With teenage singer-songwriter Billie Eilish's historic wins at the Grammys yesterday, the United States' Recording Academy is sitting up and giving credit to young artists and first-time nominees making a big impact in the contemporary music world today.

The 18-year-old American is the youngest to win awards in the top categories - Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year for her hit single Bad Guy, and Album Of The Year for debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?.

She also won Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album, nabbing five of the six categories she was nominated in at the 62nd edition of the award show that is often referred to as "music's biggest night".

Eilish, who crafts and records her songs with her producer brother Finneas in a bedroom in their parents' house in Los Angeles, is not the youngest artist to win a Grammy.

That record goes to country singer Leah Peasall, who was only eight when the album that she sang in, the O Brother, Where Art Thou? Soundtrack, won Album Of The Year back in 2002.

The only award Eilish lost - Best Pop Solo Performance - went to Lizzo, the singer, rapper and flautist who came into the awards with the most number of nominations - eight.

The 31-year-old won two other awards - Best Urban Contemporary Album for her third album Cuz I Love You and Best Traditional R&B Performance for her song Jerome.

Still, the body positivity icon injected plenty of energy into the awards show with a fiery opening performance in which she belted out high notes, rapped high-velocity rhymes and busted out a wicked solo on the flute.

Genre-bending rapper and breakout star Lil Nas X, 20, ended up as one of the biggest losers, winning only Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Music Video out of six nominations.

His live performance featured several remixes of his viral hit tune Old Town Road and included a bevy of guest stars such as K-pop juggernauts BTS and country star Billy Ray Cyrus.

The wins for first-time nominees Eilish, Lizzo, Lil Nas X and also 19-year-old Jamaican singer Koffee, who won Best Reggae Album, can be seen as the Academy making a play at keeping the winners' list fresh and relevant to younger audiences.

The Grammys have long been plagued by accusations of having a lack of diversity among voting members and the winners, as well as pandering to legacy acts while giving the snub to newer artists.

This year's ceremony was also shrouded in fresh controversy as a few days before, former chief executive officer Deborah Dugan alleged that the Grammy nominations process were rigged. The organisers have called the claims "categorically false and misleading".

But if there is one thing that the Grammys do well, it is in honouring fallen heroes.

The ceremony kicked off on a sombre note as returning host Alicia Keys gave a eulogy for basketball star Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash together with his 13-year-old daughter just hours before the ceremony.

There were several last-minute tributes - including Keys singing It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday with Boyz II Men - which were especially apt since the event was held at Staples Centre, an arena that is homeground to Bryant's team, the Los Angeles Lakers.

There were also several tributes to late rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was fatally shot at the age of 33 last year. He was awarded two posthumous prizes, his first Grammy wins - for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap/Sung Performance.

DJ Khaled and John Legend led Hussle's proteges such as YG and Roddy Ricch in a live performance that included the late artist rapping in a video backdrop.

Top 5 moments

1 TRIBUTES TO KOBE BRYANT

The Grammys took place yesterday in Los Angeles, hours after news broke that basketball legend and Lakers star Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash that killed seven others.

The sombre news hung over the show even as music was celebrated and heard round the world.

The event, which was held at Staples Centre - home of the Los Angeles Lakers where Bryant played for 20 years until his retirement in 2016 - opened by addressing the tragic and shocking news of Bryant's death.

Host Alicia Keys said: "Earlier today, Los Angeles, America, and the whole wide world lost a hero. And we're literally standing here heartbroken in the house that Kobe Bryant built."

The 39-year-old singer was then joined by the R&B group Boyz II Men in a brief a cappella performance of It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday in honour of the late athlete.

Singer Lizzo, who won Best Pop Solo Performance, opened her performance by shouting out: "Tonight is for Kobe" and launched into her hits Cuz I Love You and Truth Hurts.

The tragedy was referenced throughout the show.

2 BILLIE EILISH WINS

Teenage pop sensation Billie Eilish swept the major awards, winning in five categories including Best New Artist, Record Of The Year and Album Of The Year.

She was accompanied throughout the ceremony by her family - including her brother Finneas O'Connell, who produced and wrote her album - When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

Accepting their award for Song Of The Year, O'Connell, 22, said: "We make music in our bedroom together, they let us do that and we still do that."

The siblings recorded the album in a bedroom studio in their parents' house at Highland Park, a neighbourhood in Los Angeles.

When accepting album of the year, Eilish, looking almost speechless, said: "I'm not going to waste your time, I'm really not. I love you. Thank you for this."

3 THE ADORABLE PARENTS

Specifically, rapper Tyler, the Creator's mother and singer Camila Cabello's father were in the spotlight at the Grammys.

Cabello sang First Man, dedicated to her father - the "the first man that really loved (her)".

The 22-year-old Cuban-American singer walked into the audience to where her father was sitting to sing directly to him as he cried in the first row.

Footage of Cabello's childhood with her father played in the background as she sang.

Tyler, the Creator's mother accompanied him onstage when he took home Best Rap Album for Igor. She looked excited and cried as her son accepted his award (both top).

As his mother gleefully wrapped her arms around him, he joked: "Mum, I gotta say my speech, dog."

4 THAT BTS MOMENT

BTS had only about one minute of screentime at the Grammys, performing with rapper Lil Nas X for an all-star version of his monster hit Old Town Road.

BTS' rapper RM was featured in a remix of the song and the South Korean boy band joined deejay Diplo and veteran songwriter Billy Ray Cyrus, who each had remixed versions of the song as well, on stage for the Grammys.

BTS made history as the first South Korean act to perform at the ceremony though they were shut out of all nominations this year.

The band's sleek costumes and smooth dance moves onstage dominated Twitter conversations as the powerful BTS Army (the name given to BTS fans) took to social media to express their love for the septet.

5 DEMI LOVATO TEARS UP

Lovato, 27, debuted her new song Anyone in an emotional performance at the Grammys.

The singer, who has previously opened up about her struggles with addiction and suicidal thoughts, began singing. But she had to stop and start again when she choked up.

The song was written just days before she was hospitalised in July 2018 after a drug overdose.

With lyrics like "I feel stupid when I sing/Nobody's listening to me", the song chronicled the times when she hit rock bottom.

When her performance ended, she received a standing ovation.

Jan Lee