World
A glance at the world’s deadliest quakes in past 25 years
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake shook Turkey and Syria on Monday, killing more than 5,000 people in the two countries. The death toll is expected to rise as rescuers working in cold and snow look for trapped people in the rubble of toppled buildings.
Here are some of the world’s deadliest earthquakes in the past 25 years:
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— June 22, 2022: In Afghanistan, more than 1,100 people die in magnitude 6.1 earthquake.
— Aug. 14, 2021: In Haiti, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake kills more than 2,200 people.
— Sept. 28, 2018: A magnitude 7.5 earthquake hits Indonesia, triggering a tsunami and killing more than 4,300 people.
— April 25, 2015: In Nepal, more than 8,800 people are killed by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake.
— March 11, 2011: A magnitude 9.0 quake off the northeast coast of Japan triggers a tsunami, killing nearly 20,000 people.
— Jan. 12, 2010: In Haiti, over 100,000 people are killed by a magnitude 7.0 quake. Government estimates put the number at a staggering 316,000 dead.
— May 12, 2008: A magnitude 7.9 quake strikes eastern Sichuan in China, resulting in over 87,500 deaths.
— May 27, 2006: More than 5,700 people die when a magnitude 6.3 quake hits the island of Java, Indonesia.
— Oct. 8, 2005: A magnitude 7.6 earthquake kills over 80,000 people in Pakistan’s Kashmir region.
— March 28, 2005: A magnitude 8.6 quake in northern Sumatra in Indonesia kills about 1,300 people.
— Dec. 26, 2004: A magnitude 9.1 quake in Indonesia triggers an Indian Ocean tsunami, killing some 230,000 people in a dozen countries.
— Dec. 26, 2003: A magnitude 6.6 earthquake hits southeastern Iran, resulting in more than 20,000 deaths.
— May 21, 2003: More than 2,200 people are killed in a magnitude 6.8 earthquake in Algeria.
— Jan. 26, 2001: A magnitude 7.6 quake strikes Gujarat in India, killing as many as 20,000 people.
— Aug. 17, 1999: A magnitude 7.6 earthquake hits Izmit, Turkey, killing about 18,000 people.
— May 30, 1998: Over 4,000 people are killed after a 6.6 magnitude temblor hits Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province.
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Source: U.S. Geological Survey
Aid, rescuers rush to Turkey, Syria after deadly earthquake
Many governments and aid groups have rushed to dispatch personnel, funds and equipment to help the rescue efforts in quake-stricken areas of Turkey and Syria. Here’s a glance at what’s being provided so far:
— The European Union has mobilized search and rescue teams to help Turkey, while the 27-nation bloc’s Copernicus satellite system has been activated to provide emergency mapping services. At least 13 member countries have offered assistance. The EU said it’s also ready to offer help to Syria through its humanitarian assistance programs.
— The United States is coordinating immediate assistance to NATO-member Turkey, including teams to support search and rescue efforts. U.S.-supported humanitarian partners are also responding to the destruction in Syria. In California, nearly 100 Los Angeles County firefighters and structural engineers, along with a half-dozen specially trained dogs, were being sent to Turkey to help with rescue efforts.
— Russian rescue teams from the Emergencies Ministry are preparing to fly to Syria, where Russian military deployed in that country already has sent 10 units comprising 300 people to help clear debris and search for survivors. The Russian military has set up points to distribute humanitarian assistance. Russia also has offered help to Turkey, which has been accepted.
Read: Rescuers scramble in Turkey, Syria after quake kills 4,000
War-ravaged Syria is calling on the United Nations and all member states to help with rescue efforts, health services, shelter and food aid. The affected area in Syria is divided between government-held territory and the country’s last opposition-held enclave.
— The Israeli army says it’s sending a search and rescue team of 150 engineers, medical personnel and other aid workers to Turkey. The army said they would provide “immediate assistance in life-saving efforts.” The two countries, once close regional allies, are in the process of mending ties after years of tensions. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has also approved a request for humanitarian aid for Syria, received through a diplomatic official. Israel and Syria do not have diplomatic relations and the two countries have fought several wars.
— Neighbor and historic regional rival Greece is sending Turkey a team of 21 rescuers, two rescue dogs and a special rescue vehicle, together with a structural engineer, five doctors and seismic planning experts in a military transport plane.
Most Democrats say ‘no thank you’ to Biden seeking a 2nd term: AP-NORC poll
A majority of Democrats now think one term is plenty for President Joe Biden, despite his insistence that he plans to seek reelection in 2024.
