"There are three key awards show moments in Little Richard's life, moments which explain the need for a documentary like Lisa Cortés' informative and emotional "Little Richard: I Am Everything." Little Richard died in 2020 at the age of 87, and the time is right to take a long look at the "architect," as he called himself. The legacy is huge, the influence gigantic, but the world moves so quickly now, racing past deaths like his, and while nice tributes are written, there is no time to take a moment and reflect on what we have lost, on what he actually accomplished."
"The first "Little Richard Awards Show Moment" was at the 1988 Grammys, when he and Buster Poindexter (aka David Johansen, former frontman of the New York Dolls) presented the award for Best New Artist. Little Richard, resplendent in a shiny brown suit, glanced at Johansen's towering pompadour and declared, “I used to wear my hair like that. They take everything I get. They take it from me.” The audience laughed, but it was a little uncomfortable. Holding the envelope, he said, “And the best new artist is ... me!” The audience laughed, assuming he was joking. Little Richard was not joking. He went on, with passionate conviction: “I have never received nothing! Y’all ain’t never gave me no Grammy and I been singing for years. I am the architect of rock ‘n’ roll and they never gave me nothing. And I am the originator!” At the end of this, the audience leapt to their feet in a standing ovation. People barely remember Jody Watley's win as Best New Artist, but they remember Little Richard."
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"Little Richard knew Redding, and he speaks on that, but once again, he—a member of the first "class" of inductees—reminds the audience of his dominance and centrality." (1989)
"It's been a long time coming. I am the originator. I am the eMANcipator. I am the architect of rock 'n roll. Rhythm and blues had a baby, and somebody named it rock 'n roll." (1997)
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