s low, jungle-print Versace dress at the 2000 Grammys was so legendary, folks crashed the internet looking for pictures. Google Image Search existed because of this one dress (Business Insider).
5. Queen Latifah Marries 34 Couples Onstage
At Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’s “Same Love” performance in 2014, Queen Latifah performed the marriages of 34 gay couples, and Madonna suddenly appeared to sing “Open Your Heart.” It was a history-making moment (Vogue).
6. Beyoncé’s Record-Breaking 2025 Wins
Beyoncé finally won Album of the Year and was the first Black woman to win Best Country Album for “Cowboy Carter.” She was so surprised, she could hardly muster up a thank-you speech, thanking God and embracing Taylor Swift, who had given her the award (The Hollywood Reporter).
7. Kanye West’s Red Carpet and Stage Antics
Kanye West and Bianca Censori shocked the 2025 red carpet when Censori shed her fur coat to expose a sheer, nude-colored minidress, leaving additional security and a unified gasp in photographers’ throats. Kanye’s past of nearly (or actually) invading the stage—such as his near-interruption of Beck in 2015—leaves everyone in suspense (The Hollywood Reporter).
8. Helen Reddy Thanks “God… She Makes Everything Possible”
In 1973, Helen Reddy accepted her Grammy for “I Am Woman” by thanking God specifically, “because She makes everything possible.” The feminist mic drop stunned the conservative audience and became a women’s liberation rallying cry (Business Insider).
9. Aretha Franklin Performs Opera for Pavarotti
When Luciano Pavarotti cancelled at the last minute in 1998, Aretha Franklin emerged to sing “Nessun Dorma”—in Italian—with no rehearsal.