That’s according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research that shows just 37% of Democrats say they want him to seek a second term, down from 52% in the weeks before last year’s midterm elections.
While Biden has trumpeted his legislative victories and ability to govern, the poll suggests relatively few U.S. adults give him high marks on either. Follow-up interviews with poll respondents suggest that many believe the 80-year-old’s age is a liability, with people focused on his coughing, his gait, his gaffes and the possibility that the world’s most stressful job would be better suited for someone younger.
“I, honestly, think that he would be too old,” said Sarah Overman, 37, a Democrat who works in education in Raleigh, North Carolina. “We could use someone younger in the office.”
As the president gives his State of the Union address Tuesday, he has a chance to confront fundamental doubts about his competence to govern. Biden has previously leaned heavily on his track record to say that he’s more than up to the task. When asked if he can handle the office’s responsibilities at his age, the president has often responded as if he’s accepting a dare: “Watch me.”
Read: Biden lawyer: FBI searching Biden’s Rehoboth Beach, home
Democratic candidates performed better than expected in the 2022 midterm elections, a testament to Biden’s message that he is defending democracy and elevating the middle class. Democrats expanded their control of the Senate by one seat and narrowly lost their House majority even though history indicated there would be a Republican wave.
When asked about the survey’s findings at Monday’s news briefing, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre indicated that the results in last year’s election mattered more than polling numbers.
“The way that we should look at this is what we saw from the midterms,” said Jean-Pierre, noting that the relative Democratic successes were “because the president went out there and spoke directly to the American people.”
Overall, 41% approve of how Biden is handling his job as president, the poll shows, similar to ratings at the end of last year. A majority of Democrats still approve of the job Biden is doing as president, yet their appetite for a reelection campaign has slipped despite his electoral track record. Only 22% of U.S. adults overall say he should run again, down from 29% who said so before last year’s midterm elections.
The decline among Democrats saying Biden should run again for president appears concentrated among younger people. Among Democrats age 45 and over, 49% say Biden should run for reelection, nearly as many as the 58% who said that in October. But among those under age 45, 23% now say he should run for reelection, after 45% said that before the midterms.
Linda Lockwood, a Democrat and retiree from Kansas City, Kansas, said she is not that worried about Biden’s age.
“He seems to be in pretty good condition in my opinion and that’s coming from a 76-year-old woman,” Lockwood said. “You might be a little more careful going down the steps as you get older, but if your brain is still working, that’s the important part.”
Already the oldest president in U.S. history, Biden has been dogged by questions about his age as he would be 86 if he serves a full eight years as president. He often works long days, standing for hours, remembering the names of strangers he meets while traveling who want to share a story about their lives with him.
Yet he’s been a national political figure for a half-century, having first been elected to the Senate from Delaware in 1972, and the moments when he appears lost on stage or stumbles through speeches can garner more attention than his policies.
Read: Biden should be 'embarrassed' by classified docs case: Democrats
Voters like Ross Truckey, 35, have been watching the president carefully. A lawyer in Michigan, Truckey did not vote for Biden or Republican Donald Trump in 2020. He feels as though Biden has been the latest in a string of “subpar” presidents.
“His age and possibly his mental acuity is not where I would want the leader of the country to be,” Truckey said. “He, at times, appears to be an old man who is past his prime. Sometimes I feel a little bit of pity for the guy being pushed out in front of crowds.”
Biden has repeatedly emphasized in speeches that it’s essential for the public to know the totality of what his administration is doing. It’s notched four big legislative victories with coronavirus relief, the bipartisan infrastructure law, the CHIPS and Science Act, and tax and spending measures that help to address climate change and improve the IRS’ ability to enforce the tax code and help taxpayers.
Yet just 13% have a lot of confidence in Biden’s ability to accomplish major policy goals, a possible reflection of the fact that he must now work with a Republican majority in the House that wants to cut spending in return for lifting the government’s legal borrowing authority.
The poll also shows only 23% of U.S. adults say they have “a great deal” of confidence in Biden to effectively manage the White House. That has ticked down from 28% a year ago and remains significantly lower than 44% two years ago, just as Biden took office.
Just 21% have a lot of confidence in Biden’s ability to handle a crisis, down slightly from 26% last March.
On working with congressional Republicans and managing government spending, roughly half of U.S. adults say they have hardly any confidence in the president, and only around 1 in 10 say they have high confidence.
