Grammy-winner Sam Smith was slammed on Twitter last night for his performance of “Unholy” during the Grammy Awards ceremony, which some called “satanic.”
Madonna, who is known for pushing boundaries, introduced the fiery performance, saying, “If they call you shocking, scandalous, problematic, provocative or dangerous, you are definitely onto something,” per People.
During the performance of “Unholy,” Smith and Kim Petras both wore all-red ensembles and mid-performance, Smith added a cane and horned top hat to his look. The stage had a wash of red light and gave out bursts of fire where Petras danced in a cage. Both artists were accompanied by backup dancers.
Following the performance, Grammy’s host Trevor Noah faked a phone call to his mom, saying, “No, mom, it wasn’t the actual devil. ... Yeah, you did warn me about Hollywood.” He added, “She says she will be praying for all of us.”
But Twitter did not take the performance as lightly as Noah. Many users labeled the performance as “satanic” and “evil.”
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was one of the first to comment on Smith’s performance in a tweet. He wrote, “This…is…evil.”
This…is…evil. https://t.co/SBrOgHfFcX
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 6, 2023
What is Twitter saying about Sam Smith’s Grammy performance?
Twitter users are slamming the “Unholy” performance, calling it “a tribute to Satan.”
If as a Christian, you think we are reaching when we talk about the dominance and normalization of Satan worship in pop music, you need discernment. Sam Smith’s performance at the Grammy’s last night was satanic, gory. No, it’s not art; it’s symbolic of who they serve. pic.twitter.com/7pz2BlE9ei
— Solomon Buchi (@Solomon_Buchi) February 6, 2023
I know we on the right probably use the word satanic too often but this peformance from Sam Smith is literally a tribute to Satan. pic.twitter.com/1GrNgjssZN
— Ben Kew 🐶 (@ben_kew) February 6, 2023
Disgusting! I don't think I've ever seen a more demonic display than Sam Smith performance at the Grammys. A horned hat bathed in fire and singing about "doing something unholy" while referencing Balenciaga dresses, this is no coincidence y'all. Satan is showing us who he is
— TnTechGuy (@TnTechGuy76) February 6, 2023
Sam Smith offers up a Satanic Grammy performance and it’s in the open for all to see. pic.twitter.com/rlFxEBTKoK
— David Vance (@DVATW) February 6, 2023
Some fans defended Smith’s Grammy performance
Not everyone on Twitter considered Smith’s performance “evil” — some fans defended the singer.
I’m a literal Christian minister. Sam Smith’s song is called #Unholy and they created a piece of performance art around that theme. They weren’t saying we should all be satanists.
— Rev. E. Carrington Heath (@echeath) February 6, 2023
Know what is evil? Kids being killed in schools, families living in poverty, racist hate, etc, etc https://t.co/oJNrpJTcuD
Ted Cruz said Sam Smith's GRAMMYs performance of "Unholy" was "EVIL":
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) February 6, 2023
Evil is when a man walks into a school & murders a dozen children
Evil is when Russia bombs schools & hospitals to steal land
Evil is NOT when a musician dances around in a devil suit performing a hit song.
What has Petras said about ‘Unholy’?
Kim Petras, who became the first transgender woman to win a Grammy award last night, said the performance was inspired by not feeling accepted by religion, per Variety.
“I think a lot of people, honestly, have kind of labeled what I stand for and what Sam stands for as religiously not cool, and I personally grew up wondering about religion and wanting to be a part of it but slowly realizing it didn’t want me to be a part of it,” she said.
“So it’s a take on not being able to choose religion. And not being able to live the way that people might want you to live, because as a trans person I’m already not kind of wanted in religion. So we were doing a take on that and I was kind of hellkeeper Kim,” said Petras, per Variety.