Arts & Entertainment
LGBT ally Kacey Musgraves wins big at queer-dominated Grammys
Brandi Carlile, Lady Gaga also rack up wins
Country singer Kacey Musgraves won the coveted Album of the Year award for her album “Golden Hour” marking the end of a Grammys award show filled with plenty of queer women representation.
Musgraves, who also won Country Album of the Year, has emerged as an LGBTQ ally in the country music world. She has spoken up for more LGBTQ inclusion in country music and her song “Follow Your Arrow” was hailed as a pro-LGBTQ anthem. Musgraves also served as
Lesbian singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile won three awards during the pre-telecast including Best Americana Album for “By the Way, I Forgive You” and Best American Roots Song and Best American Roots Performance for “The Joke.” She received the most nominations of any woman this year and became the first LGBTQ person to win awards in those categories.
While accepting the award for Best American Roots Performance, she shared that she came out in high school at age 15. She says she never was invited to high school parties or dances.
“I never got to attend a dance. To be embraced by this enduring and loving community has been a dance of a lifetime,” Carlile said. “Thank you for being my island.”
Brandi Carlile just won 3 Grammys in a row, and if there was one for “Best Speech,” it might have been 4 pic.twitter.com/CBtXyX3lyl
— Dave Paulson (@ItsDavePaulson) February 10, 2019
Carlile also received a standing ovation for her vocal powerhouse performance of “The Joke” during the televised ceremony.
Other queer artists with impactful Grammys performances were Ricky Martin who performed with Camila Cabello, J Balvin, Arturo Sandoval and Young Thug for a Broadway musical-inspired Grammys opener to Cabello’s song “Havana.”
Miley Cyrus, who identifies as pansexual, dueted with Shawn Mendes on his song “In My Blood.” She later also teamed up with Katy Perry, Maren Morris, Musgraves and Little Big Town for a tribute to Dolly Parton.
Janelle Monáe performed her bisexual anthem “Make Me Feel” off her album “Dirty Computer,” mixed in with her feminist song “
She didn’t win for either category she was nominated for (Album of the Year and Best Music Video) but she did dedicate her nominations to her “trans brothers and sisters.” In an interview with Variety, the singer was asked about coming out as queer last year.
“People do it everyday,” she replied. “My trans brothers and sisters, they do it everyday. And they are shunned from these sorts of events. So this one is for them.”
Lady Gaga scored two wins (Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Song Written For Visual Media) for her “A Star is Born” duet with Bradley Cooper, “Shallow,” which she also performed.
Dua Lipa and St. Vincent, who is sexually fluid, did a steamy joint performance of her song “
“Masseduction” + “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” +”One Kiss” = @st_vincent and @DUALIPA #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/HlLcUAjCcF
— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) February 11, 2019
History continued to be made with Cardi B becoming the first woman to win Best Rap Album and “This is America” by Childish Gambino winning Best Song. This is the first time a rap song has won in that category.
Jennifer Lopez also gave a dance-filled tribute to Motown while Diana Ross honored her own birthday, which is in March, with a performance. Michelle Obama, Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett-Smith and Lopez also made appearances at the top of the show to help host Alicia Keys reflect on the importance of music.
Check out the complete list of winners below.
Album Of The Year — “Golden Hour”- Kacey Musgraves
Record Of The Year — “This Is America” – Childish Gambino
Best New Artist — Dua Lipa
Best Rap Album — “Invasion Of Privacy”- Cardi B
Best R&B Album Winner — “H.E.R.”- H.E.R.
