Billie Eilish broke records at the 2020 Grammys

Billie Eilish and TikTok helped inspire a bossa nova resurgence

Eilish's 2021 song "Billie Bossa Nova" along with a handful of other younger artists, like Laufey and Beabadoobee, have inspired Gen Z's interest in the genre, with the music soundtracking tens of thousands of videos on TikTok.

The album of the year award is the most prestigious Grammy

The Big Four awards—song of the year, album of the year, record of the year, and best new artist—are the only Grammy categories that are genre-agnostic. Some people are confused by the difference between awards, especially song and record. The record of the year primarily honors the performing artist. Song of the year honors the songwriter. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

Taylor Swift was the first artist to occupy all of Billboard's Top 10

Swift's 2022 release "Midnights" led to an unprecedented feat: For the first time in Billboard history, the entire top 10 of the Hot 100 was occupied by the same artist. Two years later, "The Tortured Poets Department" would occupy the first 14 slots on the chart.

In 2025, Beyoncé finally took home the album of the year award

Beyoncé has the most individual Grammy wins, but for many years, she never won the coveted album of the year prize, leading to much rancor among her fan base. That changed in 2025 with her album "Cowboy Carter," which took home the top honor.

Winning a Grammy significantly impacts an artist's sales and streaming

2023 album of the year winner Harry Styles returned to the top 10 of the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart, with "Harry's House." It's also not just the winners; Grammy performers also get a boost, like the 100% increase in Spotify streams that Bad Bunny's "Después de la Playa" saw after he sang it on the telecast.

Winning (or losing) a Grammy can impact the music an artist makes

A group of sociologists wanted to understand the impact the Grammys have on artists' musical output. They discovered that winning a Grammy often emboldens artists to release music that deviates from their own previous work and others. Nominees who lose do the opposite and trend toward the mainstream.

Days after her release from prison, Billie Holiday sold out Carnegie Hall

The jazz icon was released early from federal prison on good behavior. Following her arrest, she was effectively prohibited from performing in New York's nightclubs, but she realized she could still perform, so long as it was in a venue that hadn't been deemed a "cabaret." The solution? The famous Carnegie Hall. The show sold out within a week, and the venue became a regular stop for Holiday, who performed there 22 times.

Taylor Swift is one of the world's most successful artists

Swift is one of the best-selling musicians of all time. She has sold more than 200 million records and won multiple Grammy Awards. Known for her storytelling and ability to reinvent her music, she’s expanded her career from country roots to global pop stardom.

As a girl, Billie Holiday fell in love with music while scrubbing the floors of a brothel

Record players were rarities in the 1920s, but Holiday had access to one at Alice Dean's, the brothel in Baltimore where she scrubbed floors. It was there that she listened to her heroes, Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith.

In 2023 Taylor Swift made history having the most #1 albums of any female artist

Taylor Swift is as much a businesswoman and a marketer as she is a successful musician and performer, all of which has helped her become one of the biggest entertainment stars of the modern era.

Watch Taylor Swift write a song

Taylor Swift is one of the most famous and successful entertainers of the modern era, whose music wins fans and Grammy awards, and secures billions of streams on Spotify. In this clip from the Netflix documentary Miss Americana, Taylor lets cameras film her in the process of writing a song.

The first Grammys acknowledged only 4 genres

At the first Grammys, there were six awards presented in four genres: classical, jazz, country, and R&B. But over time, it became clear that plenty of music didn't fit neatly into those categories. Now there are more than a dozen genres recognized, spanning multiple cultures and continents.

Several major artists have embraced manipulating the Billboard charts

Billboard is supposed to be an accurate, objective representation of the country’s listening habits, but artists and their fans have discovered ways to manipulate the magazine’s methodology in order to push tracks to the top of the charts. In 2018, Taylor Swift rewarded fans for purchasing her album multiple times; in 2020, Justin Bieber reposted suggestions that fans repeatedly stream one of his songs while they sleep.

Taylor Swift frequently reinvents herself musically

Swift began her career as a country music artist, morphed into a pop singer, and from there experimented with everything from dance to anthemic pop-rock to a more indie singer-songwriter sound. Her introspective 2020 album “Folklore” offered melancholic tunes to accompany the uncertain times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

J Lo's infamous green dress at the 2000 Grammy Awards led to Google Images

Marie Claire rounded up some of the wildest, most infamous Grammys controversies, ranging from wardrobe malfunctions to ill-gotten awards. See events like Kanye and Taylor reconciling, Adele having mic issues, shocking wins, and other historic moments.

Taylor Swift influenced record labels to change the way they write contracts

In addition to being a successful songwriter, Taylor Swift is a change-maker in the music industry. She asserted creative control over her music, re-recording her earlier albums after she lost the rights to them, and sparked a vinyl revolution in a digital age.

