Host Trevor Noah kicked off the Grammys – officially introducing Adele and the Rock?

Grammys host Trevor Noah officially kicked off music’s biggest night for the third year in a row with another witty opening monologue – following a dynamic performance by Bad Bunny.

The former “Daily Show” host returned on Sunday to host the 65th Annual Grammy Awards at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles (“the best city in the world if you ignore a few other cities,” Noah joked). The live show began airing at 5:00 p.m. Pacific on CBS and is scheduled to end at 8:30 p.m. It is also available for live and on-demand streaming through Paramount + Premium.

“I’m lucky to be back as host tonight,” Noah said at the start of his monologue.

“My job is to be your eyes, your ears. I’m going to float in this room. … This is the room where it all happens – look around you. … Every song on TikTok that you hear? There are people who made them. It’s them!”

Noah also took a moment to introduce Adele to “the person Adele always wanted to meet but never met”: Dwayne Johnson. After Noah surprised the “Easy on Me” singer with an appearance from The Rock, the two superstars shared a sweet hug amidst the crowd.

“You’ve never met him, have you?” Noé asked Adele. “I found out he’s a big fan of you too. And no, I don’t have Dwayne Johnson here tonight, but I have someone called the Rock? Adele, meet the Rock. The Rock, meet Adele! First time Alright, you two get to know each other.

In December, Noah announced he would be back to host the Grammys a week after stepping down as host of “The Daily Show.” The South African comedian hosted the popular Comedy Central show for about seven years before announcing his exit in September.

In an interview with Billboard, Noah said he was thrilled to host the Grammys again because he’s “a fan of just about everyone who’s there” and because “it’ll be… back in LA.”

This year, Beyoncé leads the Grammy nominees with nine nominations, including record, song and album of the year. Other top contenders include Kendrick Lamar, Brandi Carlile, Adele, Harry Styles, Mary J. Blige, DJ Khaled, Future, The-Dream and Randy Merrill.

The story continues

“Beyoncé is nominated for her album ‘Renaissance’,” Noah said. “Which, by the way, was better than anything from the current Renaissance in my opinion. The Renaissance was just pictures of grapes and stuff. Beyoncé took it to another level.

“I was actually so inspired by the lyrics to ‘Break My Soul’ that I quit my job. That’s how powerful it was. I just wish Beyoncé had written a song too. song about the importance of having some savings before you quit your job.”

Among the artists who will perform on Sunday’s TV broadcast are Beyoncé, Styles, Blige, Carlile, Luke Combs, Steve Lacy, Lizzo, Sam Smith, Kim Petras and Bad Bunny.

“Harry Styles is here tonight, everyone,” Noah continued. “I mean, what can you say about this man that hasn’t been said?…Women throw their panties on this man…he puts them on and he looks better in them than ‘them.”

Read Noah’s full opening monologue below.

Give it up for Bad Bunny, everyone. Wow, that was amazing. Absolutely amazing. Every time I listen to it, I get hips I didn’t know I had. This album is so fiery it makes Trump want to learn Spanish, which is what he does. (Imitating former President Trump) “Un Verano Sin Ti”. That’s it, people. Welcome to the Grammys, everyone! Welcome to her. We created it. We are back. And I’m lucky to be back as host tonight.

My job is to be your eyes, your ears. I will float in this room. Think of me as a Chinese spy balloon. That’s what I’m doing right now – gathering all the information you want, because that’s the piece. This is the room where everything happens. Look around. Look at all the faces.

We have the best musicians, the best performers, the best producers in the world. Every song on TikTok you hear? There are people who made them. It’s them ! And when I say we have the biggest names, I mean the biggest names in the room. Are you kidding me? LL Cool J, mate here in the room. Look at this! Look at this piece. It’s crazy. Who is itIt is who – everyone.

