Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX, And Doechii’s Incredible Performances At The 2025 Grammys Have Sparked A Conversation About How The Next Generation Of Artists Are Changing The Game
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Anyone else feel like they’re still in recovery mode from the whirlwind that was the Grammy Awards on Sunday night?
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It seems like we’re all in agreement that this event was so much fun that it’s making us kinda suspicious.
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However, one thing that seemed to have everyone reeling was the quality of the performances, especially from the newer generation of artists.
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Yesterday, Billboard released their official ranking of the Grammy performances, including stages by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, The Weeknd, and Shakira. But interestingly, the top five spots all went to artists from the younger generation.
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Billie Eilish took fifth place with her performance of “Birds of a Feather” — a tribute to Los Angeles after the devastating wildfires. Sabrina Carpenter came in fourth place with her mashup of her hit songs “Espresso” and “Please Please Please.”
Third place went to Chappell Roan, who sang “Pink Pony Club,” and second went to Charli XCX, who performed BRAT hits “Von Dutch” and “Guess.” First place went to Doechii, who became the third woman ever to win Best Rap Album on Sunday night.
And while Charli is more of an honorary Gen Z than anything else, fans online were quick to point out that this new generation of artists seems to be putting the performance in Grammy performance.
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Sabrina’s act consisted of her channeling old Hollywood and classic physical comedy, referencing a 1978 Goldie Hawn performance with her disappearing as she descended down a set of stairs.
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Her act was full of gags and staged mishaps to the delight of the audience, and a clip of her performance has racked up almost 25 million views on X.
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Performing the smash hit “Guess,” Charli XCX brought the house down as she was joined onstage by literally everyone and their mom.
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They danced while underwear rained down — underwear that was to be donated to survivors of domestic violence, as stated by a message onscreen.
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And despite “Good Luck, Babe!” being her breakout song, Best New Artist recipient Chappell Roan elected to sing her LGBTQ+ anthem “Pink Pony Club.”
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And given the Trump administration’s recent anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, Chappell’s song choice was regarded as a powerful move by viewers online.
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One viral post read, “chappell speaking up about trans rights and better health care and going on to perform pink pony club and win best new artist at the grammys right after trump takes office is going to go down as a historical moment in grammys history really.”
Doechii’s performance — ranked number one by Billboard — was a standout moment of the ceremony. Stars in the audience such as Jay-Z, Billie Eilish, and SZA were all seen in awe after the “Denial Is a River” rapper took the stage, and well…you can’t blame them.
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More than anything, it seems the viewers noticed how the new gen is emphasizing theatrics in their performances. This was mentioned by Doechii herself as she chatted about her creative process with Cosmopolitan after her performance.
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“This performance is one of the most difficult performances I’ve ever done and I really felt a need to push myself harder than I ever had before,” the Grammy winner said. “It meant everything to prove myself tonight to me. So it was about Broadway and theater and art, and I think I brought that to the stage.”
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And it looks like that absolutely translated to fans.
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