2025 Grammys Go to Sierra Ferrell, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, and More

Music’s Biggest Night actually began about 3:30 p.m. EST, when the 67th annual Grammy Awards actually announced about 80 categories of awards before primetime. Usually, the roots music centric awards take place during this three-hour livestream from Grammy.com, so No Depression stayed on-call to report on all the winners pertaining to Americana, country, bluegrass, folk, roots, blues, and more.

This year’s Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony featured roots musicians of note, and not just as winners. two-time Grammy award-winner Rhiannon Giddens, clad in a stunning emerald green dress and glittery eyeshadow, announced all of the Americana categories. And 17-time Grammy award-winner Béla Fleck, himself dressed in all black and sparkles (who later brought his son Juno), offered a virtuosic solo-acoustic banjo performance.

For anyone who thinks the Recording Academy is just about the Grammy Awards, though, this year’s event went above and beyond to highlight the work of the Recording Academy’s diversity, equity, and inclusivity initiatives (like having ASL interpreters for the first time ever in Grammy Premiere Ceremony history) and financial aid, especially through its nonprofit arm, MusiCares, for fire relief.

Below, find this year’s roots music winners in bold, as well as some of the big name categories. This story will continued to be updated with more winners throughout the night. For the entire list of winners and nominees, visit Grammy.com.

Best Americana Performance

Beyoncé – “Ya Ya”
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – “Empty Trainload of Sky”
Madi Diaz & Kacey Musgraves – “Don’t Do Me Good”
Madison Cunningham – “Subtitles”
Sarah Jarosz – “Runaway Train”
Sierra Ferrell – “American Dreaming”

Best American Roots Song

Aoife O’Donovan – “All My Friends”
Iron & Wine & Fiona Apple – “All in Good Time”
Mark Knopfler – “Ahead of the Game”
Shemekia Copeland – “Blame It on Eve”
Sierra Ferrell & Melody Walker – “American Dreaming”

Best Americana Album

Charley Crockett – $10 Cowboy
Maggie Rose – No One Gets Out Alive
Sarah Jarosz – Polaroid Lovers
Sierra Ferrell – Trail of Flowers (ND review)
T Bone Burnett – The Other Side
Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood

Best American Roots Performance

The Fabulous Thunderbirds Featuring Bonnie Raitt, Keb’ Mo’, Taj Mahal & Mick Fleetwood – “Nothing in Rambling”
Rhiannon Giddens – “The Ballad of Sally Anne”
Shemekia Copeland – “Blame It on Eve”
Sierra Ferrell – “Lighthouse”

Best Bluegrass Album

Billy Strings – Live Vol. 1 (ND review)
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes – I Built a World
Dan Tyminski – Dan Tyminski: Live From the Ryman
The Del McCoury Band – Songs of Love and Life
Sister Sadie – No Fear
Tony Trischka – Earl Jam

Best Folk Album

Adrianne Lenker – Bright Future
American Patchwork Quartet – American Patchwork Quartet
Aoife O’Donovan – All My Friends
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – Woodland (ND review and journal feature)
Madi Diaz – Weird Faith

Best Regional Roots Music Album

Big Chief Monk Featuring J’wan Boudreaux – Live at the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
Kalani Pe’a – Kuini
New Breed Brass Band Featuring Trombone Shorty – Live at the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
The Rumble – Stories From the Battlefield
Sean Ardoin & Kreole Rock and Soul – 25 Back to My Roots

Best Traditional Blues Album

Cedric Burnside – Hill Country Love
The Fabulous Thunderbirds – Struck Down
Little Feat – Sam’s Place
Sue Foley – One Guitar Woman
Taj Mahal – Swingin’: Live at the Church in Tulsa (ND review)

Best Contemporary Blues Album

Antonio Vergara – The Fury
Joe Bonamassa – Blues Deluxe Vol. 2
Ruthie Foster – Mileage (ND feature)
Shemekia Copeland – Blame It on Eve
Steve Cropper & The Midnight Hour – Friendlytown

OF (ROOTS MUSIC) NOTE FROM OTHER CATEGORIES

Best Country Song

Beyoncé – “Texas Hold ’Em”
Jelly Roll – “I Am Not Okay”
Kacey Musgraves – “The Architect” (ND review)
Post Malone Featuring Morgan Wallen – “I Had Some Help”
Shaboozey – “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”

Best Country Album

Beyoncé – Cowboy Carter
Chris Stapleton – Higher 
Kacey Musgraves – Deeper Well
Lainey Wilson – Whirlwind
Post Malone – F-1 Trillion

