"The Dionysian spirit of rock is alive tonight!" actor/comedian Russell Brand announced from the stage of the glitzed-up, guitar-filled Los Angeles Convention Center last night. In true rock fashion he, as the evening's host, wore a black silk kimono and kept his voice loud and presence commanding. The order of the night was honoring four-time GRAMMY-winning rock and roll icons Aerosmith as MusiCares 2020 Person Of The Year, for both their indelible contributions to music and culture, but also in their activism—as artists in recovery and with efforts like Janie's Fund.

The exclusive gala, being held in the band's honor for this 30th-anniversary event, helped raise a lot of money for the philanthropic work of MusiCares and was filled with killer renditions of Aerosmith's endless classics by Alice Cooper, Gary Clark Jr., Yola, Melissa Etheridge, H.E.R., John Legend, Cheap Trick, the Jonas Brothers, Kesha and more. After the stellar concert, which was interspersed with footage of Aerosmith over the years and past POTY performances, the whole band was presented with their awards. Finally, the very special honorees were ready to "let the music do the talking," as Steven Tyler put it, with an epic four-song performance featuring some special guests.

While the rockin' essence of the band was felt in every powerhouse performance, everyone, especially Brand (his excitement over Tyler's signature scarf-tied mic stand was real and relatable), the anticipation for Aerosmith's set was felt by all. Read—and dream—on to find out exactly who played what. Our behind-the-scenes videos above (inside the event) and below (on the red carpet) may also get you "Cryin'."

Also, on hand for the occasion were Recording Academy Chair Emeritus Christine Albert and Vice Chair Tammy Hurt spoke to the heart of MusiCares.

In total, there were 13 performances leading up to the very special headline moment. To kick things off, fellow classic rockers Cheap Trick performed "Rats In The Cellar," from 1976's Rocks. The black-and-white suit-wearing Jonas Brothers followed up with a performance of the GRAMMY-winning classic "Crazy." After that came current GRAMMY nominees Emily King and Luis Fonsi, who gave a powerful duet of "Angel."

Tomorrow: Lizzo, Billie Eilish, Aerosmith, Gwen Stefani And Blake Shelton To Perform At The 2020 GRAMMYs

For the fourth number, GRAMMY-nominated country queen Ashley McBryde rocked a killer take of "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" wearing a scarf-fringed leather jacket as a nod to Tyler. Before, on the red carpet, McBryde revealed she'd "been nervous all week…knowing it's for them." On stage, she oozed rock star confidence.

Fifth up was Gavin DeGraw, who started out singing 1989's "What It Takes" at the piano, but revved it up at the end as he strutted his way off the stage, offering high fives as he made his way through the audience. In a perfectly executed surprise collab moment, DeGraw found his way to Tyler's table, who offered an epic dose of "YEAHS!" to the song.

Kesha followed up that powerful performance with one of her own, singing "Janie's Got A Gun" accompanied by a string section from a second stage in the middle of the room. The 1989 song was the band's first to earn them a GRAMMY win and, as it discussed abuse, was their first socially charged anthem. Wearing a fierce black patent leather trench coat and dark locks, Kesha's power rippled through the room.

Next, first-time GRAMMY nominee Yola, accompanied by fellow 2020 nominee Gary Clark Jr. on epic electric guitar duties, belted a rendition of "Cryin'" that almost had Tyler in tears. His look of joy and amazement during the performance was definitely reflected in the rest of the audience. For the eighth act, LeeAnn Rimes, like Yola, brought gorgeously sequined, powerhouse female energy to Aerosmith's music, in the form of "Livin' On The Edge."

Read: Meet The First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: The Magnificent, Magnetic Maluma

Always a treat to witness live, soulful GRAMMY winner John Legend held the audience captive as he sang "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" at the piano. "It's a lot of pressure going after John Legend, seriously," Jessie J laughed, midway through her gorgeous rendition of "Home Tonight." She slayed her performance, though, and turned heads in a liquid-silver starlet dress. Following the two power-ballads, GRAMMY winner Melissa Etheridge and past nominee Nuno Bettencourt brought the rock meter back up high with "Walk This Way."

