Grammys Audience Cheers As Alicia Keys Blasts Trump’s DEI Stance

Alicia Keys appeared to take aim at President Donald Trump’s efforts to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives while accepting the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award at the 2025 Grammy Awards, Lee Moran reported for HuffPost.

Keys has previously criticized Trump, even using her 2020 Grammy Awards performance to call for his removal from office. I Photo: Alicia Keys Facebook

“DEI is not a threat, it’s a gift,” Keys declared during her acceptance speech, drawing applause from the audience. “This is not the time to shut down the diversity of voices,” she continued.

“We’ve seen on this stage talented, hardworking people from different backgrounds with different points of view, and it changes the game. DEI is not a threat—it’s a gift.”

“The more voices, the more powerful the sound,” she added. “When destructive forces try to burn us down, we rise from the ashes like a phoenix. And as you see tonight, music is the unstoppable language that connects us all—it’s so beautiful.”

Keys did not mention Trump by name, but her comments came just days after he faced backlash for attempting to link DEI initiatives to last week’s deadly American Airlines plane crash in Washington, D.C.

The singer-songwriter has previously criticized Trump, even using her 2020 Grammy Awards performance to call for his removal from office.