Beyoncé, Swift score key Grammy Awards

It's turning out to be ladies night at the Grammy Awards as chart-toppers Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga dominated the stage at popular music's biggest night.

Coming into Sunday with a leading 10 nominations, pop diva Beyoncé proved a dominant force as she picked up four trophies at the non-televised Los Angeles gala Sunday afternoon: contemporary R&B album for I am...Sacha Fierce, best R&B song and best female R&B vocal performance for Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It) and traditional R&B performance for At Last, from the film Cadillac Records.

She then earned the televised show's first award of the night — song of the year for Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It) — and turned in a spirited performance of her song If I Were a Boy and Alanis Morissette's You Outta Know. Country ingenue Swift was honoured with the best country album Grammy for her bestselling release, Fearless.

"This is my first time walking up those stairs to accept a Grammy on national television!" she exclaimed. "I just feel like I'm standing here accepting an impossible dream."
She showed as much enthusiasm as when she accepted a pair of trophies (female country vocal performance and country song for White Horse) at the pre-show ceremony and declared, "This is my first Grammy, you guys!"

Outrageous dance-pop artist Lady Gaga kicked off Sunday night's broadcast with a fiery, eye-popping performance that segued into a duet with British icon Elton John. She too started the gala with a pair of Grammys already under her belt: dance recording for Poker Face and electronic/dance album for The Fame.
The Black Eyed Peas, another top contender this year, came into the broadcast having already won a trio of Grammys: for their album The E.N.D. (pop vocal album) and their hit songs I Gotta Feeling (pop performance by a duo or group with vocals) and Boom Boom Pow (short-form music video).

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