Best Rap Song — “God’s Plan”- Drake
Best Country Album — “Golden Hour”- Kacey Musgraves
Song Of The Year — “This Is America”- Childish Gambino
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance — “Shallow” Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical — Pharrell Williams
Best Rap/Sung Performance — “This Is America”-Childish Gambino
Best Rap Performance — “King’s Dead”- Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Future & James Blake / Bubblin,
Best Rock Album — “From The Fires”-Greta Van Fleet
Best Rock Song — “Masseduction” – St. Vincent
Best Metal Performance — “Electric Messiah”- High On Fire
Best Rock Performance — “When Bad Does Good”- Chris Cornell
Best Urban Contemporary Album — “Everything Is Love”- The Carters
Best R&B Song — “Boo’d Up”- Ella Mai
Best Traditional R&B Performance — “Bet Ain’t Worth The Hand”- Leon Bridges / “How Deep Is Your Love”-Pj Morton Featuring Yebba
Best R&B Performance — “Best Part”- H.E.R. Featuring Daniel Caesar
Best Latin Jazz Album — “Back To The Sunset”- Dafnis Prieto Big Band
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album — “American Dreamers: Voices Of Hope, Music Of Freedom”- John Daversa Big Band Featuring Daca Artists
Best Jazz Instrumental Album — “Emanon”- The Wayne Shorter Quartet
Best Jazz Vocal Album — “The Window”- Cécile Mclorin Salvant
Best Improvised Jazz Solo — “Don’t Fence Me In”- John Daversa
Best Reggae Album — “44/876”- Sting & Shaggy
Best Dance/Electronic Album — “Woman Worldwide”- Justice
Best Dance Recording — “Electricity”- Silk City & Dua Lipa Featuring Diplo & Mark Ronson
Best Contemporary Classical Composition — “Kernis: Violin Concerto”- James Ehnes, Ludovic Morlot & Seattle Symphony
Best Classical Compendium — “Fuchs: Piano Concerto ‘Spiritualist’”; Poems Of Life; Glacier; Rush”- Joann Falletta
Best Classical Solo Vocal Album —” Songs Of Orpheus”-Monteverdi, Caccini, D’india & Landi, Karim Sulayman
Best Classical Instrumental Solo — “Kernis: Violin Concerto”- James Ehnes
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance — “Anderson”- Laurie: Landfall, Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet
Best Choral Performance — “Mcloskey: Zealot Canticles”- Donald Nally
Best Opera Recording — “Bates: The (R)Evolution Of Steve Jobs”-Michael Christie, Garrett Sorenson, Wei Wu, Sasha Cooke, Edward Parks & Jessica E. Jones
Best Orchestral Performance — “Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 11”- Andris Nelsons
Producer Of The Year, Classical — Blanton Alspaugh
Best Engineered Album, Classical — “Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 11”- Andris Nelsons & Boston Symphony Orchestra
Best Pop Vocal Album — “Sweetener”- Ariana Grande
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album — “My Way” -Willie Nelson
Best Pop Solo Performance — “Joanne (Where Do You Think You’re Goin’?)”- Lady Gaga
Best Country Song — “Space Cowboy” – Kacey Musgraves
Best Country Duo/Group Performance — “Tequila”- Dan + Shay
Best Country Solo Performance — “Butterflies”- Kacey Musgraves
Best Music Film — “Quincy”- Quincy Jones
Best Music Video — “This Is America”-Childish Gambino
Best Regional Roots Music Album — “No ‘Ane’I”- Kalani Pe’a
Best Tropical Latin Album — “Anniversary”- Spanish Harlem Orchestra
Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano) — “¡México Por Siempre!”- Luis Miguel
Best Latin Rock, Urban Or Alternative Album — “Aztlán”- Zoé
Best Latin Pop Album — “Sincera”- Claudia Brant
Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling) — “Faith – A Journey For All”- Jimmy Carter
Best Children’s Album — “All The Sounds”- Lucy Kalantari & The Jazz Cats
Best Folk Album — “All Ashore”- Punch Brothers
Best Contemporary Blues Album —” Please Don’t Be Dead”- Fantastic Negrito
Best Traditional Blues Album — “The Blues Is Alive And Well”- Buddy Guy
Best Bluegrass Album —”The Travelin’ Mccourys”- The Travelin’ Mccourys
Best Americana Album — “By The Way, I Forgive You”- Brandi Carlile
Best American Roots Song — “The Joke”- Brandi Carlile
Best American Roots Performance — “The Joke”- Brandi Carlile
Best New Age Album — “Opium Moon”- Opium Moon
Best Song Written For Visual Media — “Shallow”- Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media — “Black Panther”- Ludwig Göransson
Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media — “The Greatest Showman”- Hugh Jackman (& Various Artists)
