British stars and Dalai Lama win Grammys as celebrities protest against Ice

British stars FKA Twigs and Cynthia Erivo joined the Dalai Lama as early Grammy Award winners as artists protested against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) officers deployed in US cities.

Singers Joni Mitchell and Kehlani, and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon were among artists wearing “Ice out” and “Be Good” pins at the annual ceremony, held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Ice officers have been deployed in US cities as part of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation initiative, most notably in Minnesota and Minneapolis, where about 2,000 federal agents have been deployed.

Officers have come under strong criticism over their aggressive approach. Most recently, Ice agents fatally shot two people on the streets of Minneapolis: Renee Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24.

Vernon, 44, whose group Bon Iver is nominated for best alternative music album, said he wore a whistle as a tribute to the legal observers documenting the actions of federal agents in the streets.

“I think there’s a reason that music exists and it’s to heal and to bring people together,” he told The Associated Press. “But the real work are those observers on the on the ground in Minneapolis. We just want to shout them out.”

Kehlani, 30, cursed Ice in her acceptance speech as she won her first Grammy for best R&B performance for Folded.

She said: “I hope everybody’s inspired to join together as a community of artists and speak out against what’s going on. F*** Ice.”

Speaking on the red carpet, Colombian singer-songwriter Karol G, who is nominated for her record Tropicoqueta in the best Latin pop category, addressed the plight of the US’s Latin community.

She said: “Our community here in the United States is going through a lot of bad and difficult and hard things, and just to be a voice, just to be a representation, just to be a part of how positive we are, and how special we are for the world.

“So it is like the best meaning of being in these places, and I am super happy because there’s a lot of Latin artists tonight, and to keep like seeing every year more and more and more, that’s evolution, it’s very special, that’s beautiful.”

Amy Allen, Rhiannon Giddens and Margo Price were also among the artists wearing the political pins.

Elsewhere, the Dalai Lama won a Grammy for his narration of the audiobook Meditations: The Reflections of His Holiness. He was not there to accept the award, but Rufus Wainwright did so on his behalf.

FKA Twigs, whose real name is Tahliah Barnett, took home best dance/electronic album for her record Eusexua, and Erivo won best pop duet/group performance for Defying Gravity, a duet with fellow Wicked star Ariana Grande.

Twigs beat competition from fellow British artists PinkPantheress and Fred Again to the gong.

Rapper Kendrick Lamar, 38, who is the most nominated artist at this year’s ceremony with nine nods, has already scooped best rap song for TV Off, featuring Lefty Gunplay, and best melodic rap performance for Luther, a duet with R&B singer SZA.

He has also won best rap performance for Chains & Whips with Clipse, Pusha T, Malice and Pharrell Williams.

Pop superstar Lady Gaga, who is the second-most nominated at the awards alongside producers Jack Antonoff and Cirkut, has already won best dance pop recording for Abracadabra, and the song has also won best remixed recording for its Gesaffelstein remix.

In the televised ceremony, Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Germanotta, will go head-to-head with Lamar for album of the year, song of the year and record of the year.

Gaga’s Mayhem and Lamar’s GNX will face competition from Swag by Justin Bieber; Debi Tirar Mas Fotos by Bad Bunny; Man’s Best Friend by Sabrina Carpenter; Let God Sort Em Out by Clipse, Pusha T and Malice; Mutt by Leon Thomas; and Chromakopia by Tyler The Creator, for album of the year.

The song Golden from the Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters, sung by fictional group Huntr/x, became the first K-Pop act to win a Grammy, taking home the award for best song written for visual media.

In the televised ceremony, there will be performances from the likes of British singers Lola Young and Olivia Dean, Gaga, Bieber, Carpenter, Tyler The Creator and Lauryn Hill.

Brat star Charli XCX, rapper Doechii, former One Direction star Harry Styles and singer-songwriter Carole King are among the stars presenting awards.