The 65th annual Grammy Awards ceremony kicked off in full swing on Sunday evening, presenting awards in various categories.

Let's look at the most six highlighted moments of the night that were full of great melodies.

Grammy's queen: Beyonce

Beyonce, the music royal whose art has shifted the culture time and again, long ago cemented herself as one of the world's seminal stars.

On Sunday, she made history again, becoming the winningest artist in Grammys history, surpassing the late classical conductor Georg Solti's long-standing record of 31 lifetime trophies.

Speaking through tears, the regal artist donning a metallic Gucci corset gown with elbow-length black leather gloves thanked her family, including her three children and husband Jay-Z, who looked on from the crowd.

"I'm trying not to be too emotional. And I'm trying just to receive this night," she said.

But to the shock of everyone and the fan's fury on social media, Beyonce – whose tour announcement is virtually guaranteed to trigger a ticketing crash for the ages – missed out on the Album of the Year award.

Again.

This time, it went to British pop phenom Harry Styles, six years after she lost the award to Adele.

Despite having the most nods ever for the category, she has also never won Record of the Year with eight.

So the Beyonce paradox lives on: the same night she further burnished her GOAT – most splendid of all time – status, the legendary artist also lengthened her streak as the Recording Academy's most snubbed nominee.

Despite losing the Album and Record of the Year Grammys for what feels like the umpteenth time, the outpouring of love from her peers on Sunday made clear it was still Beyonce's night.

"You never know with this, you know, this stuff," a sheepish Styles told journalists backstage when asked if he had also expected a Beyonce triumph for the top album.

"I don't think you can look at any of the nominees and not feel like they deserve it."

And Lizzo, who bested Queen Bey for Record of the Year, delivered a heartfelt tribute to one of her idols, challenging the audience to keep their eyes dry.

"In the fifth grade, I skipped school to see you perform," she said at the podium, speaking directly to a touched Beyonce.

"You changed my life," she continued, Beyonce's eyes also welling up. "The way you make me feel, I was like, I want to make people feel this way with my music. So thank you so much."

"You are the artist of our lives!"

50th anniversary of hip-hop

The 65th annual Grammys celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop on Sunday with performances from some of the genre's top names, including Grandmaster Flash, Missy Elliott, Lil Wayne, and Salt-N-Pepa.

Questlove of the Roots curated the tribute performance and served as producer and musical director.

LL Cool J began the tribute with a dedication to hip-hop.

He said they could not go through the genre’s history from 1973 to 2023 but told the audience they were in for three significant chapters that chronicled the evolution of the genre.

Each performance explored the legacy of hip-hop style, choreography, and tone taking viewers through hip-hop history.

The music, known for its quick beat and raw sound, was born in the Bronx and reflected the struggle of urban life, predominantly in Black, Latino, and Caribbean neighborhoods. It eventually went on to become a global sensation.

From dance, deejaying, rapping, and soul, hip-hop expresses issues of social injustice, the joy of dance, and the importance of community.

The genre emerged when DJ Kool Herc, whose real name is Clive Campbell, hosted a back-to-school party in the Bronx and was dubbed the "father of hip-hop."

Bad Bunny, the world's biggest artist

Bad Bunny, music's most streamed artist, exploded into the Crypto.com Arena to open the night, performing a medley of hits off his blockbuster album "Un Verano Sin Ti."

Host Trevor Noah greeted him in Spanish as the Puerto Rican trailblazer introduced himself simply by his first name, "Benito." The room then erupted in color and rhythm as the audience was immersed in Latin sounds, including bachata, merengue, and mambo.

"I want to know if the Grammys are ready for the real party," exclaimed the 29-year-old who has fast become the face of reggaeton, the genre he has globalized.

Donning a white T-shirt and jeans, Bad Bunny left no one unmoved, even Taylor Swift launching into a few dance steps.

"Now everyone wants to be Latino," he quipped. "But they're lacking flavor."

Bad Bunny went on to win the Grammy for Best Musica Urbana Album.

1st video game scores

"Assassin's Creed" composer Stephanie Economou won the first-ever Grammy honoring video game scores at Sunday's gala in Los Angeles.

