The show can’t go on without an A-list Clive Davis party
NEW YORK – There’s no hotter place to be on Grammys Eve than a Clive Davis party.
The legendary record mogul threw his annual pre-awards gala Saturday night at the Sheraton New York Times Square, a seemingly roomier venue than the party’s usual West Coast digs at the Beverly Hills Hilton hotel.
And with the bigger space came bigger names as music titans including Barry Manilow, Gladys Knight and Quincy Jones rubbed shoulders with the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Martha Stewart, Tina Fey and Nancy Pelosi. Survey the room and you might’ve caught Chrissy Teigen stopping to chat up Rita Ora; Nick Jonas posing for selfies with fans before he beelined for the bathroom; and Priyanka Chopra huddled with Jennifer Hudson, who moments later animatedly sang along to Zedd and Alessia Cara’s Stay.
But the night’s biggest star was undoubtedly Jay-Z, who was was fêted with an Industry Icons honor at Davis’ bash. More on that, and other moments you need to know:
1Jay- Z addresses past boycotts of the Grammys in Icons acceptance speech
The rapper hasn’t always had the warmest relationship with the Recording Academy; he boycotted the ceremony for six straight years starting in
1999 because hip-hop artists were snubbed. In fact, he didn’t return until
2004, when “the beautiful Ms. Beyoncé” was nominated for their collaboration Crazy in Love.
Since then, Jay-Z has come to realize that “art is super-subjective and everyone’s doing their best,” he said, calling for a continued push to diversify the nominees. “The academy, they’re human like we are and voting on things that they like. We can pretend that we don’t care, but we do. ... So I was like, ‘I have to be here.’ That’s the whole idea: for all of us to get involved and to push this thing further.”
2Beyoncé beams and wears the heck out of a beret
Queen Bey did not bless partygoers with a performance. But all eyes were still glued to the diva. After listing her remarkable feats including 62 Grammy nominations (the most of any female artist), Davis declared her the “first lady of music,” garnering a standing ovation.
3Alicia Keys honors Jay-Z, “one of the greatest that’s ever done it,” with epic medley
Veteran artists and newcomers took the stage for performances throughout the two-hour dinner. The most stage time was allotted to Keys, who ran through roughly a dozen of Jay-Z’s hits in a career-spanning tribute to her Empire State of Mind collaborator.
4Cardi B shows love for her husband-to-be
The Bodak Yellow rapper brought her infectious presence to Davis’ gala, where she bashfully buried her head in her hands when he introduced her to the crowd. But the biggest “aw” moments were courtesy of her fiancé, Migos member Offset, whose performance of
Bad and Boujee she playfully danced to and filmed on her smartphone.
5Chrissy Teigen lets her priorities be known
While posing with her husband, multi-Grammy winner John Legend, and president of the Recording Academy, Neil Portnow, on the red carpet, Chrissy Teigen gave us insight as to what was on her mind. She asked if she and her crooning hubby were late, and, seemingly more important, “Did we miss the food?” Teigen revealed in November that she was eating for two when she announced she and Legend are expecting their second child.