Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX and Beyoncé win early Grammy Awards

Beyoncé is the main nominee at this year’s ceremony, with her country-adjacent album Cowboy Carter shortlisted for 11 awards.

She has already won best country performance by a duo or group, for her duet with Miley Cyrus, II Most Wanted.

However, she was beaten to best country song by Kacey Musgraves, whose song The Architect questions the existence of God after a school shooting.

Taking to the stage, Musgraves said: “There’s so much darkness in the world right now, and it just feels so good to be able to fight some of that darkness through song”.

Musgraves previously won album of the year in 2019 for Golden Hour.

The nominees for that prize this year include Billie Eilish, Beyoncé (who has never won the category, despite four previous nominations) Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan and rapper André 3000, who is nominated for his spiritual jazz flute album New Blue Sun.

Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter are also up for best album – and fans will be speculating whether their early wins increase their odds of taking the night’s biggest prize.

Neither artist was there in person to collect their initial trophies, as they are due to perform at the headline ceremony later in the evening.

However Charli’s producer, Finn Keane, accepted the award for Von Dutch on her behalf, calling her an “amazing collaborator”.

“She has been making this kind of music for 10 years, but everyone’s just caught up to it,” he added.