Industry players had lobbied for years for a prize celebrating the work behind video game soundtracks, an acknowledgment of the major impact gaming and its music have on pop culture.

In her acceptance speech, Economou – who composed the music for "Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Dawn Of Ragnarok" – praised those who had urged the Recording Academy to include the category finally.

Backstage, she said the win felt "incredible."

"I did not have high hopes for this category because ... I am generally very green in the video game music space and up against such giants and veterans," she said.

For the inaugural award, the other nominees were the composers behind "Aliens: Fireteam Elite," "Call Of Duty: Vanguard," "Marvel's Guardians Of The Galaxy," and "Old World."

Economou noted that she was the only woman nominated in the category, saying: "I hope it sets a precedent and I hope it's not just one woman in the category each year from here on out."

Before this year, video games were included in the Score Soundtrack for Visual Media category, featuring music for film and television.

The global gaming industry may have hit close to $200 billion in 2022, according to a projection from the Global Games Market Report, and a recent Deloitte survey taken across the United States, Britain, Germany, Brazil, and Japan said that video games are the top entertainment source for Gen Z.

Many young gamers cite music as integral to the experience, with one-third of respondents saying they looked up game music online afterward and 29 percent saying they often discovered new music while gaming.

"A lot of them cannot separate the music from a game – and that's a fascinating opportunity for any composer coming in," she said.

The new category "is an important step for people to recognize that video games have been in the zeitgeist for so long now."

Touching in memoriam

The Grammy's annual tribute to those the music industry has lost was even more emotional than usual, with Quavo of the hip-hop act Migos honoring his nephew Takeoff, who was murdered late last year in a shooting at the age of 28.

"Days ain't the same without you / I don't know if I'm the same without you," sang Quavo. "I wish I had a time machine / so that you can take a ride with me / I miss just how you smile at me / Unc and Phew until infinity."

Kacey Musgraves opened the set paying homage to Loretta Lynn, the iconic country singer who died at 90, by covering Lynn's iconic "Coal Miner's Daughter."

And Mick Fleetwood was joined by Bonnie Raitt and Sheryl Crow in a touching performance of "Songbird" by Christine McVie, the late Fleetwood Mac artist who penned many of the beloved band's most famous songs.

Iranian singer wins Grammy

An Iranian singer who faces possible prison time for his song that's become an anthem to the ongoing protests in the country.

Shervin Hajipour appeared stunned after hearing Jill Biden, the wife of President Joe Biden, announced he'd won the Grammy's new song for social change special merit award for "Baraye." An online video showed Hajipour in a darkened room, wiping tears away after the announcement.

Hajipour's song "Baraye," or "For" in English, begins with: "For dancing in the streets," "for the fear, we feel when we kiss."

It ends with the widely chanted slogan synonymous with the protests since the September death of Iranian-Kurdish woman Masha Amini: "For women, life, freedom."

Released on his Instagram page, the song quickly went viral. Hajipour was then arrested and held for several days before being released on bail in October. The 25-year-old singer faces charges of "propaganda against the regime" and "instigating the violence," according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group that's been monitoring the monthslong protests.

The charges Hajipour faces can carry as much as six years in prison together. The singer is also banned from leaving Iran.

Wearing a shining, off-the-shoulder Oscar de la Renta dress at the Grammy ceremony in Los Angeles, Biden said that a song "can unite, inspire and ultimately change the world."

"This song became the anthem of the Mahsa Amini protests, a powerful and poetic call for freedom and women's rights," Biden said. "Shervin was arrested, but this song continues to resonate worldwide with its powerful theme: Women, life, freedom."

Those gathered cheered Biden's remarks. On Instagram, Hajipour wrote: "We won."

There was no immediate reaction in Iranian state media or from government officials to Hajipour’s win. According to Human rights Activities in Iran, the singer is among over 19,600 people arrested amid the demonstrations. At least 527 people have been killed amid a violent suppression of the demonstration by authorities.

On Sunday, Iran’s supreme leader reportedly ordered an amnesty or reduction in prison sentences for "tens of thousands" of people detained amid the protests, acknowledging for the first time the scale of the crackdown.