Singer and now two-time Grammy winner Jazmine Sullivan took home the Best R&B Album award for “Heaux Tales” and tied with Silk Sonic to win Best R&B Performance for “Pick Up Your Feelings” at the 2022 Grammy Awards.
Sullivan previously earned 15 Grammy nominations over the last 10 years. This victory is well-deserved.
Sullivan kick-started her tour on Valentine’s Day and is touring all over North America. She continued the tour after having to cancel six of her shows due to various COVID-19 cases on her team. She also tested positive. She said in a tweet the circumstance was extremely disappointing, but nonetheless, they were going to figure it out.
They did figure it out. After recovery, Sullivan and her team were able to get back on tour doing what they loved.
Her album “Heaux Tales” was released in January 2021, and she followed it up with a deluxe version in February 2022.
“I just wanted to tell the untold stories of women,” Sullivan said in an NPR interview. “ I feel like society makes it seem like we have to be perfect and present ourselves a certain way to be considered a good woman.”
“Heaux Tales” is a series of personal and intimate stories told by Black women that includes the ups and downs of love, heartbreak, sex and dating.
Dressed in a black and white tribal jumpsuit with black sunglasses, she accepted her Grammy from Billie Porter, in disbelief that she heard her name.
“I think that I wrote this project to deal with my own shame and unforgiveness around some of the decisions that I made in my 20s that weren’t favorable,” Sullivan said in her acceptance speech. “But what it ended up being was a safe space for Black women to tell their stories. For us to learn from each other, laugh with each other and not be exploited at the same time.”
The album was made for Black women so they know they are not alone. It doesn’t matter if you’re a celebrity or not, we all go through the same struggles in love. And we shouldn’t feel ashamed of the mistakes and heartbreak.
It’s important we forgive ourselves and let go of some of the decisions we have made in the past because we are humans, and we’re constantly growing and changing.
Seeing another Black woman finally win after being seen as an underdog makes you feel as though you won too.
