This week, Scottish hitmaker Calvin Harris returns with his first album in five years, Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2. The LP is a fascinating next phase for the producer born Adam Wiles, whose musical career began almost 20 years ago in the quiet U.K. town of Dumfries. With his pick of collaborators, Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 sees Harris perfecting a slick, polished disco-meets-funk sound that’s a long way from his scrappy 2007 debut album, I Created Disco.

Harris’ journey from playful newcomer to bonafide dance-pop phenomenon includes numerous global No. 1 singles, billions of streams, a headline slot at Coachella, five GRAMMY nominations and a win for his blockbuster Rihanna team-up, "We Found Love." 

On I Created Disco and its 2009 follow-up Ready for the Weekend, the producer sang most of his songs and toured with a live band. From 2010 and beyond, Harris embraced DJing and foreground more famous voices on his anthem-heavy EDM-era albums: 18 Months (2012) and Motion (2014). Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, released in the summer of 2017, marked a new phase as pop’s go-to vibe creator. 

Through all his success, Harris has kept his cool, hovering just outside both the pop world and the superstar DJ circuit. While Forbes named him the world's highest-paid DJ for six years running, he rarely appears alongside his peers at big-name dance festivals like Tomorrowland and Ultra Music Festival. The festivals he does choose are close to heart, like Creamfields in the UK or his collaborator Pharrell's Something In The Water in Washington, D.C. This summer, he's focused instead on a residency at the flashy Ushuaïa Ibiza, appearing each Friday to sold-out crowds. He's also press shy, largely skirting interviews in favor of chats with his friend Zane Lowe on Apple Music.

 Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 doubles down on the producer's reputation as a born collaborator with a special talent for making vocals shine. A sequel to 2017's funk and boogie-flavored Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, the album is wall-to-wall with guests including Dua Lipa, Young Thug, Halsey, Pharrell, Justin Timberlake, 21 Savage and Snoop Dogg. 

While Vol. 2 follows the same easy groove as its predecessor, Harris' career is full of change-ups. No matter what mode he's in, the producer's Midas touch is undeniable. In honor of his latest bid for pop glory, here are 10 essential Calvin Harris songs that capture his sonic evolution. 

"Acceptable In The 80's" (2007)

Harris got his start making unpolished productions in his bedroom and uploading them to MySpace with no illusions of international fame. Harris wrote, produced, arranged and performed all the songs on his cheekily-titled debut album I Created Disco, a do-it-all approach he'd carry into the future.

His surprise breakout hit, "Acceptable In The 80's," was born on a vintage Amiga 500 Plus computer running the OctaMED sequencer. Its music video is youthful goofiness personified as Harris dances with taxidermied animals against a neon backdrop. 

"I'm Not Alone" (2009) 

Now working with a modestly expanded production set-up, Harris happened upon a trance preset on the Roland Juno-G that unlocked "I'm Not Alone." Pairing a huge dance riff with the producer's charmingly reticent vocals, the song became the first Calvin Harris single to go to No. 1 in the U.K.

"People didn't really know what to make of it," Harris told Music Radar in 2012. "When it first went to the radio stations, they all said, 'What the hell is he playing at? He's made a trance record!'" BBC Radio 1 host Pete Tong, however, chose "I'm Not Alone" as his "Essential New Tune."  

"What I'm into at the moment is the idea of stadium dance," Harris said that year. "Playing football stadiums with massive riffs, big hands-in-the-air moments." 

"You Used to Hold Me" (2010)

Released in 2010 as the final single from 2009's Ready For The Weekend, "You Used to Hold Me" marked the end of one era for Harris and the beginning of another for dance music. The song arrived just as EDM was taking hold in the U.S. mainstream, including a media storm around the significant medical emergencies at Electric Daisy Carnival in Los Angeles.

In November, Harris announced that he was giving up singing and playing live to focus on DJing and producing. "I'll do tracks with people who can sing well — proper artists, proper performers," he told Australia's Herald Sun. In a 2015 interview with Zane Lowe, Harris recalled his thinking at the time: "At the end of 2010, I decided to focus whatever ideas I had into basically one tempo, and try to work out the ideal structure for a radio dance record." 

"We Found Love" - Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris (2011)

In 2011, Calvin Harris scored his biggest hit as a featured artist. "We Found Love," released as a single ahead of Rihanna's Talk That Talk album, spent 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 100.