The 12th act was led by Sammy Hagar with Orianthi on guitar, who performed 1976's "Back In The Saddle." Last but not least of the epic performances were Foo Fighters, who rocked us hard with two songs, "Let The Music Do The Talking" and "Toys In The Attic," complete with Dave Grohl offering some epic screeches. "I don't know how Steven screams like that for more than one song," Grohl mused.

After a kind word from entertainment lawyer Dina LaPolt (who is Tyler's longtime attorney and helped pass the Music Modernization Act), the men of the hour finally took the stage to accept their awards. After brief thank yous and big smiles, it was finally time for Aerosmith to sing their music. They opened with "Big Ten Inch Record," their cover of Bull Moose Jackson from Toys In The Attic. In epic rock star fashion, Tyler asked for a piano and, in a few seconds, out came a grand piano as the band began to play those emotive chords of "Dream On." Shortly after the piano appeared, 2019 GRAMMY-winning guitar hero H.E.R. emerged for a truly epic duet with Tyler.

While that would've been an amazing place to end, the rock gods had a few more surprises left in store for the lucky audience. Tyler requested the audience—everyone had been seated at assigned tables—to move to the front. As the crowd got up close, he took off his long white jacket and let his dance moves free for "Sweet Emotion." For the very final song of the evening, "Same Old Song And Dance," the band was joined by fellow longtime rock icon Alice Cooper along with Hollywood Vampires bandmate Johnny Depp.

Don't forget to tune into the very big finale of the 2020 GRAMMY Week—the 62nd GRAMMY Awards tomorrow, Sun. Jan. 26 at 5 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. ET on CBS. Stay backstage with us here at GRAMMY.com, where you can learn more about all the winners, watch acceptance speeches and select performances and tune into the Red Carpet and Premiere Ceremony live streams prior to the show.

Sing For The Years: A Look Back At Aerosmith's Decades-Long Rock Legacy

Stevie Wonder once said "you can’t base your life on people’s expectations." It’s something guitarist and singer Gary Clark, Jr. has taken to heart as he’s built his own career. 

"You’ve got to find your own thing," Clark tells GRAMMY.com.

Clark recently duetted with Wonder on "What About The Children," a song on his forthcoming album. Out March 22, JPEG RAW sees Clark continue to evolve with a mixtape-like kaleidoscope of sounds.

Over the years, Clark has ventured into rock, R&B, hip-hop blues, soul, and country. JPEG RAW is the next step in Clark's eclectic sound and sensibility, the result of a free-flowing jam session held during COVID-19 lockdown. Clark and his bandmates found freedom in not having a set path, adding elements of traditional African music and chants, electronic music, and jazz into the milieu.

"We just kind of took it upon ourselves to find our own way and inspire ourselves," says Clark, a four-time GRAMMY winner. "And that was just putting our heads together and making music that we collectively felt was good and we liked, music we wanted to listen to again."

The creation process was simultaneously freeing and scary.

"It was a little of the unknown and then a sense of hope, but also after there was acceptance and then it was freeing. I was like, all right, well, I guess we’re just doing this," Clark recalls. "It was an emotional, mental rollercoaster at that time, but it was great to have these guys to navigate through it and create something in the midst of it."

JPEG RAW is also deeply personal, with lyrics reflecting on the future for Clark himself, his family, and others around the globe. While Clark has long reflected on political and social uncertainties, his new release widens the lens. Songs like "Habits" examine a universal humanity in his desire to avoid bad habits, while "Maktub" details life's common struggles and hopes. 

Clark and his band were aided in their pursuit by longtime collaborator and co-producer Jacob Sciba and a wide array of collaborators. Clark’s prolific streak of collaborations continued, with the album also featuring funk master George Clinton, electronic R&B/alt-pop artist Naala, session trumpeter Keyon Harrold, and Clark’s sisters Shanan, Shawn, and Savannah. He also sampled songs by Thelonious Monk and Sonny Boy Williamson.

Clark has also remained busy as an actor (he played American blues legend Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis) and as a music ambassador (he was the Music Director for the 23rd Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor).

GRAMMY.com recently caught up with Clark, who will kick off his U.S. tour May 8, about his inspirations for JPEG RAW, collaborating with legendary musicians, and how creating music for a film helped give him a boost of confidence in the studio. 

This interview has been edited for clarity.

You incorporated traditional African music on JPEG RAW. How did it affect your songwriting process?

