How Musicians Plan to Support Time’s Up at the 2018 Grammys
White roses replace black gowns
The Golden Globes had an unofficial all-black dress code. The SAG awards had all-female presenters. And the Grammys are following suit with their own symbol of solidarity. In support of the Time’s Up movement against sexual assault and abuse in the workplace, artists and musicians plan to don a white rose on the red carpet this Sunday.
Rita Ora, Kelly Clarkson, FASHION cover girl Dua Lipa, and Cyndi Lauper are some of the artists who’ve voiced their support of the movement, as have Tom Morello and Grammy host James Corden.
Voices of Entertainment, a newly formed group of women in the music industry led by Roc Nation senior VP of marketing Meg Harkins and head of rhythmic promotions at Interscope/Geffen/A&M Records Karen Rait, initiated the movement earlier this week, “and it grew like wildfire,” Harkins told Billboard.
“As we are inspired by the #timesup campaign, we are encouraging the artists that we work with and our colleagues attending the 60th Annual Grammy Awards in New York City to wear a white rose to the ceremony on Sunday, January 28,” explained a letter from the group’s founders to their industry colleagues. “We chose the white rose because historically it stands for hope, peace, sympathy and resistance.”
White is also a colour with strong political connotations—it was one of the key sartorial symbols of the suffragette movement, and was also, notably, worn by Hillary Clinton not just on the day she made history by becoming the first woman to accept the US presidential nomination, but once again at Donald Trump’s inauguration the following year.
So there you have it—a white rose will be the woke accessory of the evening. Keep your eyes peeled.
