Describing the importance of Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car," Luke Combs said, "Tracy is such an icon and, I mean, one of the best songwriters that, I think, any of us will ever be around to see."
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Grammys 2024The 2024 Grammy Awards were last night, which celebrated the very best in music released between Oct. 2022 and Sept. 2023. It was a big night for some of the biggest artists.
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In terms of the "big four" awards, Miley Cyrus took home her first Grammy Award ever, and walked away with Record of the Year for "Flowers." Meanwhile, Victoria Monét won Best New Artist, Billie Eilish and Finneas took home Song of the Year for "What Was I Made For?" from Barbie, and Taylor Swift won Album of the Year for Midnights.
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There were also some incredible performances last night. SZA gave a stunning performance in support of her album SOS, Joni Mitchell joined Brandi Carlile on stage to sing "Both Sides, Now," Annie Lennox, Stevie Wonder, Jon Batiste, Fantasia, and more performed during the emotional In Memoriam segment, and more.
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While all of the performances were stellar, there was one that everyone could not stop talking about, and that was Tracy Chapman joining Luke Combs on stage to sing her hit song "Fast Car."
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This was the first time Tracy has performed "Fast Car" live in nine years, and she notably performed the song at the Grammys in 1989 when she took home the award for Best New Artist.
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This year, Luke Combs received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Country Solo Performance for his cover of "Fast Car." Luke's rendition of the iconic song even earned Tracy a Country Music Award for Song of the Year, making her the first Black songwriter to win the award.
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In his acceptance speech at the CMA's, Tracy did not attend, Luke said,"First and foremost, I want to thank Tracy Chapman for writing one of the best songs of all time. Never intended for that — I just recorded it because I love this song so much. It's meant so much to me throughout my entire life. It's the first favorite song I ever had from the time I was 4 years old."
Luke has consistently put Tracy's incredible artistry front and center while celebrating the success of his "Fast Car" cover. After Tracy said she was "honored" to have a No. 1 on the Billboard country chart, Luke added, "The success of my cover is unreal and I think it’s so cool that Tracy is getting recognized and has reached new milestones."
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All of this brings us to the 2024 Grammys, where Tracy and Luke performed the song together, and it was beautiful.
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The way Luke was so excited to be on stage with her, you could tell how special this was for him.
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Meanwhile, Tracy was just stunning per usual. Every time she performs live, it's an incredible moment, and this is no exception.
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Everyone in the audience was so into it, and gave the duo a standing ovation at the end of their performance.
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Following their performance, Tracy's version of "Fast Car" went to No. 1 on the US iTunes top song chart, and her debut album, Tracy Chapman, also hit No. 1 during the ceremony.
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People at home could not stop talking about it, too. So many fans took to X, formerly Twitter, to express their love for Tracy and her performance with Luke. Here are some of the best reactions:
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The look on Tracy Chapman's face when the crowd realizes its her https://t.co/8jzMYjnOYv
— Tommy Vietor (@TVietor08) February 5, 2024
@TVietor08 / CBS / Via Twitter: @TVietor08
Award shows are tedious and crass, but the smile on Tracy Chapman’s face when the auditorium goes nuts for her before she takes everyone to school with no lip sync, no auto-tune and no in-ear monitors is a pretty sweet moment to capture live. pic.twitter.com/YZGbWgMmHJ
— Sean Armstrong (@manatee73) February 5, 2024
@manatee73 / CBS / Via Twitter: @manatee73
— Ernest Owens (@MrErnestOwens) February 5, 2024Witnessing Tracy Chapman get this standing ovation made me cry.
Black queer women in music get erased too often in this industry.
To see her get her flowers like this was touching. ❤️ #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/L3DTMet3ri
@MrErnestOwens / Via Twitter: @MrErnestOwens
I cannot overstate how BEAUTIFUL Tracy Chapman is. https://t.co/oshyLzO243
— Anna Gifty (@itsafronomics) February 5, 2024
@itsafronomics / CBS / Via Twitter: @itsafronomics
I hope tonight’s Grammys encourages everyone to deep dive into Tracy Chapman’s catalogue because it will feed your SOUL. pic.twitter.com/bHkIrss1SI
— Justin Kirkland (@justinkirkland4) February 5, 2024
@justinkirkland4 / CBS / Via Twitter: @justinkirkland4
fast car kinda one of the best songs of all time
— zae (@itszaeok) February 5, 2024
@itszaeok / Via Twitter: @itszaeok
Fast Car has always been an obviously brilliant song, but to me the most striking thing is how timeless Tracy Chapman's voice and approach is. It was released in 1988 but I thought it was new when I first heard it as a kid in the mid-90s, and it doesn't feel aged at all now
— Amanda Mull (@amandamull) February 5, 2024
Amanda Mull / Via Twitter: @amandamull
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) February 5, 2024Watching Tracy Chapman perform “Fast Car” with Luke Combs made me very happy.
I love how respectful he’s been of her work and her legacy. pic.twitter.com/I6TiiiPDBF
@yashar / CBS / Via Twitter: @yashar
Shoutout to Luke Combs for appropriate amounts of giddy while singing next to thee Tracy Chapman.
— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) February 5, 2024
@franklinleonard / Via Twitter: @franklinleonard
— The Madwoman in the Classroom (@heymrsbond) February 5, 2024Y’all see how he keeps looking over with that ‘holy shit. I’m performing with Tracy Chapman’ face?
That’s beautiful. https://t.co/E8iVx0hQdk
@heymrsbond / CBS / Via Twitter: @heymrsbond
shout out to tik tok for picking the most random songs on earth to go viral because tracy chapman has deserved this level of adoration and praise for years and now the youth are finally getting her her due 🥲pic.twitter.com/SkzuwFdr7A
— claire de lune (@ClaireMPLS) February 5, 2024
@ClaireMPLS / CBS / Via Twitter: @ClaireMPLS
— Katie Crosby (@crosby_katie) February 5, 2024Not lost on me that a black queer artist and a white country singer came together to sing a song about belonging.
America is starved for connection across divides and that performance shows how much music has the power to heal. #grammys #tracychapman
@crosby_katie / Via Twitter: @crosby_katie
This clip of Tracy Chapman doing “Fast Car” in 1988 and silencing Wembley Stadium is pretty stunning. pic.twitter.com/uWUnFFOxtv
— Steven Hyden (@Steven_Hyden) February 5, 2024
@Steven_Hyden / BBC / Via youtu.be
While were talking about Tracy Chapman, let’s remember this fantastic performance as one of the final musical guests on Letterman. pic.twitter.com/fTUv5oFHlL
— Shane (@sbliss89) February 5, 2024
@sbliss89 / CBS / Via Twitter: @sbliss89
In conclusion:
Just a friendly mom reminder to rehydrate after watching Tracy Chapman, Annie Lennox and Joni Mitchell perform in one night. Your body isn’t used to this and you must restore electrolytes!
— Brooke Preston (@bigu) February 5, 2024
@bigu / Via Twitter: @bigu