Republican voters are unwilling to give Biden the benefit of the doubt, hurting his ratings.
John Rodriguez, 76, backed Trump and assumes that Biden is merely doing the bidding of his aides. That creates a challenge for a president who promised to unite the country.
“I believe he’s not the one who’s calling the shots,” said Rodriguez, who lives in Cutler Bay, Florida. “He’s a puppet being told where to go, what to say.”
But the key obstacle for Biden might be voters such as Vikram Joglekar, 46, who works in the computer industry in Austin, Texas. He backed the president in 2020, only to summarize his feelings about Biden’s time in office as “meh.”
“It’s not up for me to decide whether someone should run or not,” Joglekar said. “I don’t know who is going to be on the ballot, but I would hope it would be someone better from his party.”
Salman Rushdie gives first interview since 2022 stabbing
Months after being stabbed repeatedly as he prepared to give a lecture, Salman Rushdie is blind in his right eye, struggles to write and, at times, has “frightening” nightmares.
But, he said during his first interview since the attack, he still has a feeling of gratitude.
“Well, you know, I’ve been better,” he told The New Yorker’s David Remnick during an interview published Monday. “But, considering what happened, I’m not so bad.”
“The big injuries are healed, essentially,” Rushdie went on to describe. “I have feeling in my thumb and index finger and in the bottom half of the palm. I’m doing a lot of hand therapy, and I’m told that I’m doing very well.”
Remnick, who spoke with Rushdie both in person at his agent’s office in Manhattan and via Zoom, wrote that the Booker Prize-winning author had lost more than 40 pounds (18 kilograms) and mostly reads through an iPad so he can adjust the lighting and font size.
READ: Salman Rushdie loses use of an eye and hand, says agent
“There is scar tissue on the right side of his face,” Remnick wrote. “He speaks as fluently as ever, but his lower lip droops on one side. The ulnar nerve in his left hand was badly damaged.”
Rushdie, 75, lived in hiding for years after Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa in 1989 calling for his death because of the alleged blasphemy of the novel “The Satanic Verses.” But he had long since moved about freely, with minimal security, and did not feel any sense of risk last August about appearing at the Chautauqua Institution, a nonprofit education and retreat center in western New York.
Rushdie was on stage when approached by a young man dressed in black and carrying a knife. The alleged assailant, Hadi Matar, has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and attempted murder. During his New Yorker interview, Rushdie referred to Matar as an “idiot,” but otherwise said he felt no anger.
“I’ve tried very hard over these years to avoid recrimination and bitterness,” he said. “I just think it’s not a good look. One of the ways I’ve dealt with this whole thing is to look forward and not backwards. What happens tomorrow is more important than what happened yesterday.”
The interview came out on the eve of the publication of Rushdie’s new novel, “Victory City,” which he completed a month before he was attacked. Featuring a protagonist who lives to be 247, “Victory” is a characteristically surreal and exuberant narrative about an imagined ancient poem that has received highly favorable reviews, with The Washington Post’s Ron Charles writing that “Rushdie’s magical style unfurls wonders.”
Rushdie had been silent for months on social media, but now tweets on occasion and even responds to insults. When a tweeter last week told him he was living a “disgraceful life,” Rushdie answered, “Oh, another fan! So pleased.”
READ: Iran denies involvement but justifies Salman Rushdie attack
During his interview, he noted ruefully that sales for his book had soared after the stabbing, as if he were more popular when in danger.
“Now that I’ve almost died, everybody loves me,” he said. “That was my mistake, back then. Not only did I live but I tried to live well. Bad mistake. Get 15 stab wounds, much better.”
On Monday, he tweeted a picture of himself, staring directly into the camera lens — his face thinner than in photos from before the stabbing, his right eye covered by a dark lens in his glasses frame.
He is otherwise still trying to recover. Rushdie has written that he initially had difficulty writing fiction after the fatwa, and he is having a hard time now, saying that he will sit down to work and “nothing happens,” just a “combination of blankness and junk.”
One project he may attempt: a follow-up to his 2012 memoir “Joseph Anton,” which he wrote in the third person.
“This doesn’t feel third-person-ish to me,” Rushdie said of a possible sequel. “I think when somebody sticks a knife into you, that’s a first-person story. That’s an ‘I’ story.”
Survivors scream as desperate rescuers work in Turkey, Syria
Rescuers called out, “Slowly, slowly,” as they lifted a man inch by inch from between slabs of collapsed concrete Monday in the Turkish province that was the epicenter of a devastating earthquake.
