Fantasia Barrino 'Kept It Cute' Singing Gospel on the 2024 Golden Globes Carpet: 'I Could've Went On and On'

Barrino attributed the song choice to her being "a church girl"

Fantasia Barrino’s mic is always on!

While walking the carpet for the 2024 Golden Globes preshow hosted by Variety and Entertainment Tonight, the actress, 39, gave a quick performance during her live interview.

“You said to me, before we went live, put a microphone in your hand, and — ” Variety’s Marc Malkin began while talking to Barrino. Finishing his sentence, Barrino added, “And I will sing!”

As Malkin cheered her on, Barrino stated that because she’s “a southern girl” and “a church girl,” it would only be right for her to take it back to her roots. She then began singing a gospel song titled “To God Be the Glory.”

Once finished belting out a few lines, the star said, “See? I kept it cute, ‘cause I could’ve went on and on.”

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Malkin joked that he would speak to her more later in the evening at the piano bar.

Barrino, who wore her hair styled in her signature pixie cut, stunned in a strapless gown and evening gloves. She is up for best performance by a female actor in a motion picture - musical or comedy at this year's Golden Globes for her role in the 2023 remake of The Color Purple.

The musical adaptation is co-produced by Oprah Winfrey, who starred in Steven Spielberg's 1985 original picture of the same name.

Elsewhere in her interview, Malkin asked Barrino what advice she got from the mogul, 69, ahead of the ceremony.

“You know, Oprah is telling us to just enjoy the moment. There’s a lot of things that can come and cloud the moment, so you have to stay focused. And that’s what I love about her, and that’s what I’m gonna always do,” she said.

Related: See Every Star Arriving at the Golden Globes 2024

The recently released remake earned the second-biggest Christmas Day opening of all time just ahead of the new year.

A synopsis of the star-studded remake reads: "A musical adaptation of Alice Walker's novel about the life-long struggles of an African-American woman living in the South during the early 1900s."

In the 2023 version, Barrino stars as Celie, a character originally played by Whoopi Goldberg.

However, the American Idol season three winner had previously been cast as Celie for The Color Purple’s Tony Award-winning Broadway musical.

Last month, Barrino spoke exclusively to PEOPLE about why she enjoyed making the film more than her run on Broadway.

“I hated it,” Barrino said bluntly of her time on the stage. “That was around the time that my life was so crazy, so it was almost like carrying my cross and Celie’s cross. I didn’t know how to come out of the character.”

The “Free Yourself” singer credited director Blitz Bazawule’s revisions to the film’s storyline for getting her on board to take on the role of Celie once again.

“He showed me he was giving Celie an imagination this go-round for audiences to see how she got through. I was all in.”

See PEOPLE's full coverage of the 81st annual Golden Globes as they're broadcasting live from The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles on CBS and Paramount+.

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