It was a night where Madonna was surrounded by demons, Lady Gaga shared a tiny stage with Tony Bennett, and Rihanna, Paul McCartney and Kanye West joined forces for a new generation.
But in the midst of it all, the 2015 Grammys had the makings of being Australia's most successful ceremony.
Rap sensation Iggy Azalea, enigmatic songstress Sia and country star Keith Urban collectively boasted 10 nominations between them.
"I'm very excited," the Mullumbimby-born Azalea said going in. "My whole family has flown in and they're in there waiting now. So fingers crossed I do you all proud! I love you so much!"
But all three walked away empty-handed. In the lead-up to the ceremony Azalea was under fire over whether she deserved her four nominations, including Rap Album of the Year.
That ended up going to Eminem for "The Marshall Mathers LP2", while A Great Big World's song "Say Something" beat Azalea's hit "Fancy" for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
Keith Urban lost Best Country Solo Performance for "Cop Car" to Carrie Underwood's "Something In The Water". He and Eric Church also missed out on Best Country Duo/Group Performance to “Gentle On My Mind” by The Band Perry.
Meanwhile. Sia orchestrated another captivating performance of her song "Chandelier" at the ceremony. But it failed to capture all four of its nominations.
Two of them - Best Music Video and Best Pop Solo Performance - went to "Happy" by Pharrell Williams.
That left Record of the Year and Song of the Year - both went to Sam Smith for "Stay With Me"
"Dear Lord, thank you so much!" he said in his acceptance speech. "This is the best night of my life!
"I want to thank the man who this record is about, who I fell in love with last year. Thank you so much for breaking my heart because you got me four Grammys!"
The other two were Best New Artist (beating Iggy Azalea), while "In The Lonely Hour" also earned best pop vocal album.
Though there was one Australian success story. Joel and Luke Smallbone from the band For King & Country won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album and Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song.
The night's other big winner was alternative rocker Beck, who captured Best Rock Album and Album of the Year for "Morning Phase".
But he was nearly interrupted by outspoken rap star Kanye West, who approached the stage to mimick his controversial outburst at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.
The night also took a serious note, when President Barack Obama gave a pre-recorded message saying nearly one in five women in America has been a victim of rape or attempted rape, and one in four women has experienced domestic violence.
"It's not OK and it has to stop," Obama said.
"Artists have a unique power to change minds and attitudes and getting us talking and thinking about what matters."
That was followed by a statement from domestic violence survivor Brooke Axtell, and a performance by Katy Perry.
