Viola Davis has joined an exclusive club. Tonight during the 65th GRAMMY Awards Premiere Ceremony, the access was awarded the Grammy for Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording for her Finding Me memoir, earning her EGOT status. Only 17 other entertainers have earned the coveted designation, and Davis makes history by being the 18th.
The acronym, which stands for the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards, is a significant designation given to people who have won all four major entertainment awards. Past EGOT winners include Jennifer Hudson, John Legend, Whoopi Goldberg, and more.
Viola Davis becomes the third Black woman in HISTORY to achieve EGOT status, following Jennifer Hudson and Whoopi Goldberg! #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/or4vYNhsJP
— 𝙱𝚎𝚌𝚌𝚊. (@MJFINESSELOVER) February 5, 2023
This year, Davis found herself going up against four other previous Grammy winners, including Jamie Foxx (“Act Like You Got Some Sense”), Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World”), Questlove (“Music is History”) and fellow EGOT recipient Mel Brooks (“All About Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business”).
Davis will be able to add her new title alongside her two Tony Awards (“King Hedley II,” “Fences”), her Oscar (the film adaptation of “Fences”), and her Emmy (“How to Get Away with Murder”), for which she became the first black actress to win.
Despite Davis being snubbed by the Academy Awards this year, the Woman King actress still made history. With a career spanning over three decades, the actress has undoubtedly earned her flowers.
Watch Davis’ acceptance speech below.
Viola Davis has achieved EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony) status. “It has been such a journey, I just EGOT!” pic.twitter.com/YYj4MMJvRg
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) February 5, 2023