Black Women Shine at the 66th Annual Grammys

By Taylor Marie Contarino

Victoria Monét, SZA, Coco Jones, and Ice Spice were a few of the esteemed winners at the Recording Academy’s 66th annual Grammy Awards.

It was an exciting year for Black women in music, who were at the forefront of the 66th annual Grammy Awards at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The nominations came out on Nov. 10 of 2023, with categories including “Best New Artist,” “Song of the Year,” and “Album of the Year.”

Victoria Monét poses with her three Grammy awards.

This year, Black women shone in their light at the Grammys, standing out across a multitude of categories. Victoria Monét received her long-awaited flowers, winning in the “Best New Artist” category - after being in the music industry for fifteen years. 

Monét’s inspiring backstory is one she referenced in her acceptance speech. Victoria’s manager, Rachelle Jean-Louis, left her former label position to come be by her side as her manager. 

“There was a binder that I made to take this really important meeting at a label, and I thought I was going to be signed and I was an independent artist with no team, and I just thought, ‘Maybe my music would stand for itself.’ But that binder left collecting dust in her office and a label, and Rachelle found that binder and she decided to take a chance, leave that label and be my manager. So thank you so much for seeing me,” finished Monét. 

Coco Jones poses with her Grammy for “Best R&B Performance.”

Coco Jones had previously thought the industry had abandoned her after a ‘career stall’ she referenced in the aftermath of her breakout role in Disney’s Let it Shine. Her second chance came around in the form of her viral track “I.C.U.” Jones is now signed to Def Jam Recordings and is set to release her official debut album later this year. 

SZA ended up being the 2024 Grammys’ most-nominated artist. She was nominated for nine, and took home three awards in the following categories: “R&B Song,” “Pop Duo/Group Performance,” and “Urban Contemporary Album.”

Ice Spice was nominated for four awards in the following categories: “New Artist,” “Pop Duo/Group Performance,” “Rap Song,” and “Song Written for Visual Media.”

Notably, Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter highlighted Beyonce while accepting his Lifetime Achievement Award, and he brought up important topics related to the categories, and to the winners. 

“I don’t want to embarrass this young lady, but she has more Grammys than everyone and never won Album of The Year. So even by your own metrics, that doesn’t work. Think about that. The most Grammys; [and she] never won album of the year, that doesn’t work,” he said.

“We love y’all. We want y’all to get it right, at least get it close to right.”

Meshell Ndegecello accepts the inaugural Grammy for “Best Alternative Jazz Album.”

It’s important to note that although this evening was an incredible and long-awaited spotlight moment for Black women in music, there were also winners that could have received more recognition, as some awards were given out before the broadcast even began.

Notable awards handed out before the live broadcast: Former First Lady Michelle Obama won her second Grammy award for “Best Audiobook, Narration and Storytelling Recording” for The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times. Meshell Ndegecello’s The Omnicord Real Book won for “Best Alternative Jazz Album.” “Best Jazz Performance” was given to Samara Joy for Tight, and Allison Russell’s Eve Was Black won for “Best American Roots Performance.” The “Lifetime Achievement Award” was earned by the iconic Clark Sisters.