The track later won the GRAMMY Award for Best Music Video. Directed by Melina Matsoukas, the video features Rihanna and Dudley O'Shaughnessy as strung-out lovers on the run — with a cameo from Harris DJing in a muddy field. 

The collaboration clicked into place when Harris supported Rihanna on a tour of Australia in 2011. "It was a risk for her, I think, 'cause it was a pretty full-on record," the producer told Fuse in 2013. "It was different sounding at that time. And also putting my name on the record as well kinda confused a lot of people." 

That "full-on record" now endures as a beloved classic with over one billion YouTube views. 

"I Need Your Love" - feat. Ellie Goulding (2013)

On his third album, 18 Months, Harris leaned into his promise to work with "proper performers," including Florence Welch on the GRAMMY-nominated "Sweet Nothing." The album also cemented a very good thing between Harris and English singer Ellie Goulding on "I Need Your Love," released as a single in 2013.

The song's combination of syrup and mainstage heft was right at home in a big moment for acts like Swedish House Mafia, Avicii and Zedd. Harris knew the power in Goulding's raspy vocals, which excelled again on Motion cut "Outside." In the words of one YouTube commenter: "Her voice is actually the sound of an era." 

"Under Control" - feat. Alesso & Hurts (2013)

The lead single from Harris's fourth album, Motion, saw the producer team up with Alesso and Hurts vocalist Theo Hutchcraft. Its release coincided with peak EDM hysteria in the US, perfectly capturing the serotonin rush of 2013 with a melody and breakdown built for the biggest possible stages. True to the moment, Harris rounded out the year by signing an exclusive residency with Hakkasan Nightclub in Las Vegas.

"Summer" (2014)

"Summer" stands out on the loaded Motion tracklist as notably guest-free. Despite its lack of additional star power, it was one of Harris's biggest hits, featuring his return to vocals after quitting singing in 2010.

In contrast to the scrappy vocals on albums past, Harris sings with the easy charm of a hitmaker with nothing to prove. The song peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Top 100, while the music video — capturing Harris in heartthrob mode — has clocked 1.5 billion YouTube views. Much later, Harris revealed that in 2014 he had a near-death experience from the heart rhythm disorder arrhythmia, casting a bittersweet shadow on a triumphant year. 

"How Deep Is Your Love" - feat. Disciples (2015)

In 2015, Harris hit a new level of fame unfamiliar to the DJ world, dating Taylor Swift and modeling underwear for Emporio Armani. 

Amidst all that attention, and after the giddy crossover ambitions of 18 Months and Motion, he teamed up with UK trio Disciples for an understated swerve into deep house. As always, he picked his moment, tapping into a hunger for deeper styles after the excesses of EDM. At the time, Harris told Zane Lowe he was eager to skip the album format and "just release one song at a time." While that didn't exactly stay the plan long-term, "How Deep is Your Love" makes perfect sense on its own. 

"Slide" - feat. Frank Ocean & Migos (2017)

After he and Rihanna pleased the pop charts with 2016's "This Is What You Came For," Harris was ready to get back in the album game. As the lead single from Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, "Slide" introduced a sound that was more California road-trip than peak-time at a dance festival.

The song stood out for its warm, disco-tinged instrumentation and the rare appearance of Frank Ocean outside his own albums, sounding light and sun-drunk. After "Slide" came out, Harris shared a video showing how he made it, casually showing off a studio a long way from an Amiga 500 in Dumfries. 

"Stay With Me" -  feat. Justin Timberlake, Halsey & Pharrell (2022)

In the years after Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, Harris jumped between his interests, releasing the purely pop "One Kiss" with Dua Lipa in 2018 and creating the Love Regenerator alias in 2020 to honor his rave roots. (Those decidedly non-commercial releases, including "Hypnagogic (I Can't Wait)" and "Live Without Your Love" with Steve Lacy, provided much needed escape during the pandemic.)

"Stay With Me," featuring Justin Timberlake, Halsey and Pharrell, is equal parts '70s funk and '90s pop, conjuring a carefree vibe that's sure to permeate Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2. On Instagram, Harris shared a photo of himself standing alongside Timberlake, Halsey and Pharrell at the music video shoot, with the caption: "Ever felt like an imposter on your own video set? I have." And yet the hits don't lie. 

Songbook: Celebrating Daddy Yankee's Legendary Three-Decade Reggaeton Reign

Kylie Minogue has taken home the golden gramophone for Best Pop Dance Recording — an all-new category — at the 2024 GRAMMYs, for "Padam Padam."

