The queen is back.
More than 30 years after Queen Latifah made her American Music Awards debut alongside Tom Jones and Lorrie Morgan in 1995, the hip-hop icon has finally gotten to make it again in Las Vegas, and she’ll be doing it alone this time, sponsoring a show set to include the likes of Somber, Billy Idol and Katsi.
Having spent her entire adult life in the spotlight, Queen Latifah has amassed an impressive list of firsts: the first female rapper to be nominated for an acting Oscar for her role as Nanny “Mama” Morton in chicagoShe is also the first female rapper to receive Kennedy Center Honors and the first female hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This fall, she will add another accomplishment when she is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an Early Influence Award recipient. Sound As a coach.
This week, however, her focus is on the awards show and how she plans to bring her brand’s warmth, wit and charisma to the ceremony.
less, Hollywood Reporter I spoke with Latifah about her memories of her first AMA hosting gig in the ’90s, what she’s looking forward to at the show next week, and her reaction to the Rock Hall induction ceremony.
What are your memories of co-hosting the AMAs in 1995?
It all happened so fast at that time, but what I remember is that I had a team. There were several of us and we had to get from this place to that place. Just being with Tom Jones was one of the most amazing things for me. People say a lot about this guy. It was so exciting to be a part of it and wear all these costumes and host and look out into the audience. I was 25, you know what I mean?
It was all too much for me. It was all exciting to me. I have a lot of pictures from that hosting party. There were so many stars in the house that I admired Mariah [Carey] To Stevie [Wonder] On and on. Meeting people you’ve admired for years is so exciting. The energy was great, but this time it’s me, so I have to make sure the energy goes to all the artists that are going to get on this stage. From New Kids on the Block to the Pussycat Dolls, everyone needs to feel that energy from me when they see me. I can give it to them and the audience will give it to them.
There is an excitement that comes with your presence. Sombr’s performance of his dance with you at the Grammy Awards this year was my favorite part of the entire ceremony.
Did you see that? The cool thing is that I’ve become just a music fan. I love being able to be there and enjoy the music. I’ve been privy to a very special night, and I’m about to be privy to another very special night. I can’t wait to get to Vegas, read the entire script, and get a glimpse into the experiences of everyone training for this big moment.
It’s very exciting. Out of millions of artists in the world, we are the ones who will step up to this stage and be able to perform in front of the world. I know they’ll all try to knock it out of the park. I want to see what tricks they have up their sleeves and who they are in the area.
What are you most looking forward to?
I love to see young artists watching artists who have been in the area many times do it. There is a certain level of comfort when presenting such offers for a period of time. When you’re an upcoming artist and you’re hoping to do this for years and years to come, maybe like Olivia Deen, you get to see someone who’s been doing this forever and [they’ll] Say, “Okay, this is what I should do. I should feel good this way.” You have to take little bits of information here and there that you can keep and use for yourself and make sure that you’re one of those artists that lasts 30 years from now doing the same thing.
The AMAs always seem to be a fun time for artists. Plus, being in Las Vegas in such a big venue with fans in attendance, it’s like an eclectic festival.
It’s music, you should be able to enjoy it. And you are right. It’s a different Vegas. Today’s Vegas isn’t even the Vegas it was when I was younger. You can take the whole family to Vegas. There’s such a thing as a family vacation you can take in Vegas, naturally. You can live in Vegas, it’s all good. I hope there’s a festival atmosphere, because that’s how it should be.
I took some friends of mine on tour years ago whose cousins live in Vegas. At the time, I was taking my motorcycle around. My bus was towing my bike. I have to ride my motorcycle. I went to church with their family, had a barbecue, and thought to myself, “This isn’t like The Strip, you know what I mean?” There is a normal life here in Las Vegas. I looked at this a long time ago, but The Strip is a great place to visit.
Congratulations on your Rock Hall concert. Did this come as a surprise?
I’m excited about it, and even more excited because there are so many different family and friends who have heard about it and are calling me from all over. I always know when something is different when I get calls from every direction. It’s not just a little thing that means something to me. It really means something to a lot of different people, and we can have whole conversations about it. I’m lucky to be there. I had nothing to do with it, so thanks to everyone who wanted me to be a part of it. Thank you very much.