Well, I think traveling is how it affected my songwriting process. I was over in London, and we played a show with Songhoy Blues, and I was immediately influenced. I was like, "dang, these are my musical brothers from all the way across the world." 

I always kind of listened to West African funk and all that kind of stuff. So, I was just listening to that in the studio, and just kind of started messing around with the thing. And that just kind of evolved from there. I was later told by Jacob Sciba that he was playing that music trying to brainwash me into leaning more in that direction. I thought we were just genuinely having a good time exploring music together, and he was trying to manipulate me. [Laughs.]

I quit caring about what people thought about me wanting to be a certain thing. I think that being compared to Jimi Hendrix is a blessing and a curse for me because I'm not that. I will never be that. I never wanted to imitate or copy that, no disrespect. 

You’ve got to find your own thing. And my own thing is incorporating all the styles of music that I love, that I grew up on, and [was] influenced by as a pre-teen/teenager. To stay in one space and just be content doing that has never been my personality ever…I do what I like.

I read that you play trumpet at home and also have a set of bagpipes, just in case the mood strikes. 

I used to go collect instruments and old cameras from thrift stores and vintage shops and flea markets. So, I saw some bagpipes and I just picked them up. I've got a couple of violins. I don't play well at all — if you could consider that even playing. I've got trumpet, saxophone, flutes, all kinds of stuff just in case I can use these instruments in a way that'll make me think differently about music. It'll inspire me to go in a different direction that I've maybe never explored before, or I can translate some of that into playing guitar. 

One of my favorite guitarists, Albert Collins, was really inspired by horn players. So, if you can understand that and apply that to your number one instrument, maybe it could affect you. 

Given recent discussions about advancements in AI and our general inundation with technology, the title of your album is very relevant. What about people seeing life through that filter concerns you? Why does the descriptor seem apt?

During the pandemic, since I wasn't out in the world, I was on my phone and the information I was getting was through whatever social media platforms and what was going on in certain news outlets, all the news outlets. I'm just paying attention and I'm just like, man, there's devastation. 

I realized that I don't have to let it affect me. Just because things are accessible doesn't mean that you need to [access them].  It just made me think that I needed to do less of this and more of being appreciative of my world that's right in front of me, because right now it is really beautiful.

You’ve said the album plays out like a film, with a wide range of emotions throughout. What was it like seeing the album have that film-like quality?

I had conversations with the band, and I'd expressed to them that I want to be able to see it. I want to be able to see it on film, not just hear it. Keyboardist Jon Deas is great with [creating a] sonic palate and serving a mood along with [Eric] "King" Zapata who plays [rhythm] guitar. What he does with the guitar, it serves up a mood to you. You automatically see a color, you see a set design or something, and I just said, "Let's explore that. Let's make these things as dense as possible. Let's go like Hans Zimmer meets John Lee Hooker. Let's just make big songs that kind of tell some sort of a story." 

Also, we were stuck to our own devices, so we had to use our imagination. There was time, there was no schedule. So, we were free, open space, blank canvas.

The album opens with "Maktub," which is the Arabic word for fate or destiny. How has looking at different traditions given you added clarity with looking at what's happening here in the U.S.?

I was sitting in the studio with Jacob Sciba and my friend Sama'an Ashrawi and we were talking about the history of the blues. And then we started talking about the real history of the blues, not just in its American form, in an evolution back to Africa. You listen to a song like "Maktub," and then you listen to a song like, "Baby What You Want Me to Do" by Jimmy Reed…. 

The last record was This Land, but what about the whole world? What about not just focusing on this, but what else is going on out there? And we drew from these influences. We talked about family, we talked about culture, we talked about tradition, we talked about everything. And it's like, let's make it inclusive, build the people up. Let's build ourselves up. It’s not just about your small world, it’s about everybody’s feelings. Sometimes they're dealt with injustice and devastation everywhere, but there's also this global sense of hope. So, I just wanted to have a song that had the sentiment of that.

I really enjoyed the song’s hopeful message of trying to move forward.

Obviously, things are a little bit funky around here, and I don't have any answers. But maybe if we got our heads together and brainstorm, we could all figure something out instead of … struggling or suffering in silence. It's like, let's find some light here. 

