Mickey Guyton made such an iconic night during the 2021 GRAMMY Awards show last Sunday.
The country singer did not only earn her first Grammy nomination for Best Country Solo Performance – this makes her the first Black female solo artist nominated in the said category in the history of Grammy Awards – but she also took center stage for the very first time to deliver a moving and powerful message for everyone watching.
Bringing her nominated song “Black Like Me” to an entirely new audience, Guyton looked dazzling in a gold long-sleeved gown. She was later joined by a gospel choir that made her performance even more spine-chilling.
Mickey Guyton wrote “Black Like Me” in 2019 during a writer’s retreat – wherein she details her experiences as a black woman breaking into the predominantly white genre, highlighting racial discrimination with the song’s chorus. The song’s title was inspired by John Howard Griffin’s book Black Like Me, which exposed racism in the Southern United States during the 1960s.
The powerful ballad wasn’t released until June 2020, following the widespread protests in pursuit of justice amidst George Floyd’s murder.
Though Mickey Guyton wasn’t able to take home this year’s Best Country Solo Performance – losing to Vince Gill’s “When My Amy Prays” – the singer turned to social media, saying she’s thankful, honored, and “will forever be a Grammy-nominated artist.”
You can watch Guyton’s powerful performance in the video below!
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Mickey Guyton