His neck in a brace, the barefoot man was carried on a stretcher as he emerged. Rescuers in Pazarcik in the province of Kahramanmaras held him aloft and ran off with him.
It was among numerous rescue efforts that unfolded as darkness, rain and cold enveloped the region of Turkey and Syria that was rocked by a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Hours later, a 7.5 magnitude temblor struck more than 100 kilometers (60 miles) away. At least 3,400 people were killed, and civilians joined rescuers in desperate efforts across Turkey and Syria.
“Can anyone hear me?” rescuers shouted. In some places around southeast Turkey, survivors could be heard screaming from beneath collapsed buildings.
READ: UN agencies launch emergency response as powerful quake rocks Turkey, Syria
People crouched to look below a massive sheet of concrete propped at an angle by steel bars. They crawled in and out, trying to reach survivors. Excavating equipment dug through the rubble below.
Elsewhere in Kahramanmaras province, rescuers pulled two children alive from the rubble. One lay on a stretcher on the snowy ground. Rescuers quieted the throngs of people trying to help so they could hear survivors and find them.
Some emerged safely then waited to hear any word on relatives.
“My two grandchildren, my daughter-in-law, are all inside. They haven’t come out,” said Hasan Birbalta while waiting near a collapsed building in Pazarcik, adding the granddaughter is 2 and the grandson is 6.
Thousands of search-and-rescue personnel, firefighters and medics were working across 10 provinces, along with some 3,500 soldiers. Residents lifted rubble and unearthed people heard screaming from beneath buildings. Aftershocks made rescue efforts more dangerous.
In Adana, about 20 people, some in emergency rescue jackets, used power saws atop the concrete mountain of a collapsed building to carve out space that would let any survivors climb out or be rescued. Later, excavators joined the efforts as bright spotlights illuminated the wreckage.
Turkish military ambulance planes were transporting the injured to Istanbul and Ankara hospitals, the defense ministry said. Rescuers from across Turkey tried to make it to the provinces amid heavy snow and rain.
READ: Bangladeshi student in Turkey missing after earthquake
At a news conference late Monday, four ministers said that because Hatay’s airport had been severely damaged, they had to fly into Adana nearly three hours away.
In Syria, a man held a dead girl in his arms beside a two-story collapsed concrete building as he walked away from the debris. He and a woman set the girl on the floor under covering to protect her from the rain, wrapping her in a large blanket and looking back to the building, overwhelmed.
An official with Turkey’s disaster management authority said 7,840 people had been rescued across 10 provinces. The official, Orhan Tatar, said 5,606 buildings had collapsed.
Tatar said the total area affected was large and places were hard to reach, but that as of late Monday, teams had been directed to all collapsed buildings.
UN agencies launch emergency response as powerful quake rocks Turkey, Syria
After a massive earthquake hit southern Türkiye and northern Syria in the early hours of Monday, prompting fears of a humanitarian crisis, the UN aid agencies scrambled to help many thousands of reported victims, including those still believed to be buried under the rubble.
The initial 7.8 magnitude quake struck close to Gaziantep, followed by another 7.5 magnitude tremor several hours later.
In a situation overview, the UN aid coordination office OHCHA, said there had been "close to 2,000 deaths reported" in the two countries impacted, with at least 78 aftershocks reported, ahead of the second earthquake.
The Turkish government issued a Level 4 alarm, calling for international assistance. Northwest Syria is home to around 4.1 million people who rely on humanitarian assistance, the majority, being women and children.
Syrian communities have been hit by an ongoing cholera outbreak together with harsh winter weather. So far there is a 48 percent funding gap for the last quarter of 2022, with $371 million pledged, out of a required total of just over $800 million.
Emergency medical teams from the World Health Organization (WHO) have been given the green light to provide essential care for the injured and most vulnerable, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tweeted.
Specialist UN surge teams from the Office of UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) also tweeted that they were "ready to deploy," amid multiple horrifying social media posts showing huge buildings collapsing in heavily built-up areas.
The OCHA underscored that the initial 7.8 magnitude quake hit at the height of winter. The epicentre was in southern Türkiye, where nearby Gaziantep – an important UN aid hub for northern Syria – was among the cities affected.
Although the earthquake was felt as far away as Lebanon, closer to home, northern Syria's Aleppo and Idlib also reportedly saw thousands of buildings collapse, including two hospitals.