But part of the talks that I had with Sama'an and his parents over a [video] call was music. He’s from Palestine, and growing up music was a way to connect. Music was a way to find happiness in a place where that wasn't an everyday convenience, and that was really powerful. That music is what brought folks together and brought joy and built a community and a common way of thinking globally. They were listening to music from all over the world, American music, rock music, and that was an influence.

The final song on the album, "Habits," sounds like it was the most challenging song to put together. What did you learn from putting that song together?

Well, that song originally was a bunch of different pieces, and I thought that they were different songs, and I was singing the different parts to them, and then I decided to put them all together. I think I was afraid to put them all together because we were like, "let's not do these long self-indulgent pieces of music. Let's keep it cool." But once I put these parts together and put these lyrics together, it just kind of made sense. 

I got emotional when I was singing it, and I was like, This is part of using this as an outlet for the things that are going on in life. We went and recorded it in Nashville with Mike Elizondo and his amazing crew, and it's like, yep, we're doing it all nine minutes of it.

You collaborated with a bunch of musicians on this album, including Naala on "This Is Who We Are." What was that experience like?

Working with Naala was great. That song was following me around for a couple of years, and I knew what I wanted it to sound like, but I didn't know how I was going to sing it. I had already laid the musical bed, and I think it was one of the last songs that we recorded vocals on for the album. 

Lyrically, it’s like a knight in shining armor or a samurai, and there's fire and there's war, and this guy's got to go find something. It was like this medieval fairytale type thing that I had in my head. Naala really helped lyrically guide me in a way that told that story, but was a little more personal and a little more vulnerable. I was about to give up on that song until she showed up in the studio. 

"What About the Children" is based on a demo that you got from Stevie Wonder. You got to duet with him, what was that collaboration like?

Oh, it was great. It was a life-changing experience. The guy's the greatest in everything, he was sweet, the most talented, hardworking, gracious, humble, but strong human being I've been in a room with and been able to create with. 

I was in shock when I left the studio at how powerful that was and how game changing and eye-opening it was. It was educational and inspiring. It was like before Stevie and after Stevie.

I imagine it was also extra special getting to have your sisters on the album.

Absolutely. We got to sing with Stevie Wonder; we used to grow up listening to George Clinton. They've stuck with us throughout my whole life. So, to be able to work with him and George Clinton — they came in wanting to do the work, hardworking, badass, nice, funny — it was a dream. 

Stevie Wonder and George Clinton are just different. They're pioneers and risk takers. For a young Black kid from Texas to see that and then later to be able to be in a room with that and get direct education and conversation…. It's an experience that not everybody gets to experience, and I'm grateful that I did, and hopefully we can do it again.

In 2022, you acted in Elvis. What are the biggest things you've learned from expanding into new creative areas?

I really have to give it up to a guy named Jeremy Grody…I went to his studio with these terrible demos that I had done on Pro Tools…and this guy helped save them and recreate them. I realized the importance of quality recordings. Jeremy Grody was my introduction to the game and really set me up to have the confidence to be able to step in rooms like that again.

I played some songs in the film, and I really understood how long a film day was. It takes all day long, a lot of takes, a lot of lights, a lot of big crews, big production.

I got to meet Lou Reed [while screening the film] at the San Sebastian Film Festival, and I was super nervous in interviews. I was giving away the whole movie. And Lou Reed said, "Just relax and have fun with all this s—." I really appreciated that.

Do you have a dream role?

I don't have a dream role, but I do know that if I was to get into acting, I’d really dive into it. I would want to do things that are challenging. I like taking risks. I want to push it to the limit. I would really like to understand what it's like to immerse yourself in the character and in the script and do it for real.

You're about to go out on tour. How will the show and production on this tour compare with the past ones?

We're building it currently, but I'm excited about what we got in store as far as the band goes. There are a few additions. I've got my sisters coming out with me. It's just going to be a big show.There's a new energy here, and I'm excited to share that with folks. 

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In the days leading up to Usher’s Super Bowl performance, the singer waxed poetically about the significance of this moment not only in popular culture but for Black music.

Speaking with Kelly Carter on "Good Morning America," Usher reflected on the history of Black entertainers who performed for the masses under restrictive laws. Although a majority of those laws have been overturned, it would be remiss to not think about the recent series of court cases that have targeted Black musicians, such as Atlanta-based rapper Young Thug, whose music is currently being used against him in court. 

