Taylor Swift Makes History with Third Album of the Year Grammy Win — and Gives Joe Alwyn Sweet Shout-out
And the winner is… Folklore!
At the 2021 Grammy Awards on Sunday, Taylor Swift took home the coveted album of the year honor for her surprise July 2020 record. The pop star is the first woman to win the award three times.
While accepting the award, the star, 31, gave a sweet shout-out to her boyfriend of more than four years, Joe Alwyn, who co-wrote “Exile” and “Betty” with her on the album, as well as “Champagne Problems,” “Coney Island” and “Evermore” on its successor Evermore.
“Joe is the first person that I play every single song that I write, and I had the best time writing songs with you in quarantine,” she said.
Swift went on to thank all of her “collaborators,” as well as “James Inez and Betty and their parents,” referencing close pals Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds and their three daughters. “[They] are the second and third people that I play every new song that I write,” she said.
She concluded her speech by thanking her fans.
“You guys met us in this imaginary world that we created, and we can’t tell you how honored we are forever,” she said. “Thank you so much and thank you to the Recording Academy. We will never forget you did this for us. Thank you so much.”
The 41-time nominee also received nods in the song of the year and best pop solo performance categories for “Cardigan,” best pop duo/group performance for “Exile” with Bon Iver and best song written for visual media for “Beautiful Ghosts.”
Folklore featured tracks such as “My Tears Ricochet,” “Mirrorball” and “The Last Great American Dynasty.”
“I’m really proud of ‘She had a marvelous time ruining everything’ from ‘The Last Great American Dynasty’ because it’s about what happens when women step out of their cages and run,” she recently told PEOPLE.
“It can be a real pearl-clutching moment for society when a woman owns her desires and wildness,” Swift added, “and I love the idea that the woman in question would be too joyful in her freedom to even care that she’s ruffling feathers, raising eyebrows or becoming the talk of the town. The idea that she decided there were marvelous times to be had, and that was more important.”
Other nominees for album of the year included Jhené Aiko‘s Chilombo, Black Pumas’ self-titled album, Coldplay‘s Everyday Life, Jacob Collier’s Diesse Vol. 3, Haim‘s Women in Music Pt. III, Dua Lipa‘s Future Nostalgia and Post Malone‘s Hollywood‘s Bleeding.
The Grammy Awards, hosted by Trevor Noah, will air Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS Television Network and Paramount+.
