Sunday night's Grammy Awards paid tribute to a number of late musicians, but at least one face was noticeably absent from the lineup: Christina Grimmie was left out of the Grammys' "In Memoriam" segment (Bustle has reached out to CBS for comment, but has not yet heard back.) That's disappointing enough on its own, but it's also not the first ceremony that has failed to recognize Grimmie.
The late singer was omitted from the 2016 Emmys' "In Memoriam" in an oversight that an Emmys spokesperson attributed to being "constrained by time and space," according to The Hollywood Reporter. She wasn't mentioned at the Teen Choice Awards either, despite the fact that she won a posthumous statuette for Choice Web Star: Music.
During the Grammys "In Memoriam," John Legend and Cynthia Erivo sang The Beach Boys' classic "God Only Knows" as a video played honoring artists like Prince, George Michael, Debbie Reynolds, and Leonard Cohen, all of whom died in 2016. But when Grimmie's photo wasn't included in the televised montage, fans were quick to speak out on Twitter.
To be fair, the singer was included on the Recording Academy’s website in a long list of featured artists and music professionals the industry lost between 2016 and 2017. Still, it's unfortunate she wasn't granted any live recognition.
Grimmie was a young, promising talent whose life was cut woefully short. The 22-year-old, who amassed a large YouTube following after competing on Season 6 of The Voice, was fatally shot last June as she signed autographs outside an Orlando concert. Grimmie’s brother, Marcus, reportedly tackled the gunman to the ground, though the assailant later killed himself at the scene.
Since then, fans and celebrities have been vocal about the loss. Before You Exit, the band Grimmie was touring with at the time she was killed, released a song dedicated to her memory in December, while stars like Selena Gomez, Blake Shelton, and Ellen DeGeneres have publicly expressed their condolences. Adam Levine, her former Voice coach, even offered to pay for her funeral.
It's touching that she made an impact on so many people's lives in such a short time, and it would have been nice to see that honored on screen during awards season.
