Taylor Swift wins top Grammy Award, Kendrick Lamar wins 5

Kendrick Lamar didn’t win Album of the Year, but he dazzled with a show-stopping performance that shook the normally-staid Grammy Awards.

During her acceptance speech, Taylor told young females to not let others take credit for their success. Former president Jimmy Carter won the ungainly-titled Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling) for his project A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety.

Sheeran’s friend Swift, who was also nominated in the category for her hit Blank Space, leapt to her feet and cheered as his name was announced before he ran over to embrace her.

Taking the stage, the 26-year-old country prodigy turned pop giant highlighted her success as the first woman to win the music industry’s most prestigious prize twice.

Swift beat competitors that included Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly”, an experimental rap opus that touched on the state of USA race relations, and R&B star The Weeknd’s “Beauty Behind the Madness”.

The evening featured a string of tributes to artists who have died since the last ceremony, including Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White, Eagles musician Glenn Frey, Motorhead frontman Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister and David Bowie.

And Best New Artist Meghan Trainor couldn’t hold back tears as she thanked her family.

Meanwhile, drummer and bandleader Antonio Sanchez, who was denied an opportunity to win an Oscar a year ago for Best Original Score after his work for the film “Birdman” was declared ineligible, was awarded Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media.

Last year Beck, the alternative rocker revered in art house circles for his inventiveness, won Album of the Year for “Morning Phase”, beating out far better-selling competitors. Lead singer Brittany Howard, during a performance of “Don’t Wanna Fight”, conveyed more power and emotion in just her voice than the noisy Hollywood Vampires supergroup of Alice Cooper, Johnny Depp and Joe Perry did with a mess of tattoos, flames, flashing lights and loud guitars.

Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” won “Record of the Year”.

“We wouldn’t be up here if it wasn’t for the people dancing to this song”, Mars said.

– Best new artist: Meghan Trainor. “And some will be moved”, she said, seeming to speak to those who were critical of her Super Bowl performance of the anthem, “Formation”.

Mainstream tastes were also on display in the two dance/electronic awards which both went to Skrillex and Diplo, the hit-making Los Angeles producers who crafted celebrity Justin Bieber’s new sound.

Best rap performance: “Alright”, Kendrick Lamar.

“I’m African American”, Lamar sang in his song.

Best country duo/group performance: “Girl Crush”, Little Big Town. Muse’s Drones bagged Best Rock Album, while mysterious metal outfit Ghost won Best Metal Performance for “Cirice”.

The cast from the Broadway smash “Hamilton” is scheduled to perform a number – a notable presentation for the Grammys, which usually leaves the musical theater performances to the Tonys.