It's the second Grammy Award for the 'Drivers License' singer, while Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy introduces Legend's performance with Ukrainian singer Mika Newton and poet Lyuba Yakimchuk.
- Apr 4, 2022
AceShowbiz - Olivia Rodrigo already had a big night at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards, which is currently ongoing from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The young musician took home one of the top honors from the Sunday, April 3 ceremony as she was named Best New Artist, edging out other nominees such as Baby Keem, Finneas, The Kid Laroi and Saweetie.
"Thank you so much to the Recording Academy. This is my biggest dream come true," the "Happier" singer began her acceptance speech. "Thank you to everyone at Interscope, especially John Janick, for believing in me and my songwriting before anything else."
The 19-year-old went on to thank her team, her parents and her best friends, saying, "I love you guys." She also gave a shout out to songwriter Dan Nigro, "A huge thanks to Dan, who made all of my music with me. Dan, you are the best friend, collaborator and person I could ever ask for, so this is all because of you, so thank you."
It's the second win for Rodrigo that night. At the Premiere Ceremony, she picked up her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance for her hit "Drivers License". She was nominated in seven categories, but already lost Song of the Year to Silk Sonic and Best Music Video to Jon Batiste.
Earlier at the televised ceremony, Rodrigo performed a tender-turned-rockin' version of her huge hit song "Drivers License". She's still up for three awards, Record of the Year and Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album.
Another highlight at the show was John Legend's tribute to Ukraine. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy introduced the segment as he appeared in a video message, which was pre-taped sometime in the past 48 hours in an underground bunker in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.
In his chilling message, the leader spoke about the power of music in dark times, equating war with silence. "Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded in hospitals, even to those who can't hear them. But the music will break through anyway," he said.
He had an impassioned plea to the audience, adding, "Fill the silence with our music. Fill it today, to tell our story… Support us in any way you can, but not silence. And then peace will come."
Legend then took the stage with Ukrainian singer Mika Newton, whose sister is fighting the Russian army, and poet Lyuba Yakimchuk, who just fled the country. He played his new song "Free" which was released just today, sitting behind a piano. At the end, viewers were directed to a donation page for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Baby Keem took the spotlight as he won Best Rap Performance for "Family Ties" featuring Kendrick Lamar. Chris Stapleton nabbed Best Country Album for "Starting Over", while Joni Mitchell, who has been keeping a very low public profile since she had an aneurysm in 2015, made a rare appearance to introduce a performance by Brandi Carlile.
Also taking the stage as a musical performer was Lil Nas X, who returned to the Grammys stage following his star-studded performance at the 2020 Grammys. This time, he performed a "Montero Call Me by Your Name)", "Industry Baby" and "Dead Right Now".
