Advertisement From the very first moment she took the Grammys stage, host Alicia Keys made it clear the night would be about paying tribute to music. And it was Keys herself who delivered one of the most powerful performances of the night - with a medley that included classics from five different decades. Sat between two pianos, the 38-year-old songstress wowed the audience at the Los Angeles Staples Center on Sunday as she began to play them both at the same time. Singing sensation: Alicia Keys delivered one of the most powerful performances of the Grammys as she took the stage with two pianos, which she played at the same time 'I've been thinking so much about the people and the music that have inspired me, and I want to give a shout out to Hazel Scott because I always wanted to play to pianos,' she said, referring to the late jazz pianist and movie star. 'You know those songs that live inside of you and live inside of me, and you just love it so much, because it was done so well that you wish you wrote it?' 'That's how I feel about these songs. I wish I wrote them.' Keys, who was wearing dazzling pants and a black Alix bodysuit, first began with the song that she said she thinks about when she reflects on 'heartache and heartbreak', playing Roberta Flack's 1973 tune Killing Me Softly, later popularized by Lauryn Hill and The Fugees. 'Or when it's time to move on, this is the song,' she said, breaking into Juice World's recent hit Lucid Dreams before switching to Nat King Cole's 1952 classic Unforgettable. Keys said her medley was inspired by the songs that were done so well she wished she had written them herself Keys, who was wearing sparkling pants and a black Alix bodysuit, first began with the song that she thinks about when she reflects on 'heartache and heartbreak', playing Roberta Flack's 1973 tune Killing Me Softly 'Now, who didn't wish they wrote this song? I know I do,' she said as she began singing Kings of Leon's 2008 hit Use Somebody. That turned into In My Feelings, Drake's song of the summer, and Boo'd Up by Ella Mai before Keys began playing Doo-Wop (That Thing), saying she wished she had written the entire Miseducation of Lauryn Hill album. 'Then, finally, you write the song you wish you wrote,' Keys said before she broke into her own tune Empire State Of Mind. Keys' medley was an instant hit on Twitter, with many calling it the best performance in a Grammys that had already been praised throughout the night. Keys' medley was an instant hit on Twitter, with many calling it the best performance in a Grammys that had already been praised throughout the night 'Okay but who is doing it like Alicia Keys she literally has more stage presence than half the industry and she's only up there with two pianos,' one fan wrote. 'Alicia Keys is refreshing everyone's memory on why she's one of the greatest of all time,' one commenter wrote. 'When the best performer of the night is also the host. #GRAMMYs @aliciakeys,' another added. Ana Navarro joked that Alicia Keys was doing such a good job she should 'just go ahead and host the Oscars too'. Many said they would've been happy to keep watching Keys perform for the rest of the night 'God exists and loves us, and the proof is Alicia Keys,' quipped Ben Domenech, while on fan added: ' I don't know if there is a God, but if there is, she listens to Alicia Keys.' Many said they would've been happy to keep watching Keys perform for the rest of the night. 'The @aliciakeys two piano medley was the best thing on tv tonight, this week, probably for a very long time,' one fan wrote. 'I could have settled in for a whole Alicia Keys concert after that performance, didn't want it to end,' another added. Billy Eichner was among the many who also praised Keys' hosting abilities during the night 'Give me Alicia Keys and 2 pianos the rest of the night and I'm good,' one viewer quipped. 'I'm the epitome of non-target market of Grammys. You know what, I'll tune in every year if @aliciakeys hosts and does a 20-minute riff of everyone's best songs,' added Paul Kane. Many marveled at Keys' ability to host the show with ease and then pull off an incredible performance, which some suspected was actually a filler after Ariana Grande pulled out of the show last minute. 'Alicia Keys is a godsend. Most folks have no idea what a heavy lift it is to host a show of this magnitude. Then to straddle two pianos and belt out a complication performance of, what, 7 or 8 songs? Simply. Amazing,' one fan wrote. Fashion parade: Alicia rocked an array of show-stopping looks throughout the ceremony, kicking off by hitting the red carpet in a plunging scarlet gown, before changing into an emerald dress, caped gown and leather jumpsuit Two's company: Keys kicked off the Grammys with a surprise appearance from Michelle Obama. The pair are longtime friends Glamorous: The singing sensation joined her longtime pal Michelle on the stage for an empowering speech Standing tall: The crowd was on their feet as Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Alicia Keys, former first lady Michelle Obama, and Jennifer Lopez hit the stage Loving life: Later Keys wowed the audience with her singing chops again as she crooned with Smokey Robinson before the Motown tribute began Keys also got back on stage to sing and dance with Jennifer Lopez during the tribute 'Hats off to Alicia Keys...What a magnificent performance at #GRAMMYs both as a presenter and (incredible) singer and piano player,' another added. 'Award shows are hard - this is a fantastic show. Diana. Dolly. And @aliciakeys is perfect,' Billy Eichner wrote. 'Giving @aliciakeys the keys to the #GRAMMYs was a very good idea,' another added. Girl power! Cardi B, Kacey Musgraves, and Lady Gaga - pictured left to right - led the women's empowerment push as they were some of the biggest winners at the 2019 Grammy Awards on Sunday night Queen: Cardi, 26, made history as she became the first ever solo woman to take home Best Rap Album for Invasion Of Privacy at the gala event held in Staples Center in Los Angeles Taken aback: She seemingly couldn't believe that she won as she was the fifth woman ever nominated for the award and the first to ever capture the Best Rap Album crown Wow factor: Earlier in the night Cardi performed her hit Money and put on a very raunchy performance Keys was the first woman to host the Grammys since Queen Latifah was given the honor in 2005. And she didn't take the position lightly, kicking off the night with Michelle Obama, crooning with Smokey Robinson, and dancing with Jennifer Lopez. During her opening monologue, Keys made it clear that the night would be about music and the joy that it can bring. Rocking out: Later on in the evening, Lady Gaga performed the hit single from A Star Is Born Jaw-dropping: As she is no stranger to theatrics, Gaga put on a very physical performance for a relatively somber song 'Do you feel that love in the building? This is love, this is life, this is living, this is light and all because of music,' she told the audience. 