For singers like Usher who have been privy to the ways in which Black music — and those who create it — have been mistreated, his halftime performance was as much as a statement as it was a tribute to those who came before him. "I'm coming through the front door with this one," Usher told Carter.

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It is only fitting that the performance opened with lines from "My Way" — the title of his Las Vegas residency, which has featured a who’s who of prominent figures in pop culture — before launching into "Caught Up." Usher then descended from his anointed throne in a crisp, all white Dolce & Gabbana ensemble, he began a Michael Jackson-inspired dance routine with an array of backup dancers; the standout being renowned celebrity choreographer Sean Bankhead.

Usher made it clear early on, however, that his performance was no mere spectacle. He paused to deliver a testimony, one that bears repeating despite his new album and $100 million-earning Vegas residency: "They said I wouldn't make it, they said I wouldn't be here today, but I am." 

Once the air cleared and Usher thanked his momma for her steadfast advocacy and faith in him, he led Allegiant Stadium in a sing along of "Superstar." The track from 2004’s Confessions recently inspired a viral challenge on TikTok. 

A consummate performer and supporter of his peers, Usher wasn't content to simply highlight his own success. The singer transformed Allegiant Stadium to "The Yard" — the singular place at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, where students gather to talk, discuss, and have fun — and filled it with music. 

Usher’s Yard included a performance of "Love In This Club" with the assistance of two members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., the second oldest Black fraternity in the U.S. The trio was supported by the Jackson State University marching band, known as the "Sonic Boom of The South," to finish the song. 

Even his brief moment of affection with singer Alicia Keys, who joined the singer for "My Boo," can be described as a "homecoming hug." Homecoming is another HBCU tradition, where alumni convene at their respective campuses and greet their former flame with a hug.

When Jermaine Dupri entered the stage to announce the 20th anniversary of Confessions, the transportation was complete. The audience was no longer in Vegas, but in Atlanta, the Black Mecca of the world. And Usher is Atlanta’s nucleus.

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It is here that the spirits of Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, and Prince accompanied Usher as he bewitched millions with a singular microphone and momentum stage presence. A haze of purple clouds and smoke led the way for singer H.E.R., the night’s self appointed "Bad Girl" and her crew of roller skating baddies.

While Usher may have began the halftime show with the enthusiasm of a young boy who just got his chance to perform a solo in the church choir, by its end he was fully inhabiting his chart-topping sex icon persona.Will.i.am’s voice rippled through the stadium as Usher, donning a blue and black Off-White outfit reminiscent of football shoulder pads, glided onto the stage with an aura that is equal parts charismatic and sinful sweet. 

Skating, a main tenant of Atlanta’s culture, is embedded in Usher’s ethos and a part of his larger business. The singer loves skating and owns several skating rinks.

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Usher finished the extravagant performance with "Yeah!" — a song beloved in Atlanta and far, far beyond. That the song is turning 20 this year and still resonates with a global audience (not to mention a football-loving one) is further evidence that Usher truly is the "King of R&B."

"Your moment is your moment. And this is a moment I’ve prepared for during the last 30 years," Usher told Billboard ahead of the Super Bowl. 

He certainly owned his moment. Usher's Super Bowl halftime show was no singular performance or an audition, but a coronation. He was receiving the torch carried by all the Black entertainers who preceded him, and reminding the world that the South still has something to say. 

Surrounded by Ludacris and Lil Jon,  strippers, and his own marching band, Usher closed the night out with the A-Town Stomp and one important phase: "I took the world to the A!" 

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He’s (still) got it bad! Usher lit up Super Bowl LVIII with an electrifying halftime show filled with a career-spanning setlist, drool-worthy dance moves and a parade of surprise guests including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, Lil Jon, H.E.R., will.i.am and more.

Days before taking the stage at Allegiant Stadium, the eight-time GRAMMY-winning R&B superstar opened up to Apple Music about the creative approach he took to planning his halftime show. “What I did is, I was very mindful of my past, celebrating my present, which is here in Las Vegas, and thinking about where we’re headed in the future, and that was really the idea,” he said. “What songs do I feel people know me for? What songs have been a celebration of all of the journey of what life and love and emotion has been offered in my music?

