The 56th GRAMMY Awards marked a big night for Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake, both separately and together. Jay-Z walked into the ceremony with nine nominations, while Timberlake had seven nods. Moreover, they were nominated four times together: Twice for the Jay-led "Holy Grail" and twice for "Suit & Tie," helmed by Timberlake.
Both songs wound up getting some love on the GRAMMY stage that evening. "Suit & Tie" won Best Music Video, and "Holy Grail" took home the trophy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.
In this episode of GRAMMY Rewind, revisit the short-and-sweet acceptance speech Jay-Z gave as he received his trophy for "Holy Grail." The rapper offered his thanks to his co-writers, producers and every one who worked on the song with him — including Timberlake, who wasn't in attendance — and made special mention of his wife, Beyoncé, who watched proudly from the front row.
"I wanna thank God, I mean, a little bit for this award, but mostly for that, and all the universe conspiring and putting that beautiful light of a young lady in my life," Jay-Z said, gesturing toward Beyoncé.
He continued to keep his thoughts close to home as he wrapped up his speech, with a message for his daughter Blue Ivy, who had celebrated her 2nd birthday three weeks before the Jan. 26 show. "I wanna tell Blue that, 'Look, Daddy got a gold sippy cup for you,'" Jay-Z said with a smile before departing the stage.
Jay-Z's two 2014 GRAMMY wins brought his total to 19. To date, Jay-Z has won 24 GRAMMYs and has received 83 nominations overall — the most GRAMMY nominations of all time. (Timberlake's GRAMMY tally is impressive, too: Justin Timberlake has won 10 GRAMMYs and has received 39 nominations overall.)
Press play on the video above to revisit this special moment in GRAMMY Awards history, and check back to GRAMMY.com every Friday for more episodes of GRAMMY Rewind.
How Many GRAMMYs Has Beyoncé Won? 10 Questions About The 'Renaissance' Singer Answered