February 13, 2017
by Carla Hay
The 59th Annual Grammy Awards took place on February 12, 2017, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
SOLANGE
Grammy win:
Best R&B Performance (“Cranes in the Sky”)
Here is what this Grammy winner said backstage in the Grammy Awards press room.
BACKSTAGE INTERVIEW
What does winning this award mean to you?
I think I’m most excited about the fact that I wrote “Cranes in the Sky” in a period of kind of desperation and weariness. And the fact that is resonated in the way that it has now eight years later, a song that kind of got pushed to the side a lot. I knew that this was the right time. And this is such a beautiful honor and I’m so humbled by it, but I honestly felt like I won far before this because of all of the connectivity that the record has had, especially with black women, and the stories that I hear on the street, so it’s a wonderful, wonderful night. And yeah, I just feel gratitude.
Your mother always gives you the same amount of credit that she does your sister Beyoncé. How important is that for you?
Well, she’s my mother. I think that just our love and support for both of us has been completely a beautiful love story. And we continue to honor her and all that she has shown us by example of womanhood and womanism. And it just feels like such a joy to have had her be a part of the album to kind of pay that forward.
You’ve become such a fashion icon as well, and it really has enhanced the music. How important is the fashion part of your music?
I think that visual art and all aspects are super-important to me, whether it be through the creation of my videos on my album artwork creating strong visual representation of not only myself but again black women and getting to see us as avant-garde beings in a world that sometimes puts us in a box is really important to me, so thank you for recognizing that.
What artists influence you, especially at a time when artists are speaking out about political issues?
I look to Nina Simone and Marvin Gaye and the artists of our times that have really pushed political messages through their music and their artistry. I think that all that we can do as artists and especially of songwriters is write about what’s true to us. And I think that the music that is out right now that is really connecting and thriving reflects that. And I’m really grateful to those artists for paying it through, because it’s not easy. It’s scary putting yourself on the line when you’re making political and social statements with your work.
So I just honor the greats. I look to Nina Simone, who did that during a time where it’s interesting to protect the trajectory of her career now. She’s being so celebrated and revered, but she was really shut up during that time; she was really told to just sing. And so those are the artists who paved the way for us to do what we’re doing now. We’re not doing nothing new.