Roddy Ricch, who entered the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards race with six nominations after a truly top-tier year of critical acclaim and commercial success, did not disappoint with his performance at Sunday night’s mid-pandemic ceremony which featured him debuting “Heartless.” He also performed his chart-topping single “The Box.”
Roddy also appeared on stage to perform “Rockstar” with DaBaby during the awards show. While Roddy was a clear presence for the night, he ended up going home with zero awards.
Back in 2019, Roddy—who was then fresh off the release of his debut studio album Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial—spoke with Complex’s Eric Skelton about his repeatedly proven mastery at carefully reflecting on the world around him via song, specifically shouting out the work of Kendrick Lamar as having been hugely influential on his writing process.
“Kendrick Lamar taught me that life experience is an important part of being a good illustrator,” he said at the time. “When you’re illustrating a story, you have to go based off of your personal experiences. When you write about shit you don’t know about, it’s not going to sound right, because you’ll miss the details.”
Roddy’s ubiquitous “The Box,” as expected, was ultimately determined as the most-streamed song of 2020.
Catch Roddy’s performance at the 2021 Grammys up top.
He also released an official live version of his new song “Heartless”:
Related Stories
Here Are the 2021 Grammy Award Winners
Beyoncé entered this year's awards race with the most nominations at nine total. Taylor Swift, Roddy Ricch, and Dua Lipa each boast six nominations.
Cardi B Congratulates ‘Underrated’ Grammy Nominated Artists Amid Calls for Boycott
The Grammy-winning rapper gave a shout-out to "underrated" Black artists: "No one blinked a eye to congratulate them cause everybody throwing tantrums."
Roddy Ricch Goes Sneaker Shopping With Complex
Roddy Ricch goes Sneaker Shopping with Complex's Joe La Puma at Stadium Goods in New York City and talks about Nipsey Hussle's influence on him, LeBron James co-signing his music, and shopping at the Compton Swap Meet growing up.
