And that's a wrap: Adele won the Grammy in the Album Of The Year category for her heart-wrenching sophomore album "21."
"I want to say thank you to Rick Rubin for teaching me about quality control," the singer said after thanking her mother. She was overcome with emotion at the beginning of her speech but gathered herself before continuing with her touching acceptance remarks.
The album is based on "something everyone's been through -- a rubbish relationship," she added.
The singer, who scored an award in all six categories she was nominated for including Pop Vocal Album, Best Pop Solo Vocal Performance, Short Form Music Video, Record Of The Year, and Song Of The Year, made her live performance comeback on Sunday night. (She had recently undergone throat surgery).
Musical legend Diana Ross presented the award to the Adele.
Her performance was introduced by Gwyneth Paltrow, who called her "something special." Paltrow described 21, Adele's sophomore album as "a global music movement."
The Grammy audience clapped along enthusiastically throughout the performance, and the singer seemed completely in her element on the simple stage. She received a standing ovation when she finished, and remained on stage for a good amount of time to drink in the applause.
Before the awards, Adele was widely favored to win Best Album for 21, the album which made the British musician a global name.
Adele debuted her voice in a taped special for "60 Minutes" last week when Anderson Cooper asked her to sing a tiny bit of "Rolling In The Deep," but this was her first major live performance since undergoing surgery.
Check out Adele's in office performance of songs off 21 at AOL Sessions.
Adele performs "Rolling In The Deep" at the Grammys:
See photos of all the night's performances:
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Bruno Mars
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruno Mars
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruno Mars
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruno Mars
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruce Springsteen
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruce Springsteen
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruce Springsteen
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Alicia Keys & Bonnie Raitt
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Alicia Keys & Bonnie Raitt
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Kelly Clarkson & Jason Aldean
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Kelly Clarkson & Jason Aldean
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Kelly Clarkson & Jason Aldean
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Kelly Clarkson & Jason Aldean
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Chris Brown
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Rihanna
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Coldplay & Rihanna
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Coldplay
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Foster The People
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Maroon 5
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Maroon 5 & The Beach Boys
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Paul McCartney
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
The Civil Wars
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Taylor Swift
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Taylor Swift
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
The Beach Boys
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Adele
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Adele
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Foo Fighters
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Katy Perry
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Katy Perry
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
The Band Perry, Glen Campbell & Blake Shelton
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
The Band Perry
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Glen Campbell
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Blake Shelton
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Jennifer Hudson
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Jennifer Hudson
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Nicki Minaj
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Nicki Minaj
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruce Springsteen, Joe Walsh, Rusty Anderson, Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl and Brian Ray
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
Bruce Springsteen, Joe Walsh, Rusty Anderson, Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl and Brian Ray
The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards - Performances
First Posted: 02/12/2012 11:20 pm Updated: 02/13/2012 1:39 pm