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GRAMMYs
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Watch Cyndi Lauper Sing "Time After Time" In 1985 watch-cyndi-lauper-perform-time-after-time-27th-grammy-awards-grammy-rewind

Watch Cyndi Lauper Perform "Time After Time" At The 27th GRAMMY Awards | GRAMMY Rewind

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The '80s pop icon won Best New Artist that year, in addition to "Time After Time" being nominated for Song Of The Year
Rachel Brodsky
GRAMMYs
Sep 6, 2019 - 9:59 am

Pop torchbearer Cyndi Lauper is many things: singer, songwriter, actress, activist and a two-time GRAMMY winner. Early in her career, she memorably performed her 1983 single "Time After Time" at the 27th GRAMMY Awards, which you can relive below.

She won Best New Artist that year, and was nominated for four more GRAMMYs: Best Pop Vocal Performance (Female) for "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," Song Of The Year for "Time After Time," Album Of The Year for She's So Unusual, and Record Of The Year for "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." 

Watch Lauper's performance of "Time After Time" above, and stay tuned for more looks into the GRAMMYs archive with GRAMMY Rewind performances, famous acceptance speeches and more.

GRAMMY Rewind Returns With History-Making Performances, Acceptance Speeches & More

Michael Jackson (L) & Lionel Richie (R) at the 1986 GRAMMYs

Michael Jackson (L) & Lionel Richie (R) at the 1986 GRAMMYs

 
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"We Are The World" Wins Song Of The Year grammy-rewind-watch-lionel-richie-michael-jackson-win-song-year-we-are-world

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Lionel Richie & Michael Jackson Win Song Of The Year For "We Are The World"

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In the latest edition of GRAMMY Rewind, we revisit the night the Quincy-Jones-produced, mega-star-studded charity single won big at the 1986 GRAMMYs
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jul 3, 2020 - 8:55 am

On Jan. 28, 1985, 35 years ago, legendary producer Quincy Jones gathered 45 of the biggest artists of the day, including Bob Dylan, Huey Lewis and the News, Stevie Wonder and Cyndi Lauper, at A&M Studios in Los Angeles to record the now-historic charity single, "We Are The World." The goal of this one-time supergroup, USA For Africa, was to raise money for famine relief in Africa; in Ethiopia alone, more than 1 million people had died due to hunger in the prior two years.

For the latest episode of GRAMMY Rewind, GRAMMY.com revisits the 28th GRAMMY Awards, held in Los Angeles in 1986, when the star-studded, seven-minute track, penned by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Jones, took home Song Of The Year, along with three other big wins.

"We Are The World" Wins Song Of The Year

Read: From Aretha Franklin To Public Enemy, Here's How Artists Have Amplified Social Justice Movements Through Music

"We are so proud to be a part of an industry of people that when the world is in need of helping each other, this music industry of ours responded," Richie said to his peers as he and Jackson accepted the Song Of The Year GRAMMY. "When we called, you responded, and we thank you for that."

A cultural phenomenon and major commercial success, "We Are The World" sold more than 8 million copies in the U.S. and raised more than $75 million for famine relief in Africa. In addition to winning the GRAMMY for Song Of The Year, it also won for Record Of The Year, Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal and Best Music Video. The visual for the song is a joyful journey back to the big-haired '80s, giving an inside look into the famous studio session.

Watch: GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Kendrick Lamar, U2 & Dave Chappelle Open The 2018 GRAMMYs With A Powerful Performance

The initial idea for "We Are The World" came from singer/activist/actor Harry Belafonte, who was inspired by Band Aid's 1984 charity single, "Do They Know It's Christmas." Both singles inspired 1985's Live Aid, the first benefit concert of its size and caliber, as well as Willie Nelson's long-running Farm Aid shows.

Ultimately, "We Are The World" showed what the influence and unity of the music industry could accomplish when it comes together for a good cause and addresses the important issues of the time.

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Donna Summer Win Best Female R&B Vocal Performance For "Last Dance" In 1979

Living Colour at 1991 GRAMMYs

Living Colour at the 1991 GRAMMYs

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Living Colour Win 1991 Best Hard Rock Performance grammy-rewind-watch-cbgb-regulars-living-colour-win-best-hard-rock-performance-times

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch CBGB Regulars Living Colour Win Best Hard Rock Performance For "Time's Up" In 1991

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Today, we celebrate Living Colour lead vocalist Corey Glover's birthday by revisiting when the powerhouse New York rock band earned their second GRAMMY win
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Nov 6, 2020 - 12:38 pm

For the latest edition of GRAMMY Rewind, watch New York City rock band Living Colour win Best Hard Rock Performance for "Time's Up" at the 33rd GRAMMY Awards in 1991. 

