Tracy Chapman’s epic Grammys 2024 comeback: Reclusive singer gives fans ‘chills’ as she makes VERY rare appearance to perform Fast Car with Luke Combs after nomination… and even Taylor Swift sings along!
Tracy Chapman brought down the house with a rousing rendition of her hit Fast Car at the 2024 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday.
The legendary songwriter, 59, made a rare appearance as she rocked out on stage with Luke Combs, whose cover of her 1988 song was a crossover hit in 2023 and landed him a Best Country Solo Performance nomination.
As Chapman struck the initial chords and began singing the opening verse, the crowd erupted in applause, with Taylor Swift and Oprah Winfrey singing along.
The Cleveland native has made only 3 public performances since her last tour in 2009, and last performed at the Grammys in 1989, where she won Best Female Pop Vocal Performance that year for Fast Car.
Fans were quick to take to social media to applaud the performance, as one follower gushed, ‘Witnessing Tracy Chapman get this standing ovation made me cry.’
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Tracy Chapman brought down the house with a rousing rendition of her hit Fast Car at the 2024 Grammy Awards in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday
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The legendary songwriter, 59, made a rare appearance as she rocked out on stage with Luke Combs, whose cover of the 1988 song was a crossover hit in 2023
Can’t miss performances from the 2024 Annual Grammy Awards
Another fan tweeted, ‘This moment with tracy chapman and luke combs is one of the best grammy moments i’ve ever seen. full body chills,’ while another wrote, ‘Tracy Chapman is incredible.’
Yet another posted, ‘Okay America needed this moment!’
Chapman also clinched the title of Best New Artist at the 1989 Grammys, while her self-titled debut album, featuring Fast Car, secured the Best Contemporary Folk Album.
She also earned a coveted nomination for Album of the Year.
In a historic moment last November, she achieved a milestone as Luke’s version clinched the 2023 CMA Award for Song of the Year.
This victory marked Chapman as the first Black songwriter to win in this prestigious category.
Despite not attending the ceremony, she said in a statement that the achievement was ‘truly an honor.’
‘I never expected to find myself on the country charts, but I’m honored to be there,’ she said in a statement to Billboard in July 2023.
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The Cleveland native has made only 3 public performances since her last tour in 2009, and last performed at the Grammys in 1989, where she won Best Female Pop Vocal Performance that year for Fast Car
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Fast Car also landed Luke a Best Country Solo Performance nomination
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In a historic moment last November, she achieved a milestone as Luke’s version clinched the 2023 CMA Award for Song of the Year
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Chapman also clinched the title of Best New Artist at the 1989 Grammys
‘I’m happy for Luke and his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced Fast Car,’she added.
Tracy and Luke kicked off performances by Billie Eilish, Dua Lipa, Luke Combs, Olivia Rodrigo, SZA and Travis Scott.
Hosted by Trevor Noah, this year’s celebration will air live at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS and its streaming service Paramount+.
SZA tops the nominations with a total of nine nods, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song Of The Year. Taylor Swift follows close behind with six nominations, and will also be competing against SZA in the three aforementioned categories.
The majority of Swift’s nominations were for her acclaimed album Midnights and its single Anti-Hero, which earned some of the best reviews of her career.
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Taylor Swift jumped up in the audience as soon as Tracy took the stage
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As Chapman struck the initial chords and began singing the opening verse, the crowd erupted in applause, with Taylor singing along
Taylor looked incredible in her couture gown as she sang along to Fast Car
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Taylor proved to be a stan of Tracy’s as she belted out the lyrics during Tracy’s performance
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Oprah Winfrey couldn’t help but get on her feet as well
Billie Eilish and Miley Cyrus are also both up for six awards. Eilish’s nominations include Song and Record of the Year for her hit single from the Barbie soundtrack, What Was I Made For?
That track is up for Record of the Year, a category that honors the artists who recorded the song and its producers and engineers, as well as for the Song of the Year category, which honors songwriters. SZA’s track Kill Bill has also been nominated in both categories.
Swift has already made history in the Album of the Year category, currently tied for three previous wins with music legends Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon and Stevie Wonder.
Cyrus has the chance to win her first ever Grammy this year with her nominations.
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Fans were quick to take to social media to applaud the performance
Her track Flowers is up for Record and Song of the Year, while her album Endless Summer Vacation has been nominated for Album of the Year.
Olivia Rodrigo is another major name in competition for a trophy.
Olivia – who has already won three Grammys – has been nominated for six awards this year, including Album Of The Year, Record Of The Year, and Song Of The Year.
Other major nominees include jazz crossover artist Jon Batiste, the trio Boygenius (made up of Phoebe Bridges, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker), Lana Del Rey, Janelle Monáe and Victoria Monét, who was nominated for Best New Artist and multiple awards for her album Jaguar II and its singles.
In addition to the big names celebrating career achievements, a host of celebrities are set to be presenting at the show.
