The most political statements at the Grammys

As with every major awards show this year, statements about the current political and social climate must be made in the sphere of the powerful and privileged, with women doing most of the grunt work. Some of those speeches work, some of the skits don’t; some make you cry and others make you physically cringe because they’re so forced and naff.

This year’s Grammys was basically the latter. And not only were some of the gestures cheesy, but they felt hollow in the context of an awards show that doesn’t practice what it preaches. Though work has been done in recent times and words have been shared in the fight against systemic inequality, only one woman was presented with an award in the televised part of the show – Alessia Cara for best new artist. Though no white male solo artists were nominated for album of the year for this first time since 1999, statistics show that a total of 90.7 per cent of nominees between 2013 and 2018 were male, so just 9.3 per cent were women.

Despite the high moments of the evening, there’s still much to be examined. Here’s how the night all went down.

BLACK AND WHITE WAS THE RESISTANCE COLOUR PALETTE

In a unified nod to Hollywood’s Time’s Up initiative, many artists this year opted for the white rose as a symbolic accessory. This was organized by Voices in Entertainment, which spread the word in a last-minute email campaign. The rose “historically (stands) for hope, peace, sympathy, and resistance”, according to the group. 

Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, Khalid, Cardi B, Kendrick Lamar, and SZA were among the many on the red carpet with white roses. According to TMZ, florists had been dealing with huge waves of requests for the flower, with many having to be turned down.

LORDE WORE A JENNY HOLZER ESSAY ON HER DRESS

While for whatever reason Lorde wasn’t invited to do a solo performance at the Grammys, the artist was able to make a statement with her dress. The Melodrama artist had a poem by American artist Jenny Holzer sewn into the back of the red dress, in solidarity with the White Rose campaign.

“My version of a white rose – THE APOCALYPSE WILL BLOSSOM – an excerpt from the greatest of all time, Jenny Holzer,” Lorde wrote on Instagram. 

This piece comes from Holzer’s “Inflammatory Essays” series. Over 100 words, the essays combine the language of philosophy, newspaper headlines, and political and religious pamphlets.

JOY VILLA WAS VERY ANNOYING

Last year, singer Joy Villa turned up to the Grammys in a pro-Trump, ‘Make America Great Again’ dress. This year she stepped it up grotesquely, in a white dress with a painted fetus on it and a purse that said ‘Choose Life’. Oppressive, anti-women politics on your outfit is not cool. 

CAMILA CABELLO SPOKE OUT FOR THE DREAMERS

The “Havana” singer, born in Cuba before relocating to the US as a child, took to the stage to deliver a speech about the future for the children of undocumented immigrants, known as Dreamers. Right now, the protection in place for young people is under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, and it’s in a precarious place.

“I'm a proud Cuban-Mexican immigrant, born in eastern Havana, standing in front of you on the Grammy stage in New York City, and all I know, just like dreams, these kids can’t be forgotten and are worth fighting for,” she said.

“This country was built by dreamers, for dreamers, chasing the American dream.” Cabello then welcomed U2 to the stage.

CARDI B SLAMMED MUSIC INDUSTRY SEXISM

Over on Billboard’s Grammys Twitter livestream, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper spoke candidly about lewd behaviour by music industry men in power. “I can get you on a billboard,” she imitated. “Woops there's my penis."

JANELLE MONAE’S REFRESHING SPEECH ON THE CULTURE OF SILENCE AROUND HARASSMENT

“We come in peace, but we mean business,” Janelle Monáe said when introducing Kesha.

“To those who would dare silence us, we offer you two words: Time’s up… we have the power to undo the culture that does not serve us well," Monáe said. “Let’s work together, women and men, committed to creating safer work environments and equal pay.” 

The musician stood in solidarity with women across the business, shouting out artists, writers, assistants, engineers, producers, and more. Monáe pointed to Hollywood’s recent rebellion against inequality and abuse, and how the music industry was similarly rising up.

KESHA’S CATHARTIC PERFORMANCE OF “PRAYING”

The Rainbow singer gave one of the most personal and emotional performances of the night with her hit “Praying”. Supported by Cyndi Lauper, Camila Cabello, Andra Day, Bebe Rexha, Julia Michaels, and more, Kesha sang about the abuse she endured and survived. While it’s not political with a capital ‘P’, Kesha’s struggle illuminates the many. She performed to a room of people that represent an industry that victim-blamed her for years. At an event that can seem hollow and superficial, Kesha brought her survivor’s statement with raw honesty and power at a time it’s needed most.

And as stunning a performance it was, the artist is still bound to a contract with her alleged abuser, producer Dr. Luke. Read more on why we thought it was the most meaningful part of the ceremony here.

UM, HILLARY CLINTON READ FROM FIRE AND FURY

Hillary Clinton made a surprise and quite cringe cameo this year, alongside Cher, Snoop Dogg, and others who read extracts from Michael Wolff’s book on Donald Trump, Fire and Fury. 

“He had a longtime fear of being poisoned,” Clinton reads. “One reason why he liked to eat at McDonalds. No one knew he was coming and the food was safely pre-made.”

While the Grammys audience cheered, Donald Trump Jr and U.S ambassador for the United Nations Nikki Haley criticised her appearance. “Some of us love music without the politics thrown in it,” Haley tweeted.

Trump’s spawn described the excerpt as “fake news”.

So yeah, cool – music has always been a sphere to reflect on social and political change. In this day and age, how can art not have a political element? But with this stunt especially, the Grammys took that idea to a stilted and pretty annoying extreme, and in doing so, provided ammo for the wrong people. In 2018, we shouldn’t still be reducing the political discourse to Hilary vs. Trump. If the Grammys really wants to be part of a political conversation and make a stab at change, it needs to do better than this.