Minogue came ahead of of David Guetta, Anne-Marie and Coi Leray ("Baby Don’t Hurt Me"); Calvin Harris featuring Ellie Goulding ("Miracle"); Bebe Rexha and David Guetta ("One in a Million"); and Troye Sivan ("Rush").

The win marks Minogue’s second GRAMMY win after six career nominations. She had previously won Best Dance Recording for "Come Into My World."

The Australian pop star — along with producer Peter "Lostboy" Rycroft and mixing engineer Guy Massey — are the first-ever winners of the Best Pop/Dance Performance category. It was one of three new categories introduced at the 66th GRAMMYs; the other two are Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical and Best African Music Performance. 

Lostboy took the stage to accept the award on behalf of himself, Minogue, and Massey. 

"Padam Padam" charted at No. 7 on Billboard's Hot Dance/Electronic chart; it was a much bigger hit in the UK, where it was a No. 1 hit. The song was embraced by the LGBTQ+ community on both sides of the Atlantic. 

"It's hugely important to me and so touching," said Minogue of her popularity with LGBTQ+ fans in an interview with GRAMMY.com earlier this year. "I hope that for that community and beyond, I just want to say I am open-minded and I want people to be happy in themselves. That community needed support and still needs support. I'm here. And they padamed for me."

Keep checking this space for more updates from Music’s Biggest Night!

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Full Winners & Nominees List

As any fan can attest, dance music is a broad church spanning myriad micro-genres, fan communities and city-specific scenes. The genre’s reach was as wide as ever in 2023, stretching from the biggest festival stages to the most intimate clubs, with variations in moods and beats-per-minute to suit all tastes. 

Nostalgia for rave’s ‘90s heyday was everywhere, fueling big-name releases and underground club sets alike. [Surprise supergroups](https://www.grammy.com/news/coachella-2023-weekend-2-recap-skrillex-four-tet-fred-again-gorillaz-bad-bunny-eric-pyrdz-performances-surprises-video) and [long-time collaborators](https://www.grammy.com/news/skrillex-fred-again-friendship-timeline-collaborations-videos) hit big in 2023, while albums from [James Blake](https://www.grammy.com/artists/james-blake/17760), [the Chemical Brothers](https://www.grammy.com/artists/chemical-brothers/7746), Disclosure and Everything But The Girl showed there’s still power in the electronic LP format. 

With festivals and DJ touring schedules back to a pre-COVID pace, dance music also enjoyed a busy year on the road. Across North America, [ILLENIUM](https://www.grammy.com/artists/Illenium/38165), G Jones, ZHU and ODESZA (not to mention Beyoncé’s house music-indebted Renaissance tour) sold out venues across the country. In a genre that can feel impossible to get your arms around, these five trends were undeniable in 2023. 

Everything Old Was New Again

Wherever you looked this year, DJ-producers were reaching back to the racing sounds of trance, rave and Eurodance that dominated dancefloors in the ‘90s and early 2000s. David Guetta and Calvin Harris spent 2023 memorably mining this past — the latter’s "Desire," featuring Sam Smith, could be ripped straight from a decades-old pop-trance compilation. 

Meanwhile, South Korean DJ-producer Peggy Gou released "(It Goes Like) Nanana," a dance-pop earworm with shades of ATB’s late ‘90s hit, "9PM (Till I Come)." Already a hugely popular draw as a DJ, Gou’s time-warping groover became her first Billboard chart entry and ignited buzz for her debut artist album, expected in 2024. 

On the less commercial spectrum, European producers like DJ Heartstring, Narciss and Marlon Hoffstadt continued to contextualize vintage sounds for a new audience. Meanwhile, a cluster of Dutch DJs, most notably Job Jobse, Young Marco and KI/KI, played throwback anthem-fuelled sets on festival stages usually reserved for steely techno, including at Dekmantel and Time Warp. 

For some DJs, looking back to the past meant embracing the fast and furious tempos of hardstyle and hard dance, two subgenres with passionate niche followings but little mainstream crossover. Continuing a trend from 2022, speedier BPMs were very much in vogue, as DJs kept pace with fans demanding a harder, faster workout. 

