Michelle Obama added another Grammy Award to her collection on Sunday, winning the best audiobook, narration, and storytelling recording category for her latest book, The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times.
The 60-year-old former first lady recorded the voiceover for her third book, which was published in November 2022.
The book is a compilation of stories from her life as a public figure, a wife, a mother, and a woman. She shares her “insightful reflections on change, challenge, and power,” in the book, which has made it to the New York Times’ Bestseller list and earned her an Emmy nomination for a Netflix special with Oprah.
The Light We Carry is a blend of memoir and self-help, inspired by the turbulent times of 2020-2021, when the world faced political upheaval and the COVID-19 pandemic.
What the former first lady says
In an exclusive interview with People magazine before the book’s release, she revealed how she dealt with the stress and anxiety of those years and what she learned from looking back at her life.
“These are the things I say to myself when I need to pick myself up,” she told to the outlet.
“This is how I stay visible in a world that doesn’t necessarily see a tall Black woman. This is how I stay armoured up when I’m attacked. The book is that offering.”
Obama’s competitors in the category were Sen. Bernie Sanders (for his audio book It’s OK to Be Angry About Capitalism), Meryl Streep (for narrating Brian Selznick’s Big Tree), William Shatner (for Boldly Go: Reflections on a Life of Awe and Wonder), and record producer Rick Rubin (for The Creative Act: A Way of Being).
This is Obama’s second Grammy win, after she won the same category in 2020 for the audiobook of her first memoir, Becoming. She was not present at the ceremony to receive the award, but presenter Esperanza Spalding said she would “gladly accept on her behalf.”
With this win, Obama has matched her husband and former President Barack Obama’s Grammy tally. He also has two awards in the spoken word category.
