From nothing to something: Cardi B’s “Invasion of Privacy” wins Best Rap Album at 2019 Grammys

BY SOFIA MENDEZ

On Sunday, February 10, the 61st Annual Grammy Awards were held. There were many winners such as Ariana Grande, Childish Gambino, Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga as well as several other talented artists, yet, one recipient stands out from the rest. This artist has been nominated seven times for the Grammys but this was her first ever win. Belcalis Marlenis Almánazar— better known as Cardi B— won a Grammy for best rap album, beating other fellow nominees Nipsey Hussle, Pusha T, Travis Scott and the late Mac Miller.

Most people know Cardi B for her hit songs such as “Bodak Yellow” and “I Like It.” But aside from that, in two short years she’s gone from a dancer to an Instagram celebrity to an actress. Now, she has made history at the Grammys, becoming the first solo female to win best rap album for “Invasion of Privacy.”

During her acceptance speech, Cardi B thanked her husband, Offset, a member of the popular hip-hop trio Migos.

“I read an article that Mac Miller’s family said that if you don’t win, they want me to win so I’m sharing this Grammy with you … Rest in peace my friend,” the rapper said.

“You! Husband, thank you,” Cardi B said. “Seriously, he was like, ‘you want to do this album, girl. You’re going to have this baby and we’re going to make this album happen.”

Cardi B finished accepting the prize by thanking her loved ones for supporting her over the chaos of the past year and especially thanking her daughter Kulture, who she admits with giving her a tough deadline to complete her album on time.

“I want to thank my daughter,” Cardi B said. “Not just because she’s my daughter, it’s because when I found out I was pregnant, my album was not complete … We was like, ‘We have to get this album done so we can shoot these videos while I was still not showing,’ and it was very long nights.”

Backstage while she celebrated with her family, Cardi B gave a long shoutout to the team members she forgot to credit on stage. She specifically took a moment to appreciate Mac Miller, who died in September after an accidental overdose.

The situation somehow involved Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande when fans saw series of messages the artists had tweeted about Mac Miller losing Best Rap Album to Cardi B.

Although she took the Grammy home, her big moment has since been clouded with controversy after haters have come forward and said that B’s award was not well earned. This led B to take to Instagram to defend herself before finally making her decision of deactivating her account.

The situation somehow involved Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande when fans saw series of messages the artists had tweeted about Mac Miller losing Best Rap Album to Cardi B.

As the situation got heated, Lady Gaga came to Cardi B’s defense.

“It is so hard to be a woman in this industry,” Lady Gaga said. “What it takes, how hard we walk through the disrespectful challenges, just to make art. I love you Cardi. You deserve your words. Let’s celebrate her fight. Lift her up and honor her. She is brave.”

Photo courtesy of Essence