'Music is so powerful. So you see we're gonna have an incredible time tonight, this is just the beginning.' 'Music is what we cry to. It's what we march to. It's what we rock to. It's what we make love to. It's our shared global language, and when you really want to say something, you say it with a song, am I right? Or am I right?' Later in the ceremony, Keys welcomed Michelle Obama onto the stage, with the former First Lady stunning the star-studded audience as she joined a plethora of female singers beneath the bright lights.<doc-sep>In case you forgot (which you definitely shouldn't have), Grammys host Alicia Keys isn't just a former coach on "The Voice," but a mega-watt force of nature none of us deserve. Keys took her last name literally during Sunday night's awards show and played on two pianos at once, then broke out into a medley of songs she wish she'd written. She played and sang everything from Charles Fox, Norman Gimbel and Lori Lieberman's "Killing Me Softly" to Drake's "In My Feelings," and from Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody" to her own iconic "Empire State of Mind." But she didn't just play and sing. She also blew everyone's mind, as far as Twitter was concerned. Keys swept up social media with all her renditions. "Alicia 'Steal your man and your song' Keys," one user wrote. "Alicia Keys is my heart and soul," another wrote. "She is so effortlessly beautiful and pure and I love it so much!" One user even went so far as to claim she was stealing the whole damn show. "Can you imagine the HOST is here giving the best performance of the Grammys? Alicia Keys folks," the user wrote. And this GIF of her playing two pianos at once will surely make the rounds. Thank you, Alicia, queen of the keys.<doc-sep>Things Alicia Keys did: THAT. The 38-year-old singer and 2019 Grammys hostess with the mostest amazed viewers with her insane musical talents as she sang covers of award-winning songs on Sunday night. Oh, she also performed them while playing two pianos at once. You know, like a genius? During the show, Keys paid homage to late jazz pianist Hazel Scott (who was known for her double piano playing) as she sampled from tunes like Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly," Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody," Juice WRLD's "Lucid Dreams," Drake's "In My Feelings," Ella Mai's "Boo'd Up," and Lauryn Hill's "Doo-Wop (That Thing)." She also intermixed some Coldplay instrumentals and rounded out the medley with her own "Empire State of Mind." Watch a clip of Keys's incredible performance above, and get ready for your jaw to hit the floor.<doc-sep>
Midway into the 2019 Grammy Awards, the show’s host, Alicia Keys, sang a medley of songs that she wished she’d written. She kicked it off by playing Scott Joplin’s “The Maple Leaf Rag” on two grand pianos, one black, one white, sitting between them on a stool. “I wanna welcome you to Club Keys,” she said. “I’ve been thinking so much about the people and the music that have inspired me, and I want to give a shout out to Hazel Scott because I always wanted to play two pianos. But back to the music. You know those songs that live inside of you and live inside of me, and you just love it so much, because it was done so well that you wish you wrote it. That’s how I feel about these songs. I wish I wrote ’em.” Then she dug into her pianos’ keys. “When I think about heartache and heartbreak, I think about this song,” she said before singing, Roberta Flack’s “Killing Me Softly.” “Or when it’s time to move on, this is the song,” she said, before singing Juice Wrld’s “Lucid Dreams,” which transitioned into Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable.” Travis Scott and Kylie Jenner nodded along. “Now who didn’t wish they wrote this song? I know I do,” before singing Kings of Leon’s “Use Somebody.” A band joined her in on her rendition of Drake’s “In My Feelings.” And then she flipped over to the white piano for Lauren Hill’s “Doo-Wop (That Thing),” saying she wished she’d written the whole album. “Then finally, you write the song that you wish you wrote,” she said before singing “Empire State of Mind.” “For the music that lives in us all,” she said at the end, before bowing and blowing a kiss at the audience. When it comes to hits, though, Keys doesn’t have much to complain about. Over the course of her career, she’s been nominated for 29 Grammys, and she’s won 15 of them. In 2001, her first year of eligibility, she won five, including Best New Artist, three for the song “Fallin'” and one for Best R&B Album, Songs in A Minor. She won four in 2004, two in 2007 and on it has gone. Her most recent win was for Best R&B Album in 2013 for Girl on Fire. Her most recent nomination was in 2014, when she was an Album of the Year contender for her contributions to Pharrell Williams’ Girl, but it lost to Beck’s Morning Phase. Keys was the ceremony’s first female host since 2005, when Queen Latifah handled the honors. Prior to the broadcast Keys said she was honored to host the show. “I feel like we are truly part of a celebration, bringing the light, bringing the energy and continuing to make the statement that music is such an important part of all of our lives,” she said. “Sunday is going to absolutely reflect that light, that love. We feel this Grammys is going to be different and bigger and better than any other.” She also said that she was genuinely excited to see who would win. “I have been so blessed to have been on this stage before, multiple times, and understand what it is, what it feels like, what the artists are going through,” she said. “That’s what makes me excited to celebrate so many amazing nominees, particularly women nominees, so many who are my friends. There is a sense of true music community I can bring to the stage and I love the ability to lift each other up. It feels like it’s the right thing.”