Understanding how Billie Holiday's traumatic childhood led her to drugs

At 10 years old, the jazz singer was raped and then returned to House of the Good Shepard under protective custody. Her rapist was eventually convicted, but the court still sent her to an all-girls Catholic reform school. Jake Brennan, the host of the Disgraceland podcast, believes those early events led Holiday to the transcendent world of performing, but that it also led her to the escape of drugs.

Billie Holiday's influence on Amy Winehouse

Winehouse, who became popular in the 2000s, was known for her jazz style, which was indebted to the vocal technique Holiday had innovated decades earlier. In 2003, Winehouse paid homage to Holiday by covering "(There Is) No Greater Love," a standard that Holiday had recorded in 1947.

Taylor Swift was 16 when she released her debut album

When Taylor Swift released her first album, she was a little-known country singer-songwriter. A decade later, she was a world-famous pop superstar. In the first 10 years of Swift's career, her songwriting talent, savvy marketing, and engagement with fans helped propel her into stardom.

Taylor Swift is one of the most successful artists in the world

Few musicians are more popular (or more influential) than Taylor Swift. that's not a broad generalization. The data from this music-industry report backs it up. Luminate not only breaks down Swift’s titanic streaming numbers but also analyzes the strength of her fandom, which the publication considers indicative of “influence.”

Some critics argue that Grammys favor commercially successful artists

For this two-part series of Slate’s pop music podcast "Hit Parade," pop critic Chris Malanfi looks into the relationship between commercial and critical success and how the Grammys are affected by outside influences like the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Grammy snubs and losses have generated controversy over the years

While there’s always some friction when major award nominees are announced from those who believe a favorite has been snubbed, the Grammys have attracted quite a bit of pushback in the last few years. Much of the controversy centers around the show’s purported unequal treatment of artists of color, particularly Black artists.

After Beyoncé won the Grammy for best country album, the Grammys created a new category

The singer took home the award for best country album in 2025 for "Cowboy Carter." Months after the awards, and some criticism from the country community, the Grammys announced a new category for 2026: best contemporary country album. Ostensibly, that makes room for the genre's traditionalists and its innovators, though the distinction between the two categories is vague.

People have tied for Grammy Awards at least 34 times

Because of the Grammys voting structure, it's possible for two artists (or songs or producers, etc.) to receive the same vote totals. What happens then? Two Grammys! It has led to some funny moments, including in 1981, when classical musician Itzhak Perlman tied with … himself, for best classical performance as a soloist.

How AI helped the Beatles win their eighth Grammy

It’s been decades since the legendary British rock band broke up, yet they still managed to snag a Grammy at the 2025 awards ceremony. This feat is thanks to AI, specifically machine-learning technology, to isolate and clean up different components of a late 1970s recording. This mini-documentary shows how the band's surviving members crafted “Now and Then” with the modern technology.

'The Life of a Showgirl' was Swift's 15th chart-topping album

That places her second on Billboard's all-time list, though streaming has significantly changed how "sales" are interpreted. Prior to the shift to digital music, Billboard's album chart relied solely on sales of physical units. Since 2014, the chart has also considered streams from services like Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Watch Billie Holiday's screen debut in 1935's 'Symphony in Black'

The singer appeared alongside Duke Ellington in Paramount's "Symphony in Black," a musical short released by Paramount Pictures in September 1935, when Holiday was just 20 years old.

Watch Diana Ross posthumously induct Billie Holiday into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Holiday was posthumously inducted into the Hall in 2000 for her influence on the generations that followed her. Fittingly, Diana Ross, who played Holiday in a 1972 biopic, did the honors. She took the opportunity to sing an acapella verse of "Strange Fruit" and then offer some honorific poetry: "In this, a lesson: Artist, handle with care. Don't lose yourself in the music, beware stardom's glare."

Watch this video to find out how Taylor Swift became a billionaire from her musical empire.

Billie Holiday's distinctive vocal technique was aided by new microphone technology, which allowed for quieter singing.

Best new artist can include performers who have been working in the industry for years

As long as they haven’t been nominated for a Grammy previously, anyone who releases a recording that “establishes their public identity” can be eligible.

Ella Fitzgerald's life in photos

Iconic jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald is known as the "First Lady of Song" for her timeless performances and major contributions to jazz. Decades later, her songs have more than 100 million plays on Spotify. She collaborated with celebrated photographer Yale Joel, who left behind iconic picture galleries and films of the singer.

A beginner's guide to the music of Billie Holiday

This primer from NPR breaks down some of the best entry points for newcomers to the jazz legend. From iconic tracks like "Strange Fruit" to deeper but essential late-era songs, the list offers a blueprint for appreciating Holiday before jumping into the deep end of her sprawling discography.

Analyzing Billie Holiday's impact on American poetry

Although Holiday is sometimes associated with the Harlem Renaissance, the Black cultural movement of the 1920s and '30s, scholar Whit Frazier Peterson argues that her real impact in poetry was on the Black Arts Movement, the more radical Black literary movement of the '60s and '70s that featured writers like Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez, and Nikki Giovanni.