We have [Questlove] and the band. Are you kidding me right now? Look at this. We have… Beyoncé is in the room, people! You understand how amazing it is right now, don’t you? You understand. Beyoncé is nominated for her album “Renaissance”, which, by the way, was better than anything about the current Renaissance in my opinion. The Renaissance was just pictures of grapes and stuff. Beyoncé has taken it to another level. In fact, I was so inspired by the lyrics of ‘Break My Soul’ that I even quit my job. That’s how powerful it was. I just wish Beyoncé had also written a song about the importance of having savings before quitting your job, but maybe the next one.

Harry Styles is here tonight, everyone. That’s right. I mean, what can you say about this man that hasn’t been said? Incredible album, stunning tour…a 15-night tour at [Madison Square Garden] and the Forum. Women throw their panties [at] that man. Then he puts them, and he looks better in them than they do. Easily the sexiest man alive – there’s no competition. Sex symbol of the globe – especially now that they’ve killed green M&Ms – no competition. RIP, green. We miss you.

This is the room, folks. We have Kendrick Lamar from Los Angeles joining us tonight in the building. The man is super talented. He has a Pulitzer. He has Grammys. Her album was a therapy session that earned her multiple Grammy nominations. All my therapy has given me is to help me overcome the trauma of my childhood. Useless! From now on, we will talk about trauma. We’re going to talk about therapy.

We have the best of Compton to the best of Brooklyn in house. That’s right – Jay-Z is going to be here with us tonight, everyone. Jay-Z is going to perform. How are you be …so special. And I can’t wait to be there because Jay-Z could have been anywhere in the world tonight, but he’s here with us, and I appreciate that.

Lizzo joins us. I saw Lizzo there. Oh, I see you! I see you, Lizzo! Look at that smile. Congratulations on everything – body positivity, TV shows, taking over the world, killing haters on Instagram and Twitter. I love it. The most famous flute player in the world since — I’m sure there have been others — but you know what I mean? And you want to stick around because Lizzo is performing tonight at exactly the wrong time. Set your watches.

I have never seen such a stacked room. I have never seen such a stacked room. Taylor Swift will be with us. Oh, she’s right there! Look at this! She’s right there. Taylor Swift sold more albums than any other human being on the planet last year. That’s right – more than anyone. The only music we listened to more than Taylor’s music was the Southwest Airlines hold music – that was it. They have the real streaming numbers.

And by the way, I love your song “Anti-Hero”, yes. Thank you so much. My aunt is also a heroine. Her name is Beatrice. We appreciate that. Thanks for celebrating one of the aunts there. We have so many incredible greats happening tonight. I don’t even think you understand – everyone from Stevie Wonder to Kacey Musgraves… from Bonnie Raitt to Lil Wayne. We have everyone. You don’t want to miss anything. All generations, all genders. My job tonight is just to be the host – the best host I can be. And to do that, I try to learn what everybody likes — or try. I try to get to know my guests.

For example, I know LL Cool J really likes breakfast cereal. It’s part of the research. I know Cardi B is obsessed with presidents. It’s a real thing. I also know that Adele loves tea, her show in Vegas is phenomenal and – this is one of the weirdest things I’ve discovered – the person Adele always wanted to meet but never wanted meet is Dwayne Johnson. You’ve never met him, have you? Yeah. And then I found out that he’s also a big fan of you. And no, I don’t have Dwayne Johnson here tonight, but I have someone called The Rock? Adele, meet the Rock. The Rock, meet Adele! First time. AlI it’s true, you get to know each other.

We’re going to move the show forward. Now, before we move on to the next performance, I wanted to let you know that earlier today at the pre-show, the premiere ceremony, Beyoncé won two awards, which puts her two wins away from breaking the record. of all time to have the most Grammys of all time. Never, people! Do you realize that tonight we could all witness history? And even if she doesn’t break the record, she’s still Beyoncé. So it’s a win-win.

Good luck, Queen Bey. For the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, we decided to do something different. We’re going to ask some of the people who play an important role in our performers’ musical achievements and in their lives to introduce them. These are the people the artists would thank if we didn’t eliminate them after 25 seconds.

This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.