Humanitarian needs in northern Syria are already huge, as the region is home to millions of people displaced by the country's long-running war.
Snow and rain have hampered the work of rescue teams, whose families are also among those believed to be buried under collapsed buildings.
After an official request for international assistance from Ankara, the UN Children's Fund, UNICEF, confirmed that it was ready to support the emergency response.
Echoing that message of support, the UN migration agency, IOM, said its warehouse in Gaziantep had prepared non-food items and essential relief ready to be deployed. "The IOM teams are also doing on-the-ground assessments to inform the response," said spokesperson Safa Msehli.
Read more: What to know about the big quake that hit Turkey, Syria
What to know about the big quake that hit Turkey, Syria
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Monday devastated wide swaths of Turkey and Syria, killing thousands of people.
The quake hit at depth of 11 miles (18 kilometres) and was centred in southern Turkey, near the northern border of Syria, according to the US Geological Survey.
Many aftershocks have rocked the area since the initial quake. In the first 11 hours, the region had felt 13 significant aftershocks with a magnitude of at least 5, said Alex Hatem, a USGS research geologist.
Scientists are studying whether a magnitude 7.5 quake that hit nine hours after the main shock is an aftershock. Hatem said it appears to be the case.
"More aftershocks are certainly expected, given the size of the main shock," Hatem said. "We expect aftershocks to continue in the coming days, weeks and months."
Researchers said the earthquake was a strike-slip quake, where two tectonic plates slide past each other horizontally, instead of moving up and down.
In this case, one block moved west while the other moved east – grinding past each other to create the quake, Hatem said.
The quake occurred in a seismically active area known as the East Anatolian fault zone, which has produced damaging earthquakes in the past.
Turkey had another major earthquake in January 2020 – a magnitude 6.7 that caused significant damage.
The earthquake was powerful – one of the biggest strike-slip earthquakes that has hit on land, Hatem said.
"On top of that, it's located near populated areas," she said.
Building collapses were reported in cities, including Diyarbakir, Turkey, and Aleppo, Syria.
Rescue efforts were also hampered by freezing temperatures and traffic jams from residents trying to leave quake-stricken areas.
Read more: Powerful quake rocks Turkey and Syria, kills more than 2,300
Global food prices dropped further in January: UN
Global food prices dropped for the tenth consecutive month in January, the UN food agency said recently.
Price indices for vegetable oils, dairy and sugar drove the January decline, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said Friday.
The FAO Food Price Index fell 17.9 percent below its peak reached in March 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The downward pricing trend was helped in part by a pivotal agreement signed in July to unblock Ukraine grain exports amid the ongoing war.
Tracking monthly changes in the global prices of commonly traded food commodities, the latest index averaged 131.2 points in January, falling 0.8 percent since December.
The FAO reported small price decreases on its latest meat and sugar indices.
"Strong harvest progress in Thailand and favourable weather conditions in Brazil outweighed the impact on sugar prices due to concerns over lower crop yields in India, higher gasoline prices in Brazil, which support demand for ethanol, as well as the Brazilian real's appreciation against the US dollar," the UN agency said.
Also, vegetable oil prices fell 2.9 percent, stemming from subdued global import demand for palm and soy oils and ample export availability of sunflower seed and rapeseed oils. Cereal prices remained essentially unchanged since December.
International wheat prices fell for the third consecutive month. The 2.5 percent decrease relates to Australia and Russia outpacing production expectations. Meanwhile, slightly higher global maize prices were rooted in a strong demand for exports from Brazil and concerns over dry conditions in Argentina.
Cheese became slightly more expensive despite dairy prices averaging 1.4 percent lower than in December, which came after lighter demand from leading importers and increased supplies from New Zealand.
Currency movements drove the price increase alongside a recovery in food services and retail sales in Western Europe following the New Year holiday.
Global rice prices climbed 6.2 percent from December, triggered by tighter availability. Other factors included strong local demand in some Asian exporting countries and exchange rate movements.
In its latest Cereal Supply and Demand Brief, the FAO expects international trade in cereals in the 2022/23 period to decline by 1.7 percent from the previous year's record level to 474 million tons.
Early indications point to likely area expansions for winter wheat cropping in the northern hemisphere. However, higher costs may affect the amount of fertiliser that can be applied to crops, with adverse implications for yields.
Low domestic prices could result in a small cutback in wheat plantings in Russia, the world's largest exporter, while severe war-induced impacts in Ukraine are estimated to reduce winter wheat area plantings by 40 percent.
