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- Alicia Keys is set to host the 2020 Grammys for the second year on Sunday, January 26. Tune in at 8 p.m. ET on CBS to see if buzzy nominees like Michelle Obama (yes, you read that right), Lizzo, and Blake Shelton win their categories.
- Keys’s husband, Swizz Beatz, who is a record producer/Bronx-born DJ/art collector and fellow Grammy winner, is expected to accompany her to the ceremony.
- Beatz, a major player in the music industry, has ties to Nicki Minaj, Beyonce and Jay-Z, Nas, Lil Wayne, and even Bono.
Last year, Grammy host Alicia Keys went boss on two pianos in a single sitting. This year, she’s taking on three. Kidding. That would just shatter the laws of physics. And every other branch of science that intersects with music.
She is, however, channeling three legendary variety show talents for her upcoming 2020 Grammys hosting gig on January 26: Carol Burnett, Sammy Davis Jr., and Dean Martin, as reported by Billboard last month.
But before she hits the stage to kick off the show, we'll expect her to arrive at the red carpet with none other than Kasseem Dean, Keys’s husband of 10 years. Better known in the music industry as Swizz Beatz, he first met Keys when they were teenagers—she was 16, he was 17—and, actually, their initial meet-cute wasn’t so cute. In the beginning, Keys found Swizz and his flashy style annoying and ostentatious, to put it bluntly.
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Flash-forward a few years and Keys changed her tune. Just look to “That's When I Knew,” her emotive ode to her husband off her 2012 Girl on Fire album. A decade later, the two still have a flame burning strong. (By the way, they've racked up 35 Grammy nominations together). Below, a little more about the multi-hyphenate man who's a major player in the music industry.
Swizz Beatz produced some of your favorite Beyoncé songs.
A Bronx-born DJ, entrepreneur, songwriter, and hip-hop producer, Swizz Beatz is on every mega star’s speed dial, even Queen Bey. Collaborative projects of his include the well-known DMX hits “Ruff Ryder’s Anthem” and “Get It on the Floor.”
He also co-wrote Whitney Houston’s “Million Dollar Bill.” But perhaps more surprising is his work on Beyoncé’s B’Day album. He co-produced “Get Me Bodied,” “Upgrade U,” “Ring the Alarm,” and “Lost Yo Mind.” As for solo albums, One Man Band Man, co-produced by Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, and Jadakiss, and Poison are a couple of his standouts.
He’s been nominated for six Grammys over his career.
Like his wife, he’s no stranger to Grammy nods. Though he produced multiple hit singles for heavyweights like Nas, Nicki Minaj, Beyoncé, and Bono, it was his work with Lil Wayne that secured him his very first Grammy nomination. The Carter III, which he produced, was nominated for Album of the Year in 2009. His first and only Gramophone win came in 2011 with “On to the Next One,” which features Beatz and Jay-Z in a Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
He married Keys in 2010, and now they have two children together.
Dr. Deepak Chopra married the couple in August 2010 at a private residence with the Mediterranean Sea as their backdrop, according to CBS News. Vera Wang, Tom Ford, and cala lilies checked off the essential dress, tux, and floral boxes. Keys, pregnant with their first baby at the time of their nuptials, gave birth a couple months later to Egypt Daoud Dean, then Genesis Ali Dean in December of 2014. Beatz has three children, Kasseem Dean Jr., Prince Nasir Dean, and Nicole Dean, from previous relationships.
Beatz is a Harvard man.
Billboard reported in April 2014 that the hip-hop mogul was going back to school. Accepted into Harvard Business School’s nine-week Owner/President Management Extension Program, he announced the news via Instagram. And though Beatz never went to college, it seems as though he adapted to dorm life without a hitch. According to the publication, his wife and Egypt even stayed with him in the dorm on weekends. He graduated three years later and celebrated again on his social media platform of choice. “Blessings on Blessings 🙏🏽 I’m in the inspiration business,” he captioned the clip.
He’s an art collector.
The Harvard Gazette reported that Beatz shared his robust Gordon Parks collection with the Ethelbert Cooper Gallery at the Hutchins Center for African and African American Art last year in an effort to get “the artwork in front of the people Parks represented.” According to the outlet, Beatz began collecting artwork in his teens; his first big piece was a black-and-white Ansel Adams. In 2019, Beatz launched The Dean Collection 20 St(art)ups, an art collective focused on supporting emerging artists. His Instagram and Twitter are covered in further artistic endeavors.
His street-style game is on point.
With a closet brimming with duds that probably rival his better half’s, Beatz can add fashion influencer to his long list of accomplishments. Not only that, but he debuted a multiyear partnership with highbrow Swiss brand Bally in 2017 (per Vogue) and now owns a stake in French street couture brand Faith Connexion (per The Hollywood Reporter).
When it comes to labels he reaches for, The New York Times reported that the mogul loves Calvin Klein’s simple black tees, Yves Saint Laurent’s tailored denim, and Zara’s “phenomenal” suits. A mix of luxe and low-cost: the deft formula of a true sartorial expert.
He digs a beautiful sunset.
As we mentioned earlier, Beatz is an avid patron of the arts, so he takes every opportunity to send a shoutout to his favorite artist, God. Throughout his Instagram feed, you can see sunsets, from soothing to fiery to featuring Keys’s gorgeous “goddess” silhouette, painting the sky.
Nothing wrong with sending thanks to a higher power. We know we did when Alicia got real with those pianos last year. Tune in to the 62nd annual Grammys on Sunday, January 26, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.
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DeAnna Janes is a freelance writer and editor for a number of sites, including Harper’s BAZAAR, Tasting Table, Fast Company and Brit + Co, and is a passionate supporter of animal causes, copy savant, movie dork and reckless connoisseur of all holidays. A native Texan living in NYC since 2005, Janes has a degree in journalism from Texas A&M and got her start in media at US Weekly before moving on to O Magazine, and eventually becoming the entertainment editor of the once-loved, now-shuttered DailyCandy. She’s based on the Upper West Side.