Women Danced To The Front 

Many of the year’s most invigorating and genre-blurring releases were made by women. Having built a steady career as a producer and singer, Kenya Grace broke out in 2023 with "Strangers," which caught fire on TikTok and converted new fans via a sleek mix of pop, drum & bass and Grace’s hushed vocals. Peggy Gou’s aforementioned "(It Goes Like) Nanana," also captured the TikTok zeitgeist with a widely-viewed video of Gou teasing the single for a dancefloor in Morocco. 

Electronic chameleon [Charli XCX](https://www.grammy.com/artists/charli-xcx/18360) stayed squarely in the limelight, following 2022’s stellar *Crash* with the one-two punch of "In The City" featuring Sam Smith and "Speed Drive"(from *Barbie the Album*, which is nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media alongside *AURORA*, *Weird: The Al Yankovic Story*, *Black Panther: Wakanda Forever- Music From And Inspired By*, and *Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3: Awesome Mix*). Meanwhile, two of the year’s standout albums came from women coloring outside the lines of their best-known projects: the xx vocalist Romy’s *Mid Air* embraced her queerness through euphoric dance-pop, while Aluna (of electronic duo AlunaGeorge) blossomed as a solo artist and activist on her second album, *MYCELiUM*. 

While dance music’s ranks remained largely white and male in 2023, undeniable albums from the likes of Jayda G, PinkPanthress and Róisín Murphy were a welcome counterbalance. 

UK Bass Got Bombastic

Following the runaway success of Eliza Rose and Interplanetary Criminal’s 2022 UK garage-tinged house anthem "B.O.T.A. (Baddest of Them All)" the previous year, British bass music continued to shine in 2023. 

While still relatively niche in the U.S., the UK garage (UKG) and bassline subgenres that thrived in the Y2K era found a new generation of British converts, thanks to releases like Interplanetary Criminal’s *All Thru The Night* and Conducta’s *In Transit* EP. Elsewhere, acclaimed British singer/songwriter Jorja Smith tapped her UKG roots on the irresistible single "Little Things." 

Welsh duo Overmono weaved garage textures into their accomplished debut album, *Good Lies*, and rounded out the year with a powerful Boiler Room live set from Manchester’s Warehouse Project. The set and album cemented their bona fides as the UK’s next dance festival headliner. 

The many mutations of UK bass music shone bright all year in DJ sets from the likes of Anz, Nia Archives, Jyoty and Joy Anonymous. (The latter’s near-three-hour set with Austrian producer salute and New Jersey-born garage godfather Todd Edwards at Amsterdam Dance Event captured the jubilant mix of house and UKG that was dominant this year.) 

Bringing it full circle, Eliza Rose parlayed the success of "B.O.T.A." into a collaboration with Calvin Harris on this year’s housey "Body Moving," which started with the pair exchanging Instagram DMs. 

Technology Upped The Ante

In a year where artificial intelligence and rapid technological advancement were burning topics, a wave of dance music artists found new ways to embrace the future. 

The possibilities of technology to enhance live performance were on full display in two raved-about Coachella sets. Swedish veteran [Eric Prydz](https://www.grammy.com/artists/eric-prydz/5679) brought his HOLO show to the California festival, deploying cutting-edge tech to create giant holographic images that extend over the crowd. Meanwhile, inside the festival's Sahara Tent, melodic techno duo Tale Of Us completed their transition to EDM crowd-pleasers with a full-scale audiovisual spectacle that explored themes of robot-human connection. (One half of the duo, Matteo Milleri, is also all-in on NFTs.) 

Meanwhile, techno favorite Nicole Moudaber debuted an AV show in which her own movements control a towering digital avatar. The year also saw big-name DJs embracing the metaverse — from Carl Cox playing a set in the Sensorium Galaxy to Swedish House Mafia joining the Roblox platform — in a trend that’s sure to carry into 2024. 

Techno & Techno-House Go Center Stage

Continuing a trend from 2022, big room techno and tech-house muscled onto U.S. festival stages usually reserved for EDM anthems. In particular, tech-house — which in 2023 sounds a world away from the raw UK club records that birthed the subgenre — cemented its place in the mainstream with Fisher and Chris Lake’s back-to-back set at Coachella’s Outdoor Theatre. (Later in the year, the pair shut down Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles for an epic street party.) 