Record planting is forecast for India, spurred by high market and support prices, and relatively high planting is projected in Pakistan as standing water from the 2022 floods is causing less hindrance than initially anticipated.
In the southern hemisphere countries, most of the 2023 coarse grain crops have been sown. Brazil may post record maize plantings, while those in Argentina could decrease due to low soil moisture levels and weather conditions augur well for maize yield prospects in South Africa, the FAO said.
Read more: Global food prices in 2022 hit record high amid drought, war
Grammys fashion: Lizzo, Doja Cat, Styles wow on red carpet
Lizzo wowed in a bright orange Dolce & Gabbana opera coat adorned with flowers and a huge hood as the wild and wacky Grammys red carpet did not disappoint Sunday. Tattered streetwear, T-shirts and denim mixed with blinged-out couture, wild patterns and plenty of skin.
Lizzo walked gingerly as she navigated her heavy coat with a long train. After awhile, she dropped the coat to her shoulders to reveal a busty sequin corset gown underneath in a softer orange. The coat was entirely embroidered with handmade silk flowers, and the gown was silk with crystal mesh Swarovski details. She accessorized with crystal embellished heels and sheer fingerless gloves.
“Lizzo is a floral garden fantasy in her ruffle orange 3D robe and matching corset dress underneath,” said Holly Katz, a stylist and host of the Fashion Crimes podcast. “And we love to hear her roar!”
Taylor Swift, channeling her Midnights era, wore a long two-piece sparkly skirt with a high-neck, long-sleeve crop top, all by Roberto Cavalli. They were, yes, midnight blue. She added statement diamond earrings by Lorraine Schwartz, her hair in an updo.
Fashion lover Harry Styles walked the carpet in a rainbow harlequin pattern jumpsuit adorned with Swarovski crystals. He was shirtless underneath. His low-cut, multicolored Egonlab look drew cheers. Egonlab is a young brand out of Paris.
“The man seems like he’s having an enormous amount of fun with fashion, and even if that doesn’t mean wearing harlequin overalls for most of us, the end result — the sheer joy of it — is something we should all aim for,” said Esquire's style director, Jonathan Evans.
Cardi B., meanwhile, wore a bombshell, sculptural electric blue gown with huge shoulders and a headpiece over one eye.
“I'm trying, I'm trying,” she told photographers as she carefully walked down the carpet.
Cardi's look was from Gaurav Gupta’s latest collection, "continuing to prove she intrinsically understands the delicate style dynamics of the Grammys carpet. It’s not about being silly, but rather making a statement,” said Bianca Betancourt, digital culture editor for Harper’s Bazaar.
To present the award for best rap album, Cardi donned a silver metallic assemblage from the archive of Paco Rabanne. Rabanne died Friday in France at age 88. The top and skirt were done by Julien Dossena in 2021. The matching hood that covered her eyes dates to 2020.
Anitta also made a splash in black Versace from 2003.
“She went toward a more gothic aesthetic,” Betancourt said. “The flowing gown was sublimely tailored and showed the global star doing red carpet elegance in her own way. It was still sexy, still youthful, but still elevated. It didn’t look obviously vintage, which is a testament to Donatella’s artistry.”
Machine Gun Kelly, who often pushes into edgy fashion, was in a silver double-breasted laminated foil suit with a Swarovski crystal harness. It was custom Dolce & Gabbana. He was accompanied by Megan Fox in creamy Zuhair Murad. Her gown had a corset bodice and heart embroidered applique.Sam Smith was in fire engine red. They were accompanied by Kim Petras, and drag queens Violet Chachki and Gottmik in the same color. Smith wore a top hat with a veil. They, too, wore matching gloves, a trend of the night.
Monochrome was a major theme, Betancourt said.
“It's a great way to experiment with more avant-garde looks while still maintaining a sense of stylistic structure,” she said. “Lizzo and Kacey Musgraves also opted for monochrome and textured looks from Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino.”
The marathon carpet kicked off with some notable looks. Doja Cat, always pushing her fashion envelope, showed up in a vinyl, one-shoulder and skintight black gown with long matching gloves from Atelier Versace. Bebe Rexha sizzled in hot pink with twists from head to toe and a va-va-voom halter bodice, proving that Barbiecore is going strong. The look was Moschino by Jeremy Scott.
Musgraves, in Valentino, also took the Barbie note with a feathery cape in a lighter pink hue over a catsuit.
