Janelle Monae paid loving homage to her late mentor Prince with a stunning Grammys performance of her Dirty Computer hit “Make Me Feel.” Decked out in a black, patent leather bodysuit, Janelle started her performance with a bass strapped around her shoulder, strumming her way through the opening strains of the song while flanked by similarly dressed dancers. By the end of her performance, she’d snuck in medley snippets of “Django Jane” and “Pynk,” right down to the flowery pink “pussy pants” that first featured in the music video. Joined onstage by a brass band, she strutted and preened in the fashion of her purple collaborator, with a finale that drew a huge reaction from the audience.
2018 was the year Janelle Monae began to shed her Cindi Mayweather persona in her music and the change clearly paid off, judging from the reception of her album, Dirty Computer. It made a number of year-end lists — including Uproxx’s own, as well as our critics’ poll — and fueled unprecedented success for the singer with its short film and cadre of video clips including singles “I Like That,” “Pynk” and “Screwed.”
Janelle is also up for an Album Of The Year Grammy for Dirty Computer, as well as a Best Video nomination for “Pynk.” Watch her performance above.
