It was the shock decision that got the Beyhive buzzing, sent the internet into a frenzy, and, perhaps most embarrassingly for the Grammys producers and voters, had its own winner publicly apologising onstage for claiming the top prize.
Adele's ballad-y 25 won Album of the Year over Beyonce's provocative, critically-lauded Lemonade at yesterday's Grammys, and the heated outrage shows no signs of cooling.
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Visibly pregnant, Beyonce performs at the Grammys in what is being called "an ode to black motherhood".
In a since deleted tweet, Beyonce's own sister Solange was leading the backlash overnight and also hinting at a future boycott of the awards, linking to a Tumblr post from singer Frank Ocean who had publicly criticised the Grammys over the weekend.
"1989 getting Album of the Year over To Pimp A Butterfly. Hands down one of the most 'faulty' TV moments I've seen," Ocean wrote in his post, referencing last year's controversial loss for rapper Kendrick Lamar at the hands of Taylor Swift in the same category.
"If you're up for a discussion about the cultural bias and general nerve damage the show you produce suffers from then I'm all for it," he added in the note, which was aimed at Grammys executive Ken Ehrlich, who had criticised the singer's decision to boycott the show in an interview with Variety.
#GrammysSoWhite – a rehash of 2015's Oscars furore that sparked a shake-up of its voting body – was also trending online, from music fans tired of the Recording Academy's entrenched bias.
2013 - mumford > frank
— Incomplete Kissㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ (@joyridethealbum) February 13, 2017
2014 - daft punk > kendrick
2015 - beck > beyonce
2016 - taylor > kendrick
2017 - adele > beyonce#GrammysSoWhite pic.twitter.com/H3y6fMs7xs
When that white guilt hits you #GRAMMYs #Beyonce #GrammysSoWhite pic.twitter.com/DzHbOnykjD
— Austin (@tw3rkology) February 13, 2017
The Grammys have long been accused of overlooking the work of black artists, with recent controversies seeing upset Album of the Year losses for rapper Kendrick Lamar (Good Kid, Maad City) to Daft Punk (Random Access Memories) in 2014 and Beyonce (Beyonce) to Beck (Morning Phase) in 2015, the latter famously prompting a trademark Kanye West stage-rush.
Similarly, Chance The Rapper, who took out the Best New Artist award at yesterday's ceremony, became the first black hip-hop artist to win the category since Lauryn Hill in 1999, a ludicrous fact considering the likes of Lamar, Nicki Minaj, Drake and Kanye have been nominated in recent years.
Writing for The New York Times, critic Jon Caramanica wondered if the backlash would finally force the Recording Association's hand, injecting diversity and more culturally in-touch members into its core.
"When an institution stands still while its citizens are pressing for change, how long can the borders hold before everyone outside is let in, or everyone inside decides it's not worth staying and leaves?" he wrote.
Adele – whose profusive onstage apology has seen her both praised and ridiculed for "doing a Macklemore", a reference to the time the white rapper apologised heartfully after stealing the Best Rap Album prize from Kendrick Lamar's beloved Good Kid, Maad City in 2014 (Macklemore reportedly refused to submit his most recent album for voting this year) – was among those calling for change, so shocked by the win that she ~allegedly~ broke her trophy in pieces, Mean Girls-style, to gift half to its deserved recipient.
ADELE BROKE HER ALBUM OF THE YEAR GRAMMY IN HALF TO GIVE PART OF IT TO BEYONCÉ. I LOVE HER SO MUCH #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/tf6Yn630BQ
— SHOOK (@adkinsupdates) February 13, 2017
"My Album Of The Year is Lemonade." - Adele pic.twitter.com/Zp5mcUB9Q6
— deray mckesson (@deray) February 13, 2017
"My album of the year is Lemonade, so a piece of me did die inside... I voted for her," the British singer told reporters in the press room after her win.
"I felt like it was her time to win. What the f--- does Beyonce have to do to win Album of the Year?"