There were golden crowns (Matt B), glittery mouth bling (Alligator Jesus) and epic tattoos (Alisha Gaddis). And lots of slouchy and roomy looks that spoke to many of the men, as did an embroidered denim shorts ensemble for Benny Blanco.
“While there weren’t any giant, unmissable, overwhelmingly popular red-carpet trends on the men’s fashion front, that actually proved to be a positive this year. It gave the smaller trends a little bit more room to shine,” Evans said.
His most compelling? The double-breasted suit, or jacket.
“It’s not just a 2023 thing, of course, but the popularity of the DB tends to ebb and flow, and it seems like this year could be a very good one for the silhouette. LL Cool J, Jack Harlow, Saint JHN and Scott Evans all wore a version of it. They all looked fantastic, and the really great thing is that men in all walks of life can emulate their outfits and look equally fantastic,” he said.
Evans also had thoughts on all that denim.
“Miguel was decked out in it. Benny Blanco, too. The looks were seemingly made with the word ‘divisive’ in mind, but they smacked of a sort of youth-culture cool that embraces that word instead of shying away from it. Love ‘em or hate ’em, those outfits seem like a bellwether of a more denim-forward world in the near future, so take note,” he said.
But back to Doja Cat's vinyl.
“Who can’t stop talking about Doja Cat donning 30,000 red Swarovski crystals for Paris Fashion Week? Well, she certainly doesn’t disappoint at the Grammys as she totally channeled the queen of darkness," Katz said. “The Mia Farrow 60′s haircut was a perfect match for this look.”
Betancourt was also a Doja fan.
“The look was gritty, sexy and much like Doja herself, forward-thinking. Her makeup also deserves a notable mention. It was an exquisite cat eye (pun intended) by Ernesto Casillas with a juicy metallic glossed lip that echoed the early aughts, but done without the kitsch most 2000s-inspired looks often perpetuate," she said.
Viola Davis, meanwhile, completed her EGOT by winning a Grammy at the Grammys pre-telecast ceremony in a Naeem Kahn red, silver and blue tiered sequin short-sleeved gown.
Shania Twain isn’t up for a Grammy. That, she said, freed her to have fun with fashion. Twain’s hair was red and her Harris Reed wide-belled pantsuit was adorned with huge black polka dots against white. She topped it off with a towering, matching wide-brim hat.
“Here I am with all my new fun things to wear,” she said. Reed is a young British American designer she wanted to support. Her goal: “I just wanted to add some pop and cheer.”
Twain, said Katz, “definitely scored in the avant-garde category but does sort of look like she just stepped out of Alice in Wonderland.”
Laverne Cox WAS “Wakanda Forever” in her custom strapless leather Kim Kassas embellished warrior figure dress and African-inspired jewelry, Katz said. “Paying homage to the African culture through fashion is always in style.”
Cox’s leather dress by Kim Kassas honors the vision of the late fashion editor Andre Leon Talley. There was another vibe on her mind: “Egyptian/Cleopatra.”
Prabal Gurung whipped up a custom sunny yellow chiffon look for Kelsea Ballerini with light-as-air back pieces she unfurled on the carpet. Amanda Gorman was in a top color of the night: black. Gorman, wearing Prada, twirled her long, sheer overlay worn over a mini-dress on the red carpet.Ballerini's look, Katz said, was “so ethereal and dreamy on the red carpet.”
Beyoncé breaks Grammys record, is now most-decorated artist
Beyoncé stands alone on her Grammy throne: With her fourth win Sunday night, she has become the most decorated artist in the show’s history surpassing the 26-year-old record once held by the late Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti.
“I’m trying not to be too emotional,” the superstar said as her husband Jay-Z stood and applauded her. The singer thanked her late uncle, her parents, Jay-Z and her children for supporting her. “I’m just trying to receive this night. I want to thank God for protecting me. Thank you, God.”
Beyoncé has now collected 32 awards after she won for best R&B song for “Cuff It,” dance-electric music recording for “Break My Soul,” traditional R&B performance for “Plastic Off the Sofa” and dance-electric album for “Renaissance,” which is also nominated for album of the year.
Lizzo won record of the year for “About Damn Time,” delivering a rousing speech that brought many in the audience, including Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Adele, to their feet.
“Me and Adele were having a good time, rooting for our friends. This is an amazing night. This is so unexpected,” Lizzo said, dedicating her award to Prince.