Both coming off a star-making 2022, tech-house mischief-makers John Summit and Dom Dolla leveled up with bigger shows and feverish fan followings. Meanwhile, Belgian sensation Charlotte de Witte became the techno artist booked on the Ultra Miami main stage, scheduled incongruously alongside the likes of Zedd and Afrojack, while in Europe, techno specialists Amelie Lens and Nina Kraviz were given the same honor (and challenge) for a sprawling crowd at Tomorrowland. 

Whether mining the past or accelerating into the future, the dance/electronic genre never stood still this year, setting the stage for a thrilling 2024.  

[2023 In Review: 5 Trends That Defined Pop Music](https://www.grammy.com/news/pop-music-trends-2023-year-in-review-taylor-swift-sza)

One of three new categories debuting at the 2024 GRAMMYs, Best Pop Dance Recording will be hotly contested in its first year.

The inaugural round of Best Pop Dance Recording nominees features not one, but two [David Guetta](https://www.grammy.com/artists/david-guetta/12848) collaborations ("Baby Don’t Hurt Me" with Anne-Marie and Coi Leray, and "One In A Million" with Bebe Rexha), and the long-awaited reunion of [Calvin Harris](https://www.grammy.com/artists/calvin-harris/3679) and [Ellie Goulding](https://www.grammy.com/artists/ellie-goulding/19043) on "Miracle." The new category also features two earworms from Australian pop dance exports: [Kylie Minogue](https://www.grammy.com/artists/kylie-minogue/14940)’s "Padam Padam" and [Troye Sivan](https://www.grammy.com/news/troye-sivan-something-to-give-each-other-new-album-rush-road-to)’s "Rush." 

Ahead of the 2024 GRAMMYs on Feb. 4, 2024, get to know the five nominees in this newly minted category.

David Guetta, Anne-Marie & Coi Leray -"Baby Don't Hurt Me"

In a year defined by dance producers putting a modern spin on dance music’s past, David Guetta reached back to 1993 to interpolate Haddaway’s dance-pop hit, "What Is Love," for "Baby Don’t Hurt Me." The song is a fitting follow-up to Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s 2022 hit, "I’m Good (Blue)", which winkingly rekindled Eiffel 65’s Eurodance anthem, "Blue (Da Ba Dee)".

"Baby Don’t Hurt Me" brings Haddaway’s irresistible hook into 2023 with distinctive verses from British vocalist Anne-Marie (who memorably joined Marshmello on 2018’s smash  "Friends") and fast-rising Boston rapper Coi Leray. 

Paired with a video that references ‘90s clubbing and cult movie A Night at the Roxbury, "Baby Don’t Hurt Me" is a familiar sugar rush that plays to the individual strengths of its perhaps unlikely trio. 

**Calvin Harris featuring Ellie Goulding - "Miracle"**

Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding are a dance music dream team, having previously released "I Need Your Love" (2012) and "Outside" (2014). After waiting almost a full decade to reunite, the pair returned in 2023 with their third collaboration, "Miracle."

An out-and-out trance-meets-Eurodance throwback (think inspirations like Robert Miles' "Children"), "Miracle" aims straight for the nostalgic pleasure centers. Harris told Apple Music that he needed Goulding's "angelic" vocal talents, and the British singer skillfully plays off the song's maximal production. Working alongside his longtime studio partner Burns, Harris packs the rave euphoria into a crisp three minutes, right through to the unexpected breakbeat outro. 

The non-album single signaled a new phase for Harris, and follows 2022's Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 as well as his ravier experiments as Love Regenerator. In July, Harris returned to the trance sounds of his teen years with "Desire" featuring Sam Smith, proving these faster tempos are not just a passing phase. 

**Kylie Minogue - "Padam Padam"** 

Now 16 albums into a glittering career, Kylie Minogue is a true icon of international pop. However, not even the most ardent Kylie fans could've predicted her 2023 glow-up, courtesy of viral sensation "Padam Padam." 

The song first came to Minogue in a demo version by Norwegian singer/songwriter Ina Wroldsen and UK producer Lostboy, which immediately caught her ear. "Straightaway, I was in," she recalled to GRAMMY.com, noting that she knew it was "perfect for me."

The first single from the Australian singer's latest album, Tension, the instantly danceable beat and one-word hook of "Padam Padam" inspired countless TikTok videos and memes. "I finally get TikTok. Yes, I've been slow but I finally am there," Minogue admitted upon Tension's release.

Minogue also celebrated the queer community and Gen Z's embrace of her runaway hit. "I hope to continue having fun with that," she added. "It was really organic. I don't think you can force that. It happened and I loved every second of it."

