Country music artist Mickey Guyton made Grammy history, becoming the first Black woman to be nominated for Best Country Solo Performance. Guyton celebrated by performing her hit song, “Black Like Me.”
Guyton, standing in a golden gown, performed her hit song in a single spotlight performance, accompanied by a cello, piano, and steel guitar.
“Little kid in a small town/I did my best to
fit in/Broke my heart on the playground/When they said I was different,” she sang leading into the chorus. “It’s a hard life on easy street/Just white painted picket fences as far as you can see/If you think we live in the land of the free/You should try to be Black like me.”Many believe Guyton’s performance was the right song at the right time, as the U.S. seems to become more divided every day. Guyton’s performance was praised by artists and celebrities who viewed or attended the Grammys.
Although Guyton didn’t take home the award for Best Country Solo performance (which went to Vince Gill for “When Amy Prays”), she will become the first Black woman to host the 2021 American Country Music Awards. Guyon will host the event, along with Keith Urban, April 18 in Nashville, TN.
Guyton has been signed with the Nashville Recording Company for a decade, but she released “Black Like Me” on her own last June on her Instagram and through Spotify’s hot country playlist. Guyton told CBS This Morning the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd inspired her to release the song.
“I had this song that was expressing so much of what I was feeling and I felt a lot of other people were feeling, so I first put it on my Instagram for healing purposes and Spotify asked for it and here we are.”
In addition to Bridges, which was released earlier this year, Guyton’s discography includes Unbreakable, released in 2014, and her self-titled album, released in 2015.