"I wanted to make the world a better place, so I had to be that change to make the world a better place. Now, I look around and see these songs are about loving your body and feeling comfortable in your skin and feeling good.”
Jazz singer Samara Joy won best new artist, shrugging off challenges by such acts as Wet Led, Anitta and Maneskin. The New Yorker was virtually in tears when she collected the award and noted that her little brother was her date. “I’m so, so grateful. Thank you.” She has released two albums as a lead artist and also won the Grammy for best jazz vocal album earlier in the night.
Beyoncé missed being in the room when she tied Solti’s record, which stood since 1997. Host Trevor Noah said she was on her way to the ceremony but blamed Los Angeles traffic for not being in person to accept it. The song was written by several writers including Beyonce, The-Dream, Nile Rodgers and Raphael Saadiq.
Once Beyoncé — the night's leading nominee — finally arrived, Noah presented her with the best R&B song award at her table.
Veteran singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt shrugged off big-name rivals like Adele, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé to win the song of the year award. “I’m so surprised. I don’t know what to say,” a visibly stunned Raitt said, adding that the song “Just Like That” explores organ donation. It capped a night when Raitt won two other Grammys — for best Americana performance and best American roots song.
A who’s who of hip-hop royalty took the stage for an epic, rousing 15 minute tribute to the genre’s 50th anniversary. The performance included Grandmaster Flash doing part of his seminal hit “The Message,” Run DMC, Chuck D and Flavor Flav along with Ice-T, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes and Nelly all taking the stage.
It ended with everyone on the stage and LL Cool J shouting “multi-generational! Fifty years!”
Bad Bunny opened the show with a festive, high-energy performance that brought many of the audience including Taylor Swift who rose to her feet and danced near her table at Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena.
Styles won the main telecast’s first award for best pop vocal album for “Harry's House.” The singer said recording the song was one of the “greatest experiences of my life. It’s been my greatest joy.”
Sam Smith and Kim Petras won best pop duo-group performance for their song “Unholy.” Petras said Smith wanted Petras to make the acceptance speech because “I’m the first transgender woman to win this award.”
“I want to thank all the incredible transgender legends before me who kicked these doors open for me so I could be here tonight,” said Petras, who made a reference to friend and Grammy-nominated musician Sophie, who died after an accidental fall in Athens, Greece in 2021. “You told me this would happen. I always believed in me. Thank you so much for your inspiration, Sophie. I adore you, and your inspiration will forever be in my music.”
Petras thanked Madonna for being a tremendous supporter of LGBTQ rights.
“I don’t think I could be here without Madonna,” Petras said. “My mother, I grew up next to a highway in nowhere Germany. And my mother believed me that I was a girl. I wouldn’t be here without her and her support.”
During the in memoriam segment, the Grammys recognized the lives of Loretta Lynn, Migos rapper Takeoff and Christine McVie with several star-studded performers paying them homage. The touching performances included Kacey Musgraves singing “Coal Miner’s Daughter” in tribute to Lynn; Quavo and the Maverick City Music hit the stage to honor his nephew Takeoff with the song “Without You;” and Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt performed “Songbird” to remember McVie.
Kendrick Lamar won sixth career trophy for best rap performance for “The Heart Part 5” and also won best rap album for his studio offering, “Mr. Morales & The Big Steppers.”
“You know, as entertainers, we say things to provoke thoughts and feelings and emotions,” he said. “So making this record is one of my toughest. … I would like to thank the culture for allowing me to evolve in order to make this. I finally found imperfection with this album.”
Viola Davis emerged from Sunday's show an EGOT — a term for those who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony — after her win for best audio book, narration and storytelling recording. The actor gave an emotional speech and emphatically said “I just EGOT” after she marched on stage to collect her award.
“Oh, my God," she said. "I wrote this book to honor the 6-year-old Viola, to honor her, her life, her joy, her trauma, everything," Davis said. "It has just been such a journey.”
Tattered streetwear, T-shirts and denim mixed with blinged-out couture, wild patterns and plenty of skin on the Grammys carpet. Lizzo wowed in a bright orange Dolce & Gabbana robe adorned with flowers and a huge hood while Taylor Swift wore a long two-piece sparkly skirt with a high-neck and long-sleeve crop top in midnight blue.
The show marks a return to Los Angeles after the pandemic first delayed, then forced the Grammys to move to Las Vegas last year. Noah hosted the ceremony as well, which saw Jon Batiste take home album of the year.