**Bebe Rexha & David Guetta - "One In A Million"**

Ever since co-writing Eminem and Rihanna's "The Monster" in 2013, Brooklyn-born Bebe Rexha has mastered the art of collaboration. Over a prolific decade, including three albums of her own, the pop singer/songwriter has teamed up with a diverse range of artists, including Nicki Minaj, Doja Cat, Florida Georgia Line and Dolly Parton, to feature on her songs.

In the pop dance world, French hitmaker David Guetta is Rexha's most reliable collaborator. After striking gold on 2022's "I'm Good (Blue)" — which peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 at the top of 2023 — the pair returned with a new standalone single, "One In A Million."

With a piano line that evokes Guetta's own "When Love Takes Over," "One In A Million" channels the giddy feeling of new love over a racing beat. The song arrived in a typically whirlwind year of collaborations for Guetta, who also mined the past alongside Jason Derulo, Oliver Tree and Zara Larsson. 

**Troye Sivan - "Rush"**

After a long wait between solo releases, Australian pop chameleon Troye Sivan boldly announced a new era with "Rush." Released at the height of summer as the lead single from Sivan's third album, Something To Give Each Other, "Rush" instantly hit its mark as a celebration of queer pleasure-seeking. In a statement, Sivan described the single as an accumulation of "all of my experiences from a chapter where I feel confident, free and liberated."

The song's lusty bassline, exultant piano-house keys and chanted chorus perfectly play off Sivan's falsetto, creating a heady mood of dance floor abandon. (Fittingly, the Berlin-shot music video is a parade of sweaty bodies in motion.) A ready-made anthem, "Rush" set the stage perfectly for the assured and life-affirming *Something To Give Each Other*, leaving no doubt that Sivan is thriving in 2023. 

The 2024 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 66th GRAMMY Awards, returns to Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024, and will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8-11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT.

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY.com do not endorse any particular artist, submission or nominee over another. The results of the GRAMMY Awards, including winners and nominees, are solely dependent on the Recording Academy's Voting Membership.

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Complete Winners & Nominees List

Updated Friday Oct. 13, 2023 to include info about Kendrick Lamar's most recent GRAMMY wins, as of the 2023 GRAMMYs.

A GRAMMY veteran these days, Kendrick Lamar has won 17 GRAMMYs and has received 47 GRAMMY nominations overall. A sizable chunk of his trophies came from the 58th annual GRAMMY Awards in 2016, when he walked away with five — including his first-ever win in the Best Rap Album category.

This installment of GRAMMY Rewind turns back the clock to 2016, revisiting Lamar's acceptance speech upon winning Best Rap Album for To Pimp A Butterfly. Though Lamar was alone on stage, he made it clear that he wouldn't be at the top of his game without the help of a broad support system. 

"First off, all glory to God, that's for sure," he said, kicking off a speech that went on to thank his parents, who he described as his "those who gave me the responsibility of knowing, of accepting the good with the bad."

Looking for more GRAMMYs news? The 2024 GRAMMY nominations are here!

He also extended his love and gratitude to his fiancée, Whitney Alford, and shouted out his Top Dawg Entertainment labelmates. Lamar specifically praised Top Dawg's CEO, Anthony Tiffith, for finding and developing raw talent that might not otherwise get the chance to pursue their musical dreams.

"We'd never forget that: Taking these kids out of the projects, out of Compton, and putting them right here on this stage, to be the best that they can be," Lamar — a Compton native himself — continued, leading into an impassioned conclusion spotlighting some of the cornerstone rap albums that came before To Pimp a Butterfly.

"Hip-hop. Ice Cube. This is for hip-hop," he said. "This is for Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle. This is for Illmatic, this is for Nas. We will live forever. Believe that."

To Pimp a Butterfly singles "Alright" and "These Walls" earned Lamar three more GRAMMYs that night, the former winning Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song and the latter taking Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (the song features Bilal, Anna Wise and Thundercat). He also won Best Music Video for the remix of Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood." 

Lamar has since won Best Rap Album two more times, taking home the golden gramophone in 2018 for his blockbuster LP DAMN., and in 2023 for his bold fifth album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

Watch Lamar's full acceptance speech above, and check back at GRAMMY.com every Friday for more GRAMMY Rewind episodes. 

10 Essential Facts To Know About GRAMMY-Winning Rapper J. Cole