Living Colour Win Best Hard Rock Performance

Another GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Will Smith Dedicate His 1999 Best Rap Solo Performance GRAMMY To His Son

In the video above, the quartet walk up to accept their golden gramophone in shock, but looking super fresh in eclectic, colorful and creative '90s streetwear. 

"First of all, this is one of those moments that really makes you proud to be a musician," guitarist Vernon Reid said during their inspirational acceptance speech after being handed their award by a very excited fellow New York musician Cyndi Lauper. "There's so many great musicians here, it's an honor to be amongst all of you, really."

"Time's Up" is the hard-hitting title cut from their 1990 sophomore album. With lyrics about a chaotic world and the need to take action to save it, their messages ring very true in 2020. In a recent interview with Spin, Reid touches on the meaning behind the song.

"Corey came up with the lyrics for 'Time's Up,' and that became the title of the album. It was a little bit of an homage, that song, to our friends in Bad Brains. We all came up together in the CBGB scene in the '80s. And at the time we did it, nobody was doing hardcore tunes about the environment. And we just went with it," he said. 

The year prior to their 1991 GRAMMY win, the "Glamour Boys" group won their first-ever GRAMMY in the same category at the 32nd GRAMMY Awards, for their breakout hit "Cult of Personality," from their successful debut album, Vivid. 

For The Record: Saluting Los Angeles Revolutionary Rockers Rage Against The Machine

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B.B. King at 1971 GRAMMYs

B.B. King at 1971 GRAMMYs

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Watch B.B. King Win His First GRAMMY In 1971 grammy-rewind-watch-blues-legend-bb-king-win-his-first-grammy-1971

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Blues Legend B.B. King Win His First GRAMMY In 1971

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In the latest episode of GRAMMY Rewind, witness the King of Blues accept his first of 15 career GRAMMYs
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Oct 30, 2020 - 11:08 am

There is a moment in every legend's life when the world begins to really witness the mastery of their artform. For B.B. King, there was no turning back from his fate to become the King of Blues after releasing "The Thrill Is Gone" in 1969. His reimaging of Roy Hawkins' jazzy 1951 R&B hit would remain one of his biggest songs—and the highest-charting, hitting No. 15 on the Hot 100.

At the 1971 GRAMMYs, the classic blues bop would also earn him his first of 15 career GRAMMY wins.

Legend B.B. King Wins His First GRAMMY In 1971

More B.B. King, "Auld Lang Syne": For The Record

For the latest edition of GRAMMY Rewind, we revisit this first-ever GRAMMY win for the guitar great. Above, watch a humbled, dapper King accept the golden gramophone for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.

Gabe Roth Of The Dap-Kings Talks Sharon Jones Legacy & New Covers Album

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Whitney Houston at 1987 GRAMMYs

Whitney Houston at 1987 GRAMMYs

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Watch Whitney Houston Sing "Greatest Love of All" grammy-rewind-watch-whitney-houston-sing-greatest-love-all-1987-grammys

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Whitney Houston Sing "Greatest Love of All" At The 1987 GRAMMYs

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The inspirational No. 1 hit was recorded for her 1985 self-titled debut album (which also went to No. 1) and was originally recorded by fellow GRAMMY-winning Arista artist George Benson in 1977
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Oct 9, 2020 - 12:06 pm

For the latest episode of GRAMMY Rewind (watch in full below), witness six-time GRAMMY-winning pop/R&B queen Whitney Houston dazzle the 1987 GRAMMYs audience with a show-stopping rendition of "Greatest Love Of All."

Just 23 at the time, she looked glamourous in a cream sequin dress as she offered up her warm, angelic vocals and stage presence to the whole room.

Watch Whitney Houston Sing "Greatest Love of All"

Watch More: Flashback To Whitney Houston's 1985 Hit "Saving All My Love For You" | For The Record

The inspirational No. 1 hit was recorded for her 1985 self-titled debut album (which also went to No. 1) and was originally recorded by fellow GRAMMY-winning Arista artist George Benson in 1977.

The song, released as the seventh single from Whitney Houston, was nominated for Record Of The Year during the 29th GRAMMY Awards that year.

The prior year at the 1986 GRAMMYs, the vocal powerhouse earned her first golden gramophone, for "Saving All My Love For You" and, at the 30th GRAMMY Awards, she earned her second, for "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)."

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Whitney Houston Win Best Female R&B Vocal Performance At The 2000 GRAMMYs

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Some of the content on this site expresses viewpoints and opinions that are not those of the Recording Academy. Responsibility for the accuracy of information provided in stories not written by or specifically prepared for the Academy lies with the story's original source or writer. Content on this site does not reflect an endorsement or recommendation of any artist or music by the Recording Academy.