Alicia Keys' tribute 'magic'

29 January 2020

Alicia Keys and Boyz II Men's Grammy Awards tribute to Kobe Bryant came together "minutes" before the ceremony.

Alicia Keys

The evening's host teamed up with Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, and Shawn Stockman for a rendition of their 1991 hit 'It's So Hard to Say Goodbye' at Sunday's (26.01.20) event in honour of the late basketball legend - who died in a helicopter crash alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others just a few hours earlier - and she admitted it felt like "magic" that the group happened to have already arrived at Los Angeles' Staples Center so they could out together the performance.

Speaking on 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show', she said: "We were all freaking out because obviously hearing the news about Kobe and his [daughter Gianna] was so tragic. None of us can still believe it now, to this day.

'It was definitely a crazy feeling because literally minutes before we were going to do something else and we had to really figure out how could we properly honour him in his house on this night.

"It just so happened Boyz II Men was there already that night.

"It was like that magic that happens when it's necessary. Like, whoa whoa whoa!

"It was so much, but I was so honoured to be able to share that with all of us - the entire world - that we together could go through something that hurt so bad together. And I feel really honoured to have been able to be there with you in that time."

The 'Girl on Fire' hitmaker - who has sons Egypt, nine, and Genesis, five, with husband Swizz Beatz - previously admitted she'd found hosting the ceremony "hard" in the wake of the tragedy.

She said: "This was a really hard night, and that's why I think it was a roller coaster.

"It was painful, it's painful right now. We lost a beloved, beloved hero to all of us. A person who is like a true example of brilliance and excellence.

"It's not easy to go forward with all of that weight. But I think that the energy that he always brought and that fighting spirit... is what brought us through tonight."