Alicia Keys Opens Up About Honoring Kobe Bryant in 'His House' During the 2020 Grammys
Hosting the 2020 Grammy Awards hours after the tragic news of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna‘s deaths was no easy feat, but Alicia Keys was dedicated to doing it right.
During a chat with Ellen DeGeneres for Wednesday’s episode of her daytime talk show, the 39-year-old singer recalls the opening of the show changing “minutes before” it was set to begin on Sunday at the Staples Center — the same venue Bryant played at with the Los Angeles Lakers before his retirement from the NBA in 2016.
“We had to really figure out, ‘How can we properly honor him in his house on this night?’ ” Keys explains. “And everybody who adores him and loves him so much and have been inspired by him felt so devastated in that moment. We had to properly do that.”
“I was literally backstage, I put on my meditation music, I just was thinking and I called some of my closest people that helped me really find the truth in the moment,” she continues. “It just so happened Boyz II Men was there already that night and we wanted to do something special — create just something that felt like it was the right thing — and we pulled it together and it was just beautiful. It was like that magic that happens when it’s necessary.”
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Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine people who died in a helicopter crash in the hills of Calabasas, California, on Sunday morning. Bryant was 41. He is survived by wife Vanessa and their daughters Capri, 7 months, Bianka, 3, and Natalia, 17.
Before Keys was joined by the R&B group in a rendition of “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye” in Bryant’s honor that evening, she gave a heartfelt tribute of her own in her opening monologue of the show.
“We’re literally standing here heartbroken in the house that Kobe Bryant built. Right now, Kobe and his daughter Gianna, and all of those that have been tragically lost today are in our spirit,” she said, in part. “They’re in our hearts and our prayers. They’re in this building.”
Speaking with DeGeneres, 62, about the Grammys tribute, the “Underdog” singer says, “It was so much, but I was very honored to be able to share that moment with all of us — with the entire world. That we could go through something that hurt so bad, together.”
Be sure to check out PEOPLE’s full Grammy Awards coverage to get the latest news on music’s biggest night.
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Keys, whose self-titled album Alicia is out March 20, also performed in a solo musical tribute to Bryant during the Grammys, playing the piano and addressing the somber feelings of the audience.
“I’m looking forward to being here together with all of us, again celebrating this music because I know how much Kobe loved music,” said the 15-time Grammy winner. “I know how much he loved music, so we gotta make this a celebration in his honor. He would want us to keep the vibrations high.”
Keys later spoke to Entertainment Tonight after the show, revealing, “This was a really hard night, and that’s why I think it was a roller coaster. It was painful, it’s painful right now. We lost a beloved, beloved hero to all of us. A person who is like a true example of brilliance and excellence.”
The 62nd Grammy Awards aired live from Los Angeles’ Staples Center on Sunday, Jan. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.
