Best New Artist Grammy Winners: Where Are They Now?

Winning Best New Artist at the Grammys is one of the highest honors an artist can receive, but some observers have long believed the trophy can be more of a curse than a blessing.

In the 1970s and 1980s in particular, several winners had relatively short-lived careers after winning the Best New Artist award. After the 1990 Grammy Awards, the winners of Best New Artist, Milli Vanilli, had their trophy stripped after admitting they had not sung on their own album.

The following year, however, the curse appeared to be broken Mariah Carey took home the award. The “Fantasy” singer went on to become one of the most successful pop artists in history, amassing 19 #1 hits and selling more than 220 million records worldwide. As of 2022, she holds the record for most #1 singles by a solo artist, beating artists such as Elvis Presley, rihanna, Madonna, Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston. (The only artist with more #1s than Carey is the Beatles, who have 20.)

In the 2000s, the so-called curse really seemed to be a thing of the past. From 2000 to 2009, the Recording Academy crowned hitmakers among them Alicia Keys, Christina Aguileramaroon 5, John legendAmy Winehouse, Carrie underwood and Adele.

“I’m going to cry,” the “Easy On Me” singer said in February 2009 while accepting her trophy. She also addressed some of her fellow candidates, saying: “duffy, I love you, I think you’re great. Jonas Brothers, I love you too!”

The British native is also the first artist (and second artist ever) to have won all four “Big Four” Grammys over the course of her career: Best New Artist, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year. The only other person to repeat the feat since Adele is Billie Eilishwho swept all four categories in 2020.

“That was freakin’ crazy,” said the “Bad Guy” singer Fashion of their big wins in February 2020. “If anything, it’s an exciting thing for the kids to make music in their bedroom. We’re making progress I think in this place – kids who don’t have enough money to use studios.”

2021, Megan Thee Stallion became the first female rapper to win Best New Artist since Lauryn Hill took home the award in 1999. When the “Body” musician took the stage to accept her statue in March of that year, she was initially speechless.

“Thanks to my mom,” Megan later said, referring to her mother, Holly Thomas, who died in 2019. “She’s not here with me today, but I know she’s here with me in spirit, and she always believed I could do that.”

Keep scrolling to see where the recent Best New Artists winners are now.