Why Frank Sinatra called Billie Holiday his 'greatest single influence'

In a 1958 essay for Ebony magazine, Sinatra wrote about the impact that Black music had on him, writing that "it is Billie Holiday, whom I first heard in 52nd Street clubs in the early 1930s, who was and still remains the greatest single musical influence on me. It has been a warm and wonderful influence, and I am very proud to acknowledge it."

Watch Celine Dion perform at Eurovision 1988

By 1988, the 20-year-old singer was already a star in her native Canada but was a relative unknown outside the French-speaking world. That changed when she represented Switzerland at Eurovision, performing "Ne Partez Pas Sans Mo." She'd go on to win the contest that year and soon become one of the bestselling artists in the world.

The surprising and strange sources behind 12 famous songs

Britney Spears's "Toxic" borrowed strings from a 1981 Bollywood film, Billie Eilish sampled The Office, and one duo made an entire album using only the sounds of their Whirlpool washing machine. Explore how sampling can pull from pretty much anywhere.

The artists with the most No. 1 singles

Scoring a No. 1 single is a difficult task—less than 4% of the songs that have made Billboard's Hot 100 chart have ever reached the top spot. This list breaks down the most elite hitmakers in Billboard history, including the Supremes, Taylor Swift, and the Beatles, who released an incredible 20 No. 1 singles.

Taylor Swift's songwriting resonated with teenage girls around the world

One fan recalls that the themes of Swift's early songs included hope, betrayal, and a sense of being unremarkable but wanting to be special. She argues that these themes were especially powerful to young girls, regardless of where they were from.

Blackpink are the most followed female group on Spotify

The widespread popularity of the four-piece girl group Blackpink has built a large community of fans—called Blink—and proven the success of unconventional marketing strategies. Instead of producing a wealth of content and new material, Blackpink releases albums slowly, building tension for their fans. During their musical breaks, the women continue to build on their icon status, working with luxury brands like Chanel or even guest-starring in major American TV shows like “The Idol.”

The Latin Grammys first began in 2000

For many years, the Grammy Awards honored Spanish-language artists during the main ceremony. Over time, though, these artists became so popular that the decision was made to spin off a separate awards show: the Latin Grammys. The Latin Grammys honor music recorded in Spanish or Portuguese, but the voting process is much the same as it is for the traditional Grammys.

2025 marked the first time in 35 years a hip-hop song wasn't in the top 40

The Billboard Hot 100 chart dated October 25, 2025, didn't have any rap or hip-hop songs in its top 40 singles, something that hadn't happened since Feb. 2, 1990. One explanation is a Billboard methodology change, and another is Taylor Swift's "The Life of a Showgirl."

How the government caught Billie Holiday

Louis McKay—who was Holiday's manager and abusive husband—worked with the Federal Bureau of Narcotics to ensure Holiday was caught with drugs. She was eventually put on trial and sentenced to a year in prison, where she briefly got sober.

EGOT stands for 'Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony,' an informal title for the performers who've won all four awards.

Beyoncé's 2018 headlining set is among the festival's most famous

The singer's admirers dubbed the performance "Beychella"—which included a full marching band and a reunited Destiny's Child. It was a symbol-laden commentary on the significance of Beyoncé's status as the first Black woman to headline the festival.

Billboard began incorporating streaming in 2007

For nearly 50 years, the Billboard charts primarily relied on radio airplay and retail sales. But in 2007, the magazine began incorporating early streaming services AOL Music and Yahoo! Music into its methodology, and later worked with Spotify, YouTube, and other platforms. A single stream was not weighed as heavily as a purchase of a physical CD or vinyl record. Still, streaming’s impact became evident when songs with minimal radio airplay began climbing the charts, as seen with Baauer’s “Harlem Shake,” which did exceptionally well on YouTube.

Watch Billie Holiday perform in 'The Sound of Jazz'

The 1957 CBS special, part of its series "The Seven Lively Arts," was a landmark broadcast that brought some of jazz's biggest names—including Holiday, Thelonious Monk, and Count Basie—to a national audience. Watch Holiday offer a stirring rendition of "Fine and Mellow" below.

Critics believe Grammy expert panels primarily benefit legacy artists

When the expert review panels for the Big Four awards were disbanded, it was with the hope that the decision would lead to a broader range of nominees and winners. But, in practice, it's not clear that it's playing out that way.

The story of Billie Holiday's final performance

In her final days, Holiday was still performing—often at clubs outside of New York—though she was struggling with cirrhosis, an effect of her alcoholism. This excerpt from Paul Anderson's "Bitter Crop: the Heartache and Triumph of Billie Holiday's Final Year" details her final show in Lowell, Massachusetts, offering a tragic portrait of the singer running out of steam.

The self-titled country album hinted at what would come later

While Taylor Swift eventually crossed over to pop, a Pitchfork review of her first release hints at the ingredients that would fuel Taylor’s rapid ascent and help her connect with fans, including songs with catchy melodies, relatable themes, and deeply personal lyrics that reflect her experiences as a young woman.