Hildur Guðnadóttir is taking home a Grammy for music she first thought no one would care to hear
January 26, 2020, 10:32 PM
4 min read
LOS ANGELES -- The Latest on the Grammy Awards, being presented Sunday at Los Angeles' Staples Center (all times local):
2:15
Hildur Guðnadóttir is taking home a Grammy for music she first thought no one would care to hear.
The female composer won best score soundtrack for the HBO miniseries “Chernobyl” during the pre-telecast ceremony Sunday.
The soundtrack already won her an Emmy late last year. And in January she became the first woman in 19 years to win best original score for “Joker” at the Golden Globes.
“I think it fit really well with the images of the film, and I was happy with how the music worked with the narrative and characters in this series,” she said backstage of the “Chernobyl” soundtrack. “But I never thought anyone would ever listen to the soundtrack record, honestly. I’ve very surprised to be here today.”
She is also up next month for an Academy Award for “Joker.” If she wins an Oscar, she could have three of the four EGOT awards, after her Grammy and Emmy.
Guðnadóttir called the experience “surreal” and an “adventure.” She said she might have plans to go on Broadway, which could present some pressure for her to win a Tony Award.
“Now, I feel a lot of pressure,” she said with a chuckle. “That’ll be the next step. The next project, I guess.”
— Jonathan Landrum Jr.
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1:45 p.m.
Michelle Obama is a Grammy winner.
The former first lady won her first Grammy Award on Sunday for best spoken word album for the audio book of her 2019 memoir “Becoming.”
Obama was not on hand to accept the award handed out at the Staples Center in Los Angeles during the Grammys pre-telecast ceremony.
Her husband, former president Barack Obama, has two Grammys in the same category, one for his 2005 audio book “Dreams of My Father” and another for his 2007 audio book “The Audacity of Hope.”
The spoken word album category includes poetry, storytelling and audio books.
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1:15 p.m.
Beyoncé’s “Homecoming” has won the Grammy Award for best music film.
The Netflix film weaves together Beyoncé’s 2018 performances at the Coachella music festival, which included numerous nods to historically black colleges and universities.
Producer Steve Pamon in accepting the award said those working to graduate from the institutions are their inspiration. He also praised Beyoncé for her leadership on the project.
The superstar did not attend the pre-telecast ceremony where her Grammy win was announced.
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12:45 p.m.
The Grammy Awards pre-telecast ceremony opened with a moment of silence for Kobe Bryant.
Interim Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. opened the ceremony where dozens of Grammys are handed out before the main show, telling attendees, “As most of you may know, we lost Kobe Bryant in a tragic helicopter accident today."
"Since we are in his house, I would ask you to join me in a moment of silence,” Mason said.
Artists arriving at the show reacted to Bryant's death and his influence.
Blues artist and Grammys nominee Keb' Mo' called Bryant's death “a huge loss.”
“He's just a huge role model," Keb' Mo' said.
British artist Labrinth said: “It was insane news to hear this morning. He's been part of my life for a very long time. ... I couldn't believe it.”
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10 a.m.
Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X are walking into what should be one of the most exciting days of their careers as they attend their first-ever Grammy Awards on Sunday, where they are the top-nominated acts. But 10 days before arguably the biggest night in music, the industry erupted when the Recording Academy announced it had put its recently hired CEO, Deborah Dugan, on administrative leave for misconduct.
Dugan and her lawyers fired back at the academy, claiming that the awards show is rigged. That energy puts a dark cloud over nominees like Lizzo, Eilish and Lil Nas X, breakthrough acts who are competing for top prizes.
The Grammy Awards are being presented Sunday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The main telecast begins at 8 p.m. Eastern on CBS.
