Kelly Rowland Says Jay-Z Is One of the 'Greatest Men' She Knows After He Called Out the Grammys for Snubbing Wife Beyoncé
Kelly Rowland voiced her support for Jay-Z’s 2024 Grammys speech!
While on the red carpet for the premiere of Bob Marley: One Love at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles on Tuesday, January 6, she spoke about the rapper’s comments criticizing the Recording Academy for snubbing his wife, Beyoncé.
"Shawn Carter is one of the greatest men I know and his words ring so loud to me," she stated of the 54-year-old, who previously received backlash for cheating on his iconic spouse. "I couldn't be more proud of him."
"I'm just really happy for a lot of things that he said," the Destiny’s Child alum noted of Jay-Z’s remarks, which condemned the organization for never giving Beyoncé an award for Album of the Year. "I think that he made a lot of artists feel very seen and very heard in those minutes that he took on stage."
"I feel like she is an icon... and that's for a reason — it's because she starts trends. She is innovative, her thoughts are big and bright and she just jumps for them and does it," Rowland said of Beyoncé. "I think that her albums are a reflection of that, and it should be really celebrated in that way."
"I'm not saying that because it's my sister, I'm saying it because it's the truth," she insisted of the Lemonade artist. "I've seen the blood, sweat and tears that she puts into these projects, and her thoughts and her heart and her passion and her soul."
- 'Nervous' Jay-Z Calls Out the Grammys for Never Awarding Wife Beyoncé Album of the Year: 'That Doesn't Work'
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- SZA Was Too 'Scared' and Starstruck to Talk to Beyoncé at the 2024 Grammys: 'I Can't Speak Unless She Wants to Speak'
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As OK! previously reported, at the 2024 Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 4, the “Empire State of Mind” crooner accepted the honor of the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, leading him to speak his mind.
"We want you all to get it right," he began. "We love y'all. We want you to get it right. At least get it close to right. And obviously it's subjective because it's music. And it's opinion-based."
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"I don't want to embarrass this young lady, but she has more GRAMMYs than anyone and never won Album of the Year," he said to the audience, referencing his wife, whom he married in 2008. "So, even by your own metrics that doesn't work. Think about that — the most GRAMMYs, never won Album of the Year. That doesn't work."
"Some of you may get robbed,” he continued. "Some of you don’t belong in the category. It’s music and it’s opinion based. When I get nervous, I tell the truth.”
ET spoke with Rowland.