Best Country Solo Performance

Beyoncé- “16 CARRIAGES”
Chris Stapleton – “It Takes a Woman” (ND review)
Jelly Roll- “I Am Not Okay”
Kacey Musgraves – “The Architect”
Shaboozey – “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”

Best Roots Gospel Album

Authentic Unlimited – The Gospel Sessions, Vol. 2
Cory Henry – Church
The Harlem Gospel Travelers – Rhapsody
Mark D. Conklin – The Gospel According to Mark
The Nelons – Loving You

Best Rock Performance

The Beatles – “Now and Then”
The Black Keys – “Beautiful People (Stay High)”
Green Day – “The American Dream Is Killing Me”
Idles – “Gift Horse”
Pearl Jam – “Dark Matter”
St. Vincent – “Broken Man”

Best Rock Album

The Black Crowes – Happiness Bastards
Fontaines D.C. – Romance
Green Day – Saviors
Idles – Tangk
Jack White – No Name
Pearl Jam – Dark Matter
The Rolling Stones – Hackney Diamonds (ND review)

Best Jazz Performance

The Baylor Project – “Walk With Me, Lord (Sound | Spirit)”
Chick Corea & Béla Fleck – “Juno”
Dan Pugach & Nicole Zuraitis Featuring Troy Roberts – “Little Fears”
Lakecia Benjamin Featuring Randy Brecker, Jeff “Tain” Watts & John Scofield – “Phoenix Reimagined” (Live)
Samara Joy Featuring Sullivan Fortner – “Twinkle Twinkle Little Me”

Best Jazz Vocal Album

Catherine Russell & Sean Mason – My Ideal
Christie Dashiell – Journey in Black
Kurt Elling & Sullivan Fortner – Wildflowers Vol. 1
Milton Nascimento & Esperanza Spalding – Milton + Esperanza
Samara Joy – A Joyful Holiday

Best Jazz Instrumental Album

Ambrose Akinmusire – Owl Song
Chick Corea & Béla Fleck – Remembrance (ND feature and journal articles)
Kenny Barron – Beyond This Place
Lakecia Benjamin – Phoenix Reimagined (Live)
Sullivan Fortner – Solo Game

Best Alternative Jazz Album

Arooj Aftab – Night Reign
André 3000 – New Blue Sun
Keyon Harrold – Foreverland
Meshell Ndegeocello – No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin
Robert Glasper – Code Derivation

Best Global Music Performance

Angélique Kidjo & Soweto Gospel Choir – “Sunlight to My Soul”
Arooj Aftab – “Raat Ki Rani”
Jacob Collier featuring Anoushka Shankar & Varijashree Venugopal – “A Rock Somewhere”
Masa Takumi featuring Ron Korb, Noshir Mody & Dale Edward Chung – “Kashira”
Rocky Dawuni – “Rise”
Sheila E. featuring Gloria Estefan & Mimy Succar – “Bemba Colorá”

Best Music Film

Jon Batiste – American Symphony
June Carter Cash – June
Run-DMC – Kings From Queens
Steven Van Zandt – Stevie Van Zandt: Disciple
Various Artists – The Greatest Night in Pop

Best Spoken Word Poetry Album

Malik Yusef – Good M.U.S.I.C. Universe Sonic Sinema Episode 1: In the Beginning Was the Word
Omari Hardwick – Concrete & Whiskey Act II Part 1: A Bourbon 30 Series
Queen Sheba – Civil Writes: The South Got Something to Say
Skillz – The Seven Number Ones
Tank and the Bangas – The Heart, the Mind, the Soul

THE BIG ONES

For your reference, here are the winners and nominees in the Big Three Grammy categories — Album, Song, and Record of the Year — plus Best New Artist.

Album of the Year

André 3000 – New Blue Sun
Beyoncé – Cowboy Carter
Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft
Chappell Roan – The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
Charli XCX – Brat
Jacob Collier – Djesse Vol. 4
Sabrina Carpenter – Short n’ Sweet
Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department

Song of the Year

Beyoncé – “Texas Hold ’Em”
Billie Eilish – “Birds of a Feather”
Chappell Roan – “Good Luck, Babe!”
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die With a Smile”
Sabrina Carpenter – “Please Please Please”
Shaboozey – “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone – “Fortnight”

Record of the Year

The Beatles – “Now and Then”
Beyoncé – “Texas Hold ’Em”
Billie Eilish – “Birds of a Feather”
Chappell Roan – “Good Luck, Babe!”
Charli XCX – “360”
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
Sabrina Carpenter – “Espresso”
Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone – “Fortnight”

Best New Artist

Benson Boone
Doechii
Chappell Roan
Khruangbin
Raye
Sabrina Carpenter
Shaboozey
Teddy Swims