One would have thought that one term of Donald Trump as president — and the awards shows that attempted, and failed, to turn America against him en masse by having our celebrity overlords declare Orange Man Bad™ and wokeness good — would have disabused stars from trying to lecture America about public policy.
Alas, no, as this Sunday’s Grammy Awards proved — and it was enough that it got the GOAT of celebrity-roasting awards show hosts out of retirement, however briefly, to remind entertainers how little their opinions matter in the scheme of things.
In a post to X after the show on Monday morning, British comedian Ricky Gervais, whose public lambasting of acceptance-speech sermonizing during his last time hosting the Golden Globes went viral in 2020, posted a still of that iconic performance along with the caption, “They’re still not listening.”
Just in case you didn’t know who “they” were, here’s a rundown of what you “missed” at Sunday’s premier music-industry awards show:
“Trans people are not invisible.”
Lady Gaga receives a loud standing ovation at the Grammys for her pro-trans remarks. pic.twitter.com/PdLCW2SZtj
— Timcast News (@TimcastNews) February 3, 2025
She’s referring to LEGAL immigrants?
— Skater Operator 🦅🌎⚓️🇺🇸 (@OldTexSk8Boardr) February 3, 2025
“DEI is not a threat; it’s a gift” — – Alicia keys at #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/lu3QmuoN6I
— Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) February 3, 2025
Do you ever watch Hollywood award shows?
I think Alicia meant “grift,” not “gift,” but I digress.
Despite what was considered a big year for the Grammys, at least among people who care about these things — Beyoncé’s attempt at a country album, “Cowboy Carter,” won a hotly contested Album of the Year category featuring a roster of megastars like Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Billie Eilish, and Charli XCX (the woman whose most recent record was responsible for the “brat” meme, in case you’d forgotten) — viewership was down almost 10 percent, according to Variety.
Broadcaster CBS still claimed that this edition of the Grammys was “the most social television program ever,” with a ton of social media coverage but a 9 percent drop in viewership. And, it’s worth noting that host Trevor Noah, formerly of “The Daily Show,” certainly wasn’t pushing back on the political homilies.
Someone had to fill the gap, and Gervais responded admirably:
They’re still not listening. pic.twitter.com/JYpMflpTQk
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) February 3, 2025
Just in case you’ve forgotten, this is the moment he was referencing:
WARNING: The following clip contains edited language that may offend some readers.
Never forget the moment @rickygervais became a legend and called out Jeffrrey Epstein and his Hollywood friends to their faces 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/MAA6MHXQcA
— Young Americans for Liberty (@YALiberty) January 4, 2024
After lecturing the audience about their association with corporate monoliths and characters like Epstein (we can retroactively add Diddy to that list), Gervais told the crowd, “You’re in no position to lecture the public about anything,” he said. “You know nothing about the real world. Most of you spent less time in school than Greta Thunberg.
“So, if you win, come up, accept your little award, thank your agent and your God and f*** off. OK?” he concluded, definitely not to unanimous applause from the audience. (For those viewing at home, I think it might have been a different story.)
Look, Gervais is no conservative, but he’s also not a product of the Hollywood machine, nor does he care to be. Not only that, he seems to realize what his place in the world is, and it’s not to tell us all about causes he lacks any sort of rudimentary knowledge of. (You know, like Greta Thunberg.)
He’s right, too: They’re still not listening. Thankfully, neither are we.
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