Lil Nas X And Billy Ray Cyrus Subtly Honor Kobe Bryant With Grammys Performance

Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus brought all they had to the “Old Town Road” remix to end all “Old Town Road” remixes at the 62nd annual Grammy Awards,  honoring the late Kobe Bryant in the process.

On Sunday, in a performance titled “Old Town Road All-Stars,” Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus were joined by other remixers of the record-breaking song including K-pop band BTS, Diplo and country singer Mason Ramsey.

At the start of the performance, Lil Nas X was seen singing on a couch next to a chair with Kobe Bryant’s “24” jersey lying on it. The stage began moving shortly after he started singing, leading him to a door that opened to BTS waiting to jam out with him.  

More doors and set changes led to Lil Nas X singing alongside Ramsey, Diplo and Cyrus. Cyrus also nodded at Bryant, with a “24” featured prominently on his guitar during the performance.

After leaving the stage and making a Matrix-inspired outfit change, he brought out a trumpet and was joined by Nas for a spirited wrap up to the song. At the end of the performance, Nas shouted, “Kobe, love you!” 

Nominated for a whopping seven Grammy Awards this year, Lil Nas X’s nominations include Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist. The “Old Town Road” remix with Cyrus was nominated for Record of the Year, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Music Video, winning the last two before the show even aired.

Cyrus tweeted after the win that he wanted to dedicate both to Bryant and “his beautiful daughter” Gianna Bryant, who was killed alongside her father in a helicopter crash in California on Sunday.