Best World Music Album — “Freedom”- Soweto Gospel Choir
Best Roots Gospel Album — “Unexpected”- Jason Crabb
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album — “Look Up Child”- Lauren Daigle
Best Gospel Album — “Hiding Place”-Tori Kelly
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song — “You Say” -Lauren Daigle
Best Gospel Performance/Song — “Never Alone”- Tori Kelly Featuring Kirk Franklin
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album — “Steve Gadd Band”- Steve Gadd Band
Best Immersive Audio Album —” Eye In The Sky – 35th Anniversary Edition”- The Alan Parsons Project
Best Remixed Recording — “Walking Away (Mura Masa Remix)”- Haim
Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical — “Colors”- Beck
Best Historical Album — “Voices Of Mississippi: Artists And Musicians Documented By William Ferris”
Best Album Notes —” Voices Of Mississippi: Artists And Musicians Documented By William Ferris”
Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package — “Squeeze Box: The Complete Works Of ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic” Weird Al Yankovic
Best Recording Package — “Masseduction”- St. Vincent
Best Arrangement, Instruments And Vocals — “Spiderman Theme”- Randy Waldman Featuring Take 6 & Chris Potter
Best Arrangement, Instrumental Or A Cappella — “Stars And Stripes Forever”- John Daversa Big Band Featuring Daca Artists
Best Instrumental Composition — “Blut Und Boden (Blood And Soil)”- Terence Blanchard
Best Alternative Music Album — “Colors”- Beck
Best Musical Theater Album — “The Band’s Visit”- Original Broadway Cast
Best Comedy Album — “Equanimity & The Bird Revelation”- Dave Chappelle
Theater
Out dancer on Alvin Ailey’s stint at Warner Theatre
10-day production marks kickoff of national tour
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Through Feb. 8
Warner Theatre
513 12th St., N.W.
Tickets start at $75
ailey.org
The legendary Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is coming to Washington’s Warner Theatre, and one of its principal veterans couldn’t be more pleased. Out dancer Renaldo Maurice is eager to be a part of the company’s 10-day stint, the kickoff of a national tour that extends through early May.
“I love the respectful D.C. crowd and they love us,” says Maurice, a member of esteemed modern dance company for 15 years. The traveling tour is made of two programs and different casting with Ailey’s masterwork “Revelations” in both programs.
Recently, we caught up with Maurice via phone. He called from one of the quiet rooms in his New York City gym where he’s getting his body ready for the long Ailey tour.
Based in North Newark, N.J., where he recently bought a house, Maurice looks forward to being on the road: “I enjoy the rigorous performance schedule, classes, shows, gym, and travel. It’s all part of carving out a lane for myself and my future and what that looks like.”
Raised by a single mother of three in Gary, Ind., Maurice, 33, first saw Alvin Ailey as a young kid in the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago, the same venue where he’s performed with the company as a professional dancer.
He credits his mother with his success: “She’s a real dance mom. I would not be the man or artist I am today if it weren’t for the grooming and discipline of my mom. Support and encouragement. It’s impacted my artistry and my adulthood.”
Maurice is also part of the New York Ballroom scene, an African-American and Latin underground LGBTQ+ subculture where ball attendees “walk” in a variety of categories (like “realness,” “fashion,” and “sex siren”) for big prizes. He’s known as the Legendary Overall Father of the Haus of Alpha Omega.
WASHINGTON BLADE: Like many gay men of his era, Ailey lived a largely closeted public life before his death from AIDS-related complications in 1989.
RENALDO MAURICE Not unusual for a Black gay man born during the Depression in Rogers, Texas, who’s striving to break out in the industry to be a creative. You want to be respected and heard. Black man, and Black man who dances, and you may be same-sex gender loving too. It was a lot, especially at that time.
BLADE: Ailey has been described as intellectual, humble, and graceful. He possessed strength. He knew who he was and what stories he wanted to tell.
