Fulfilling a bucket list dream of mine to cover The Grammys, I finally got the e-mail I’d been waiting for my whole life. An avid telecast watcher for all the fashion, speech and performance critiques for the past decade, with my cerebral sensory stimulation dial turned to 100, I stood well-prepared and ready. This year in particular held a special place in my heart as a rock, blues, pop, hip-hop, R&B and Latin music-loving Black Boricua for all the reasons you’d imagine. Invited to attend a press conference earlier in the action-packed Grammy week, I glimpsed behind the Recording Academy and show production curtain (revisit the preview here) and by the time Sunday rolled around, I woke up in a ‘Vámonos’ and ‘LFG’ state of mind.
I kicked off the Grammy day virtually Grammy red carpet interviewing some of my favorite guitarists Nuno Bettencourt and Larkin Poe duo Rebecca and Megan Lovell. Nuno, after stopping by the red carpet, would later go on to win a “Best Rock Performance” Grammy for “Changes (Live From Villa Park) Back To The Beginning” with YUNGBLUD, Frank Bello and Adam Wakeman II. Nuno first spoke to the Academy about making it the “Purple Rain version of the song” and I followed up asking what he thought when one of his idols, Prince, called him one of the three greatest guitarists of all-time. He jokingly told me he’s “still in therapy” after hearing the compliment said to a friend at a show Prince came to see and he influenced the funk part of Extreme. He believed the Award went to Prince partly for the inspiration as “that’s why it was as emotional as it was”.
Larkin Poe nominated for “Best Americana Album” for their brilliant “Bloom” then joined the carpet with their distinctive thrift store upcycled denim outlets made by seamstress Megan. An admirer of these ladies for years, I wished Rebecca a belated Happy Birthday and asked them about the sacrifices they had to give up making this project a reality. Rebecca responded, “‘Bloom’ was an important body of work for us, not just because it allowed us the space mentally to come together in a unique way to write some new songs as sisters and to pioneer some new trust between us, but I got to make, tour and record this record while pregnant. And I do feel that it was a huge journey for me as a human to share such an intimate part of my life with our life’s work because Larkin Poe’s also our baby and it did take a lot of courage to be willing to be heavily pregnant onstage, to be able to take a newborn baby when he was 6 weeks old (overseas) in order to do our European tour for ‘Bloom’. So, I think it really pushed our edge a lot and I’m so grateful for the music to provide a great foundation for us to feel comfortable to do that”. Viewing other special moments during the Premiere ceremony, Durand Bernarr (with his Grammy Hall of Fame-worthy acceptance speech), Kehlani, Leon Thomas and jazz queen Samara Joy’s Grammy-winning moments made me smile.
Across both ceremonies, my fav Grammy shows have no dominant winner, with the award-winning spread across many laudable recipients, and this year granted my wish. Taking the helm for the sixth and final time at this 68th annual broadcast, host Trevor Noah’s unmatched comedic finesse in his celebrity crowd work, proved why he will be hard to replace. The amusing banter with Kendrick and Bad Bunny, coaxing a snippet performance of “DtMF” from the future 2026 Super Bowl halftime performer, stood as early highlights. Moments like Tyler the Creator’s performance featuring a cameo by Regina King, Olivia Dean’s “granddaughter of an immigrant” speech, Lady Gaga’s theatrical “Abracadabra”, the In Memoriam tributes to Bob Weir from John Mayer, the “War of Pigs” to Ozzy Osbourne, D’Angelo and Roberta Flack’s led by Lauryn Hill featuring folks like The Vanguard, Anthony Hamilton, Bilal, Leon Bridges, Jon Batiste, Raphael Saadiq, Leon Thomas, Lalah Hathaway, Lucky Daye, Marcus Miller, Eric Gales and fellow Fugee Wyclef, all provided the damp eyes, dancing and deserved send-offs these mortal legends leaving this Earth required.
As I stood with my Puerto Rican flag nearby, I anxiously awaited the final “Album of the Year” (AOTY) category to see if Bad Bunny received his ultimate “championship ring”. Would the Recording Academy, now including Latin Recording Academy voting members, reward Benito for his record-breaking, political, perreo and platano-filled love letter to La Isla del Encanto and the NY Boricua experience? Hearing Harry Styles announce “DeBí TiRAR Más FOToS” as AOTY, a Spanish language album officially reigned global music community-wise over the land, watching the emotional reaction on Benito’s face, I celebrated in the virtual media room, hyped beyond belief. Benito proved naysayers wrong and confirmed his musical peers danced the BAILE INoLVIDABLE, whether they understood the words or not. I left that night, comforted that as scary as times can be, this symbolic, monumental win meant, above all, the universal beauty of music triumphed over hate.
