After all the social media buzz about Grammy nominees and snubs, not to mention all the drama that led up to awards night, the 2019 Grammy Awards turned out to be uneventful and stale. And we’re sorry to say we saw this coming, especially after Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, and Drake all bailed on performing at the show this year.
But there was one good meme.
Both winners and performances failed to stick on social media, and not even Korean boyband BTS—which made history as the first K-pop band to be nominated for a Grammy and to be invited to present an award—was able to save the show.
However, CBS cameras caught a brief clip of Rhonda Ross on the phone during a performance. The daughter of Motown founder Berry Gordy and legend Diana Ross—and mom of Raif-Henok, the cute little boy who won the internet over when he introduced his grandma before her Grammy birthday performance—sat beside her father, distracted.
The internet lost no time turning the moment into a meme.
#RhondaRoss wins best meme #Grammys https://t.co/6zHMqwY9ae
— MiniMudds (@MiniMudds) February 11, 2019
Even GIF generator Giphy was quick to capture the moment.
“Yeah, I can talk!” #GRAMMYs @RecordingAcad pic.twitter.com/bGqvKy16ro
— GIPHY (@GIPHY) February 11, 2019
Rhonda captured everyone’s mood about the Grammys, basically.
Rhonda Ross on the phone is a whole mood!!! 😂😂😂 #grammys pic.twitter.com/XCAJQXOQAk
— Emile Ennis Jr. (@EmileEnnisJr) February 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/KevinSurma/status/1094803375173058560
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtumtAyF_7N/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
“Rhonda Ross is all of us,” @Fly_Sistah tweeted.
Rhonda Ross is all of us. She was probably telling her BFF yeah, it’s as bad as I expected pic.twitter.com/liCIj1M9xs
— Fly Sistah (@Fly_Sistah) February 11, 2019
People saw themselves in Rhonda, like @TaylourSaid_: “Tag yourself in the Grammys: I’m Rhonda Ross on the phone in the front row mid show.”
https://twitter.com/TaylourSaid_/status/1094801987043053568
Even CBS, which broadcasted the awards show, was quick to use it as a meme to talk about Grammys host Alicia Keys’ performance with another Motown pioneer, Smokey Robinson (what everyone around Rhonda was applauding):
I’ll need to call you back, @aliciakeys and @smokeyrobinson are singing together and it’s 🔥#GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/jVQ0Lr5k3v
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) February 11, 2019
People wondered who Rhonda could be speaking to and about what, so they posted their own theories. One of them is how it could be a reaction to one of the night’s more remarkable performances: that of her own mom, Diana, to mark her 75th birthday… even if her birthday isn’t until March. At one point onstage, Diana exclaimed, “Happy birthday to me!” Twitter user @bttmshelfbitch supposed Rhonda could be saying, “Hold up, she tryin’ to make this all about her again.”
“Hold up, she tryin’ to make this all about her again”#DianaRoss #Grammys #RhondaRoss #HappyBirthdayToMe pic.twitter.com/zIEwrTf3uZ
— The Bottom Shelf Bitch (@BttmShelfBitch) February 11, 2019
Mostly, people speculated she was trolling the Motown tribute that strangely featured Jennifer Lopez in one of the most contemptuous moments of the Grammys. As the Daily Dot noted on Sunday, “February is Black History Month and … genre pioneers Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, and Robinson are still very much alive.”
