H.E.R. is a GRAMMY mainstay at this point, with five golden gramophones and a whopping 21 nominations to her name. But back in 2019 at the 61st GRAMMY Awards, she was a brand new nominee, and was shocked when her name was called as the winner in the Best R&B Album category.
In the latest episode of GRAMMY Rewind, revisit that memorable moment, and watch H.E.R. explain from the stage why she was so shocked to win Best R&B Album for her self-titled project.
"First thing I wanna say is, this is unbelievable. And second, it’s not even an album. It’s an EP," she exclaimed from behind the podium, breaking into shocked laughter. And while H.E.R. had trouble gathering her thoughts — "I’m speechless right now. I’m holding back tears," she admitted — she knew she wanted to share her big moment with the people who had most helped her achieve her GRAMMY win.
"I really don’t feel right being up here by myself, because I didn’t do this by myself. I didn’t get on this stage by myself. So if my team, my wonderful team, would come up on stage with me please," H.E.R. continued, as six people filed out of their seats in the audience and walked up to join her.
H.E.R.’s gratitude didn’t stop there: She began to rattle off a long list of her supporters, beginning with God, and including her parents, who she thanked for "embracing my talents and who I am, since I was a little girl."
She also extended heartfelt gratitude to her career team and her label home, RCA Records, who signed her when she was just 13 years old. As the clock ran out on her time onstage, H.E.R. was still finding people to thank. Her support network is so vast, it seemed, that she could have spent all night mentioning people who helped bring her to where she is in her career today.
It wasn’t the only time H.E.R. got on stage that night — she was also awarded the Best R&B Performance trophy for "Best Part" — and she would continue to see massive success at the GRAMMY Awards in the years to come.
Press play on the video above to see H.E.R.’s early win from the 61st GRAMMY Awards show, and keep checking back to GRAMMY.com for more episodes of GRAMMY Rewind.
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