The 54th Grammy Awards recap

As it has been indicated by Clive Davis before, the 54th annual edition of the Grammys sought distance from its glamorous vibe on Sunday night in order to pay tribute to singer Whitney Houston, whose death over the weekend hung heavy over the awards show. Shortly after the event started, the show’s host, LL Cool J, appeared in black, and told the audience, “There is no way around this. We’ve had a death in our family.” The rapper then read a prayer for Houston, who died on the eve of the Grammys at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where she was preparing to attend a pre-Grammy party. Her death cast a huge shadow over the event.

“Heavenly father, we thank you for sharing our sister Whitney with us,” he said. “Though she is gone too soon, we remain truly blessed to have been touched by her beautiful spirit.”

The iconic songstress died just hours before she had been scheduled to attend the annual pre-Grammy party hosted by Davis, who had discovered Houston and signed her to her first record contract almost three decades ago and guided her to super stardom. While the spirit of the tragic passing overshadowed the festivities, it did not miss to shine the light to last night’s biggest winner, Adele. The 23-year-old British soul singer made a triumphant return last night, winning four awards by the middle of the telecast – including song of the year for “Rolling in the Deep.” In addition, Adele, who owned the year’s best-selling album with 21, impressed the audience with her first performance since vocal chord surgery forced the cancellation of a tour and months of vocal rest. The singer also won best pop vocal performance for “Someone Like You,” best pop vocal album for “21,” and best short form music video for “Rolling in the Deep.”

“I can’t believe I’m getting emotional already. My life changed when I wrote ["Someone Like You"], and I felt it before anyone even heard it,” she said while accepting the pop vocal performance award. “And seeing as it’s a vocal performance, I need to thank my doctors, I suppose, who brought my voice back.”

The Foo Fighters were also among the big winners, capturing five of the six categories they were nominated in, including the evening’s top award, album of the year. Although not present at the event, Kanye West, who was the top nominee with seven, had won four awards, Best Rap Performance (with Jay-Z for “Otis”), Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (“All Of The Lights”), Best Rap Song (“All Of The Lights”), and Best Rap Album (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”).

Despite canceling their performance, Wisconsin-based band Bon Iver, the indie folk project founded by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon, was named best new artist, besting Nicki Minaj as well as a diverse set of performers from electronica, rap and country music. The full list of winners can be viewed here.