Victoria Monét & Janelle Monáe Win Big at 2023 Soul Train Awards

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The entire night was hosted by queer actor, singer, dancer, and Mother Keke Palmer, who also performed a musical number, bringing a sexy, queer edge to the outdoor ceremony.

Palmer handed out awards to SZA, Usher, Coco Jones, and Kirk Franklin, and bisexual singer/songwriter Victoria Monét, who won two awards.

Monét took home the trophies for Best Dance Performance and Video of the Year for “On My Mama.”

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Janelle Monáe, who released their album The Age of Pleasure this year and was also nominated for two Grammy Awards including Album of the Year, performed and was the recipient of the Spirit of Soul Award at the ceremony.

The award is typically called the Lady of Soul Award, but as Monáe is nonbinary, was renamed this year “to honor the diversity and inclusivity of this year’s recipient.”

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In their speech, Monáe said there’s “nothing like being recognized by your own, by your own family. Y’all are family to me.”

“Thank you so much, BET. Thank you so much Soul Train. Thank you for keeping the soul alive,” she continued. “So many people have reinvented that word, and I’m just so honored to have something like this for us that continues to evolve and showcase so many different forms of what soul can be.”

“As I think about this moment, the words ‘I used to walk into the room head down, I don’t walk now I float,’ ‘I used to walk into the room head down, I don’t walk, now I float!’" she said. "When I think about where my spirit is today, my spirit is lighter. And as I think about the word ‘spirit,’ – I know y’all all have heard this – Let the spirit use you, baby. Let the spirit use you! My grandmother would always say that, and I’m just so thankful for her spirit.”

“I’ve always wanted to shine a light on our community,” she added, saying that through her music, movies, and fashion, she always is “bringing it back around to us, to our Blackness, to our beauty.”

“As we continue as a people to fight against the systemic injustices and abuses of power that have gone unchallenged for way too long, y’all … we see it around the world. We see what’s happening,” they concluded. “I ask us all to please let the spirit of love use you. Let the spirit of kindness use you. Let the spirit of empathy use you. Let the spirit of peace be your guide, always and forever. And may our spirits guide us toward creating a safe and equitable space for our people. May we all experience joy, the spirit of true joy. I love you. Let the spirit use you, baby.”