Miley Cyrus finally snagged her first Grammy Award at the 2024 Grammy Awards. The pop icon won the Best Pop Solo Performance award for her hit song “Flowers,” a milestone moment made even more special by the award being presented by the legendary Mariah Carey.
Miley Cyrus to @WMag on only winning her first Grammy this year:
“No shade, but I’ve been doing this for 20 years, and this is my first time actually being taken seriously at the Grammys? I’ve had a hard time figuring out what the measurement is there, because if we want to talk… pic.twitter.com/6xW9qlhaPK
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) June 3, 2024
Cyrus expressed a mix of joy and bewilderment over her Grammy triumph.
“No shade, but I’ve been doing this for 20 years, and this is my first time being taken seriously at the Grammys? she remarked in her proud and questioning tone.
Cyrus, a prominent figure in the music scene since 2007, shared her frustrations about the industry’s recognition—or lack thereof—of her work.
”I’ve had a hard time figuring out what the measurement is there because if we want to talk stats and numbers, then where the f**k was I? And if you want to talk, like, impact on culture, then where the f**k was I? she continued. “This is not about arrogance. I am proud of myself.”
Cyrus charmed the audience with her humor and humility during her acceptance speech. “This MC is gonna stand by this MC for this because this is just too iconic,” she quipped, referring to herself and Mariah Carey. She recounted her nerve-wracking journey to the ceremony, joking about almost missing the moment due to being stuck in traffic.
“I thought I was going to miss this, but I got seated just in time in my lucky number three seat,” she shared with a smile.
Then she told a story about a little boy with a butterfly net by way of metaphor that would come to resound so profoundly with her own life:
“Went outside, swinging and swinging, but caught nothing. He sat down, and he let go, and right then, a butterfly landed on his nose. This song ‘Flowers’ my butterfly,” she said, capturing an image of how patience and timing in her career have been everything.
Social media was equally electrified upon the announcement of Cyrus’s win, with fans excitedly celebrating the long-awaited recognition of her. Many people also claimed that this award was a defining moment in her career toward standing solid in music.
She dropped the album Endless Summer Vacation last year, reaching up to No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. One of its singles, “Flowers,” from the album, reportedly just topped the Billboard Hot 100 as its leading single, smashing several streaming records. With it, Cyrus achieved a milestone in a career that has had many ups and downs.
For years, she has complained about not being taken seriously enough by the Grammy Awards even though she has considerably impacted the international musical and pop cultural stage. Cyrus had been nominated earlier in 2015 for “Bangerz,” and things had not worked in her favor, so the question of the criteria for granting Grammys arose.
Despite so many frustrations, though, Cyrus is proud of her journey and accomplishments. She reminded the audience that despite any support or recognition marking her career as a whole at the Grammys, she’s kept on making impactful music. “This is not anything I expected, but to be honest, it feels good to hold that we’re on the same stage,” she said, showing off as many medley powers as possible.
And in a bit of added meta-context to her year of awards, Cyrus will also receive an honor in the Epic Mickey Disney Legends Awards Ceremony. In which, too, she’s the youngest honoree ever.
Cyrus will be honored on the 11th of August at the Honda Center in Anaheim during the Disney Legends Awards Ceremony with fellow awardees Angela Bassett, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Harrison Ford, among others. Cyrus has come a long way from being Disney’s darling to that of the Grammy-winning pop sensation, really showcasing talent in the industry.
As she continues to break barriers and set new records, fans and critics alike look forward to what’s next for this unstoppable force in the music industry.