“Girl you should see this bullshit, they got JLo doing a damn Motown tribute”#GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/99u0r2SxAQ
— Mr.Hide&GoSeek (@LiveLoveHustle) February 11, 2019
“Girl, yes… this show is still going. They really put J Lo on this stage talking about some Motown. She’s making my feet hurt.” #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/PBje6wCluO
— The Root (@TheRoot) February 11, 2019
“Hello, Grammys? Why is JLo doing a MoTown tribute?“ pic.twitter.com/S6z2t6oetQ
— Ginella Massa (@GinellaMassa) February 11, 2019
“Hello, 911…I would like to report a fraudulent Motown Tribute at the #Grammys…” pic.twitter.com/6dOyzdAjrN
— Global Grind (@GlobalGrind) February 11, 2019
“Girl they out doing the salsa during this Motown tribute” #grammys pic.twitter.com/MPe4nuXaaa
— EASYMONEYSL*T (@Taexri) February 11, 2019
“Yeah, girl the #Grammys done booked @JLo for this Motown tribute, she better not fuck it up. I’ll call you back.” pic.twitter.com/Ab6Us5oCGn
— Jerome Trammel, M.B.A (@MrJeromeTrammel) February 11, 2019
“Girl why they got J. Lo up here doing the Motown tribute” #Grammys pic.twitter.com/tsp5GmlOuD
— Dragon Fly Jones (@_muziq_) February 11, 2019
“Yes girl they got JLo doing Motown!“ #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/9lLwCpM9sI
— Joshua Dontae (@_that1boyJosh) February 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/8907Bates/status/1094804941267484672
Girl I cant make this up they got J Lo singing Motown songs pic.twitter.com/BpRUt9Kxcp
— DJ Flow (@ITSDJFLOW) February 11, 2019
Rhonda Ross was calling the police on JLo’s Motown tribute pic.twitter.com/OHNe66WwBa
— Brian Sullivan aka Sully (He/Him/His) (@SullyNash) February 11, 2019
“Girl, they got Jennifer Lopez up here doing a tribute for Motown…. and she salsa dancin.” #grammys #RhondaRoss #Gordy #Phone pic.twitter.com/6NaZ8xX7LS
— Whorfery (@Whorfery) February 11, 2019
You know Rhonda Ross was contacting Command of B613 on that Motown performance pic.twitter.com/y9gqokh0ta
— Kowboy Kerney (@wondermann5) February 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/CLE_SHONUFF/status/1094813193820606464
https://www.instagram.com/p/BturvZqHHSZ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
The meme also captures what Nicki Minaj stans could be doing after their idol’s rival Cardi B won best rap album—the first woman to win the award and ahead of Minaj to boot.
Nicki fans: Girl Cardi B just won best rap album #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/ERaHv8uGGF
— Pia (@PiaWilliams_) February 11, 2019
User @sayyestochurros thought it best captured the reaction to best new artist winner Dua Lipa’s acceptance speech, in which she took a dig at Recording Academy President Neil Portnow for saying female artists had to “step up” at last year’s ceremony. “I guess this year we really stepped up,” she said.
https://twitter.com/SayYesToChurros/status/1094813760890449920
Besides the Motown tribute, some also found the Rhonda meme to be the perfect “unimpressed” reaction to Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour emerging as album of the year winner:
https://twitter.com/mixedcapital/status/1094826334918983680
I’m calling the police on the #Grammys for this Album of the Year robbery pic.twitter.com/ncHQBZ3Pm7
— Tristin Brown (@trisquire) February 11, 2019
I don’t even know who this girl is who won album of the year #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/iubMVzHlbr
— Jeremiah (@jayycordeiroo) February 11, 2019
If you were likewise unimpressed by the Grammys, this meme could be you: “Rhonda Ross on the phone sums up this entire show,” tweets user @7eacebewithyou.
rhonda ross on the phone sums up this entire show
— 🙏🏾 (@7eacebewithyou) February 11, 2019
At best, @kay_suigeneris thinks it’s “the best part of the Grammys.”
https://twitter.com/kay_suigeneris/status/1094829518357966848
Meanwhile, some found the Rhonda meme applicable to other life moments, too, like when MTV tweeted, “Calling in help after accidentally liking a pic while 48 weeks deep in the feed.”
Calling in help after accidentally liking a pic while 48 weeks deep in the feed. #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/XVMUKJnTGa
— MTV (@MTV) February 11, 2019
https://twitter.com/_______eden/status/1094816387787300865
If a GIF featuring the phone-using daughter of a Motown legend is the most entertaining part of a music awards show, perhaps the Grammys deserved the spinoff meme. You can view the full list of winners here.
READ MORE:
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- The Grammys are doomed to fail, and they’ve only got themselves to blame
- The 2019 Grammy nominations are dividing Twitter