MAURICE: Definitely, he wanted to concentrate on sharing and telling stories. What kept him going was his art. Ailey wanted dancers to live their lives and express that experience on stage. That way people in the audience could connect with them. It’s incredibly powerful that you can touch people by moving your body.
That’s partly what’s so special about “Revelations,” his longest running ballet and a fan favorite that’s part of the upcoming tour. Choreographed by Alvin Ailey in 1960, it’s a modern dance work that honors African-American cultural heritage through themes of grief, joy, and faith.
BLADE: Is “Revelation” a meaningful piece for you?
MAURICE: It’s my favorite piece. I saw it as a kid and now perform it as a professional dance artist. I’ve grown into the role since I was 20 years old.
BLADE: How can a dancer in a prestigious company also be a ballroom house father?
MAURICE: I’ve made it work. I learned how to navigate and separate. I’m a principal dancer with Ailey. And I take that seriously. But I’m also a house father and I take that seriously as well.
I’m about positivity, unity, and hard work. In ballroom you compete and if you’re not good, you can get chopped. You got to work on your craft and come back harder. It’s the same with dance.
BLADE: Any message for queer audiences?
MAURICE: I know my queer brothers and sisters love to leave with something good. If you come to any Ailey performance you’ll be touched, your spirit will be uplifted. There’s laughter, thoughtful and tender moments. And it’s all delivered by artists who are passionate about what they do.
BLADE: Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of your life. Thoughts on that?
MAURICE: I’m a believer in it takes a village. Hard work and discipline. I take it seriously and I love what I do. Ailey has provided me with a lot: world travel, a livelihood, and working with talented people here and internationally. Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of my life from boyhood to now. It’s been great.
Catfish Comedy will host “2026 Queer Kickoff Show” on Thursday, Feb. 5 at A League of Her Own (2319 18th Street, N.W.). This show features D.C.’s funniest LGBTQ and femme comedians. The lineup features performers who regularly take the stage at top clubs like DC Improv and Comedy Loft, with comics who tour nationally.
Tickets are $17.85 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
Arts & Entertainment
Catherine O’Hara, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ star and celebrated queer ally, dies at 71
Actress remembered for memorable comedic roles in ‘Beetlejuice’ and ‘Home Alone’
Catherine O’Hara, the varied comedic actor known for memorable roles in “Beetlejuice,” “Schitt’s Creek,” and “Home Alone,” has died at 71 on Friday, according to multiple reports. No further details about her death were revealed.
O’Hara’s death comes as a shock to Hollywood, as the Emmy award-winning actor has been recently active, with roles in both “The Studio” and “The Last of Us.” For her work in those two shows, she received Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series and outstanding guest actress in a drama series.
In 2020, O’Hara won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series award for her work in the celebrated sixth and final season of “Schitt’s Creek.” She was also known as a queer ally and icon for her theatrical and often campy performances over multiple decades. In “Schitt’s Creek,” she played Moira Rose, the wig-loving mother of David Rose (played by series creator Dan Levy). David is pansexual, but the characters around him simply accept him for who he is; the show was embraced by the LGBTQ community with how naturally David’s sexuality was written and portrayed. That show ran from 2015 to 2020 and helped bring O’Hara and her co-stars into a new phase of their careers.
In a 2019 interview with the Gay Times, O’Hara explained why the show got LGBTQ representation right: “Daniel has created a world that he wants to live in, that I want to live in. It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where we don’t know how to respect each other and let each other be. It’s crazy. Other shows should follow suit and present the world and present humans as the best that we can be. It doesn’t mean you can’t laugh, that you can’t be funny in light ways and dark ways. It’s all still possible when you respect and love each other.”
Additional credits include “SCTV Network” (for which O’Hara won a writing Emmy), “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Six Feet Under,” “Best in Show,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” and “Dick Tracy.” O’Hara also lent her voice to “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Chicken Little,” “Monster House,” and “Elemental.” O’Hara was expected to return for Season 2 of “The Studio,” which started filming earlier this month.
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