Singer's Pro-Trump Dress Was the Perfect Way to 'Welcome' Michelle to the Grammys
If there’s one reason to pay attention to the Grammys — aside from getting yourself worked up over the fact that the worst song and/or album always seems to win its respective category — it’s Joy Villa’s sartorial decisions.
The singer first made news back in 2017 with a “Make America Great Again” dress, one that was the source of many headlines in an industry where the mood is almost unanimously liberal.
In 2018, she decided to wear a gown with an explicit pro-life message, according to Variety, again managing to throw a small cultural wrench into the proceedings.
Joy Villa arrives on #GRAMMYs red carpet in anti-abortion dress https://t.co/LYOQlhPXeR pic.twitter.com/HB01r6f1hj
— billboard (@billboard) January 28, 2018
This year, however, she decided to go with something very timely: A dress in support of the president’s proposed border wall.
#NewProfilePic #Grammys2019 #joyvilla pic.twitter.com/65WFVATOBa
— Joy Villa (@Joy_Villa) February 10, 2019
The dress, which featured a brick pattern, was topped off with a “Make America Great Again” handbag.
On the back, Villa was more explicit about her intentions, with “Build the Wall” written in red.
Joy Villa wears a “Build The Wall” dress at the GRAMMYs! 🏆🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/CJmnyeFZQL
— An0maly (@LegendaryEnergy) February 11, 2019
She also wore a tiara of spikes and a shawl of barbed wire.
All of that was a bit of an antidote to the big story of the Grammys, the surprise appearance of Michelle Obama.
According to CNN, the former first lady appeared on stage with host Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Jada Pinkett-Smith.
“From the Motown records I wore out on the South Side, to the ‘who run the world’ songs that fueled me through this last decade, music has always helped me tell my story. And I know that’s true for everybody here,” Obama told the audience.
“Whether we like country, or rap or rock, music helps us share ourselves — our dignity and sorrows, our hopes and joys,” the former first lady continued. “It allows us to hear one another, to invite each other in.”
“Music shows us that all of it matters, every story within every voice, every note within every song — is that right, ladies?”
Aside from the general adulation of the audience, Michelle’s primary message seems to have been, you know, “who run the world? Girls.”
There seemed to be a lot more substance in Villa’s protest, and not just in terms of the dress itself.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the singer defended the president’s proposed border wall.
“I’m all for stronger border security,” Villa said. “Obama and Clinton and Bush talked about that, but President Trump’s the first one to promise that he’ll get it done. It’s pro-America, pro-protection.”
She also explained how she chooses her apparel.
“I grew up in theater, so I’ve always used costume as a way to express myself,” she said.
“It’s an opportunity to show the world who I am on the red carpet, which to me is the same as a stage. I approach it as a show. I want to ‘wow’ people. My heroes on the red carpet have always been Cher, Madonna, the wild ones, the worst dressed. Or Lady Gaga with the meat dress. Who even talks about the best dressed? No one even remembers who was best-dressed last year!”
You’ll certainly remember Joy Villa’s dress, however. Liberals may hate her for it, but they can’t deny she’s got guts.
And even if Villa didn’t know Michelle Obama was going to be at the ceremony, it turned out she had the perfect welcome ready.
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