Beyoncé wins album of the year at Grammy awards for 'Cowboy Carter'

Beyoncé Knowles-Carter took home the top prize of the night at this year's Grammy Awards, as the megastar earned her first album of the year award for latest album "Cowboy Carter."

"I just feel very full and very honored," Beyoncé said from the stage, accompanied by her daughter Blue Ivy Carter. "It is has been many, many years, and I just want to thank the Grammys, every songwriter, every collaborator, every producer, all of the hard work."

She only mentioned one person by name.

"I want to dedicate this to Miss Martell, and I hope we keep pushing forward and opening doors," she said.

Linda Martell is an 83-year-old singer who became the first Black female artist to perform solo at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in 1969. Martell, known for songs "Color Him Father" and "Bad Case of the Blues," opened up doors for women of color in country music. Beyonce brought on Martell as a collaborator for "Cowboy Carter," featuring her on tracks "Spaghetti" and "The Linda Martell Show."

Only three other Black women have won the album of the year award in Grammy history: Natalie Cole (1992), Whitney Houston (1994) and Lauryn Hill (1999). Beyoncé has been nominated four previous times for her albums "I Am…Sasha Fierce," "Beyoncé," "Lemonade" and "Renaissance."

Before leaving the stage, Beyoncé shared an emotional hug with Blue Ivy. In the crowd, her husband, Jay-Z, clinked glasses with fellow nominee Taylor Swift.

Host Trevor Noah made his final joke of the night.

"Well, we finally saw it happen everyone. Beyoncé has just won album of the year," he said. "I was thinking about it earlier, Jay. She had 99 nominations and now an album win is one."

Album of the year was Beyoncé's third win of the night. She started the day strong by taking home the award for best country duo/group performance for "II Most Wanted" with Miley Cyrus. The "16 Carriages" singer then won best country album for "Cowboy Carter." It was the first time a Black woman won that award.

Plus, "Cowboy Carter" won't be going anywhere anytime soon. At midnight the night before, Beyoncé announced a 2025 tour behind the album.

2025 album of the year nominees

1. André 3000: "New Blue Sun"

2. Beyoncé: "Cowboy Carter" (WON)

3. Sabrina Carpenter: "Short n' Sweet"

4. Charli XCX: "Brat"

5. Jacob Collier: "Djesse Vol. 4"

6. Billie Eilish: "Hit Me Hard and Soft"

7. Chappell Roan: "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess"

8. Taylor Swift: "The Tortured Poets Department"

Beyoncé, who is already the most decorated artist in Grammy's history, became the leading nominee for the 2025 award show with a total of 11 nominations. Some of those included nominations in the Country & American roots categories for the first time.

Simultaneously, this made her the most nominated artist ever with a total of 99 career nods. Previously, she was tied with her husband, Jay-Z, with 88.

Full list of Beyoncé's 2025 Grammy nominations

1. Record of the year: “Texas Hold 'Em”

2. Album of the year: "Cowboy Carter" (WON)

3. Song of the year: “Texas Hold 'Em”

4. Best pop solo performance: “Bodyguard”

5. Best pop duo/group performance: “Levii's Jeans” featuring Post Malone

6. Best melodic rap performance: “Spaghettii” featuring Linda Martell and Shaboozey

7. Best country solo performance: “16 Carriages”

8. Best country duo/group performance: “II Most Wanted" featuring Miley Cyrus (WON)

9. Best country song: “Texas Hold 'Em”

10. Best country album: "Cowboy Carter" (WON)

11. Best Americana performance: “Ya Ya”

Despite all her history-making accolades, many fans were waiting in high anticipation to see if this would be the year the Recording Academy finally awarded Beyoncé album of the year.

Last year, Jay-Z called out the Recording Academy for snubbing Beyoncé in the album of the year category during his acceptance speech for the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. Consequently, he drew attention to the lack of recognition Black artists have endured at the esteemed award show.

This year marked the first time a Black woman was nominated in the pinnacle category for a country album. Ray Charles was nominated for album of the year for "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music" in 1962.

In fact, before Beyoncé no Black female solo artist had ever won a Grammy for country music. Four years ago, Mickey Guyton became the first Black female solo artist to be recognized in a country music category when she received a nomination for her song "Black Like Me."

Contributing: Audrey Gibbs and Bryan West

Follow Caché McClay, the USA TODAY Network's Beyoncé Knowles-Carter reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @cachemcclay.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Beyoncé wins album of the year award at 2025 Grammys