Usher’s halftime show comes on the heels of a monumental year and a half for the star, following his sold-out 100-show Las Vegas residency, My Way, at the Park MGM’s Dolby Live Theater. The R&B heartthrob also released Coming Home — his ninth studio album (and first in nearly a decade) on Friday — just two days before his epic performance.

Below, GRAMMY.com broke down all the best moments from Usher’s momentous halftime show.

That Grand, Las Vegas-Style Entrance 

From the drop, Usher let us know his Super Bowl set would be a celebration of all things Sin City as the camera wove through acrobats, showgirls, contortionists and dancers to reveal the R&B icon in all his glory — dressed in a dazzling white cape and seated on a mirrored thrown. 

From there, he launched into a high-energy rendition of “Caught Up,” one of the five consecutive top 10 singles from his landmark 2004 album Confessions. Not even an acrobat being launched through the air could distract from Usher’s swagger as he sauntered across the field.

A Sweet Shout-Out to His Mom

Transitioning between 2003’s “U Don’t Have to Call'' and a snippet of Confessions deep cut “Superstar,” Usher took a moment to recognize the magnitude of the occasion with a shout-out to his mother, Jonetta Patton. “But if you do call, know that God answers prayers. They said I wouldn’t make it. They said I wouldn’t be here today, but I am. Hey, mama, we made it. Now this — this is for you. My number one,” he said before crooning, “Spotlight, big stage / Sixty-thousand fans screamin’ in a rage.”

A Nostalgic Duet with His “Boo”

Usher’s halftime performance really hit its stride once he broke into his 2008 No. 1 hit “Love in This Club” with a full marching band. But the end of the song delivered the first big surprise of the night as the singer gestured across the field to introduce none other than Alicia Keys.

Seated at a futuristic red piano with a majestic cape of the same shade billowing behind her, the 16-time GRAMMY-winning singer-songwriter performed a snippet of her own 2004 single “If I Ain’t Got You” before being joined by Usher on their No. 1 hit “My Boo.” 

The pair’s decades of friendship were palpable as they belted out, “I don’t know about y’all but I know about us, and uh / It’s the only way we know how to rock / It started when we were younger, you were mine / My boo” and the number ended with both stars grinning ear to ear as Usher wrapped his arms around Keys. 

“Burn”-ing Up to Confessions

With producer Jermaine Dupri playing hype man, Usher celebrated the 20th anniversary of Confessions by running through a medley of songs from the 14x-platinum album, including “Confessions Part II” and a soaring take on “Burn,” which was undeniably one of the standout vocal moments of Usher’s entire set.

The star also put his sex appeal on full display, tearing away his glittery silver top to reveal a simple white tank as he performed “U Got It Bad” — only to remove that as well, finishing the song shirtless and glistening with sweat before ceding the spotlight to H.E.R. on an electric guitar.

“O.M.G.,” That Roller Skate Choreography!

Joined by will.i.am, Usher returned to stage dressed in a sparkling black-and-blue ensemble and roller skates — incorporating a popular moment from his recent residency as he ran through his 2010 chart-topper “O.M.G.” by nailing the choreography on wheels. For added measure, he finished off the section by skating deftly through will.i.am’s legs and striking a pose. 

Peace Up, A-Town Down

Of course, the grand finale of Usher’s halftime set couldn’t be anything but “Yeah!,” his smash worldwide hit that became the longest-running No. 1 of 2004 and an inescapable soundtrack to the early 2000s. Enlisting help from collaborators Lil Jon and Ludacris, Usher turned Allegiant Stadium into an all-out dance party and brought his halftime show to a triumphant climax with the song’s infectious, shout-it-out chorus.

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Ahead of the 2024 GRAMMYs, women from across the recording industry gathered at GRAMMY House in Los Angeles' Arts District on Feb. 1 to celebrate their achievements and to remind the music world that there's still much work to be done.

A Celebration Of Women In The Mix Presented by PEOPLE and Sephora brought together musicians, agents, producers, engineers, managers, and more for three hours of food, drinks, speeches, and general revelry. 

Hosted by People Magazine Editor-At-Large Janine Rubenstein, the event featured a keynote speech by Friends At Work CEO Ty Stiklorius — best known for her years managing John Legend, among others — as well as performances by Sephora Sounds' artists Beth Million and Rawan Chaya, and 2024 GRAMMYs Best R&B Album nominee Emily King. 

