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26th Grammys (1984): Michael Jackson takes his victory lap

By the time of the '84 awards, MJ was unquestioned as the biggest pop star on the planet, with MTV turning him into a multi-platform sensation and his Thriller album well on its way to becoming the greatest-selling album in music history. The Grammys weren't exactly a show-length coronation for the singer -- his "Billie Jean" lost song of the year to The Police's "Every Breath You Take" -- but he did win seven awards, including record of the year for "Beat It" and album of the year for Thriller, eventually opting to send up proxies like label boss Walter Yetnikoff and sisters Janet, Rebbie and La Toya to accept the trophies in his stead.

33rd Grammys (1991): Vision of Mariah

The onset of the '90s saw the debut of a 20-year-old who would go on to define pop for much of the next two decades, and her arrival was marked at the '91 Grammys with a powerhouse performance of debut chart-topper "Vision of Love," announcing her rookie presence with authority like Kobe Bryant at the '97 dunk contest. Mariah Carey would also take home the awards for best new artist and best pop vocal performance, female, and following the ceremony, her self-titled album sprang to the top of the Billboard 200, beginning an 11-week reign at No. 1.

37th Grammys (1995): Ladies first in hip-hop

Women had been a virtually invisible presence among best rap performance winners in the award's first six years, with Ladybug of 1994 winners Digable Planets the only female MC to take home a statue in the category. That changed in '95, when -- in the fifth year of the award being split into both best rap solo performance and best rap performance by a duo or group -- it was a clean sweep for the ladies, with Queen Latifah taking solo performance for her solidarity anthem "U.N.I.T.Y." and Salt-N-Pepa winning duo or group for their anti-slut-shaming credo "None of Your Business," shortly following a thrashing performance of the jam.

39th Grammys (1997): LeAnn Rimes becomes youngest winner ever

After lighting up the country world with her debut album Blue, 14-year-old LeAnn Rimes became the youngest artist ever to win a Grammy -- beating previous holder Luis Miguel by 131 days -- when she took best new artist and best female country vocal performance (for "Blue") at the '97 awards. "Looking back on it when I watch video of it, I see this girl who was wide-eyed and so excited,? she told People last year. ?It was a great moment.? Rimes' record still stands today among solo artists, though all three Peasall Sisters -- credited artists on the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, album of the year winner in '02 -- technically have her beat.

42nd Grammys (2000): The dress

One of those Latin artists able to storm the American pop scene post-Ricky Martin was cross-platform star Jennifer Lopez, who was nominated for best dance recording for her Hot 100 top 10 hit "Waiting for Tonight." But it wasn't her Grammy chances -- she eventually lost to Cher's "Believe" -- that got people talking that night: It was her dress, a tropical-print green Versace gown with a neckline that just kept going, which captured headlines seemingly for the rest of the year. The dress cemented J.Lo as an icon and had impact well outside of the worlds of music and fashion; according to software engineer Eric Schmidt, the countless Internet queries for it post-Grammys were the inspiration for Google Image Search.

46th Grammys (2004): OutKast makes album of the year history

Following the duo's single "Hey Ya!" reaching a level of cultural ubiquity rarely achieved by 21st-century pop songs, OutKast had emerged as arguably both the most successful and acclaimed act in popular music by the time of the 2004 Grammys. It was no surprise, then, that their Speakerboxxx/The Love Below double album would take home the top prize of the night -- which it did -- except that no rap group had ever done it before, with Lauryn Hill's rap/R&B hybrid Miseducation set being the only album from the hip-hop world to do so previously. More incredibly? Well over a decade later, there still hasn't been another hip-hop album to do so since.

47th Grammys (2005): Kanye gets his first Grammy moment

Still just a young'n on the scene with only a debut album to his lead credit, Kanye West's behavior was already a major point of discussion leading up to the 2005 Grammys, as he had made headlines for storming out of the AMAs in anger after losing best new artist to country star Gretchen Wilson. Kanye would lose best new artist (to Maroon 5) at the Grammys too, as well as a couple other major awards, but he did emerge victorious in best rap album (for College Dropout) and best rap song (for "Jesus Walks"). "A lot of people were wondering what I was going to do if I didn't win anything," 'Ye commented while accepting his rap album Grammy. "I guess we'll never know."

54th Grammys (2012): Whitney overshadows Adele

Adele had done everything but bring back the CD era in the early '10s, with her 21 album proving a unanimously beloved commercial blockbuster, the likes of which most thought no longer possible in the post-monocultural age of digital. By the time of the '12 Grammys, the only suspense remaining was for categories where she wasn't nominated: Adele went six for six, including album of the year for 21, and song and record of the year for "Rolling in the Deep." However, Adele's pre-destined triumph was overshadowed by music-industry tragedy, as pop and R&B giant Whitney Houston had died unexpectedly following a pre-Grammys party just days before: "We've had a death in the family," summarized host LL Cool J, before Jennifer Hudson paid proper tribute with a heartfelt "I Will Always Love You" cover.

Full list
https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/grammys/8095834/greatest-grammy-moments-60-years

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