"We wanted to make sure that we were driving representation and providing opportunities for all women in music from studio professionals to artists and beyond," said Tammy Hurt, the Chair of the Board for the Recording Academy, while detailing the creation of Women In The Mix in 2019. She noted that her team set a goal of recruiting 2,500 new women members to the voting body of the Academy by 2025.

An event Presenting Sponsor, Sephora had makeup artists set up next to the stage, giving guests some glam. Participating sponsors Dyson and The Hartford also had activations for guests to enjoy; Dyson provided styling stations for hair touch-ups and curated an immersive listening experience with the Dyson Zone™ noise-canceling headphones, while The Hartford hosted an interactive, augmented reality graffiti wall.

As Sephora's SVP of Personalization, Anna E. Banks explained on stage, the brand is committed to creating "the world's most inclusive beauty community." She added that Sephora supports individuals' creativity and ingenuity — whether it's through the products they choose to sell or the looks they feature in their campaigns. As one of the brand's new programs, Sephora Sounds will work to "continue to push for more diversity and representation" across the industry, "breaking down barriers and ushering in marginalized voices."

Keynote speaker Ty Stiklorius brought much of the room to tears with tales of sleazy record execs, thwarted dreams, and how she took the road less traveled to decades of success in the music industry. Donning a stunning maroon suit, Stiklorius detailed how she became not only John Legend's manager, but also his film and TV producing partner, his business partner in several companies, and the co-founder of several social impact groups working to reduce incarceration and level the playing field in terms of universal opportunity. 

"It's literally impossible to be a woman," Stiklorious said, quoting America Ferrera's powerful speech from the Barbie movie. She expressed frustration at the fact that women are always expected to be extraordinary — whether it's as a wife, a mother, or in the workplace — and dismissed antiquated notions that women can't be leaders in the music industry while having a family. To wit, Stiklorious created her company, Friends At Work, to give more women and more marginalized people a place to thrive in the industry, to be appreciated, recognized, and paid appropriately.

After all, Stiklorious reminded the room, women still have a long, long way to go to achieve any sort of parity in the music industry. While women dominate the major categories at this year's GRAMMY Awards, a recent study by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that, while women make up more than half the population and the market for music, they only take up about 35 percent of the Billboard Hot 100. Only 6.5 percent of music producers are women, and less than 20 percent of the songwriters of last year's top songs were women. In fact, Stiklorious said, "nearly a quarter of the most popular songs of the last 12 years were penned by just 12 men." 

"Think about how those 12 men are shaping audience perfections and beliefs about romantic relationships, wealth, health, and any number of topics," Stiklorious said, before referencing a story she recently wrote for the L.A. Times in which she makes the case that, if the top women performers added just two women songwriters to some of their sessions and some of their songs, we'd reach gender parity in the songwriter space in just four years. 

"It's not that big of an ask, actually," she said. "With the growing power of female performers, those who routinely top the charts can change the lives of women songwriters and our culture, because the status quo isn't good for anyone, regardless of their gender identity, we all lose out on untapped and underappreciated talent."

The end of Stiklorious' speech was met with a rousing standing ovation.

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After performances from Beth Million and Rawan Chaya, People Executive Editor Melody Chiu took the stage for the event's panel, which featured recording engineer Marcella Araica, GRAMMY winning country artist Carly Pearce, and GRAMMY nominee Jordin Sparks. They talked about role models, the barriers they've faced in the industry, becoming mothers, and how they learned that "no" is actually a complete sentence.

Singer/songwriter Emily King won the room over with tracks like "Medal" and "This Year." After King's set, Ruby Marchand, the Recording Industry's Chief Awards and Industry Officer, wrapped up the event by thanking members of the Recording Academy staff and board in the audience for their hard work on the event and in driving new membership. 

Diving into her thoughts on the concept of trust, Marchand said women in the music industry "have to learn to trust each other, because we're here to help and guide and support, and sometimes even help somebody through some critical thinking and get back on track." 

Women in the industry also have to learn to trust themselves, Marchand said. If women can all learn to be fearless and to trust in themselves, their decisions, and their strength, the sky's the limit. 

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