Why was Jill Biden at the Grammys 2023? Everything to know about Shervin Hajipour's Baraye song

This year, the Grammys saw a new award category being presented by Jill Biden, the First Lady. The new Special Merit Award for Best Song For Social Change was presented to the Iranian singer-songwriter Shervin Hajipour for his hit track Baraye.

The song went viral and gained a lot of traction globally during the recent protests in Iran. Upon its release in September 2022, it instantly became famous as it racked up more than 40 million views online within 48 hours.

Being introduced as a new music category, it was created to honor songs about social issues that have the potential for positive global impact. Grammys was held on February 5, 2023, in Los Angeles, where Jill Biden was seen presenting the award in the same category.

Moreover, this wasn’t the only award that Jill Biden presented at the Grammys. Seen in an off-the-shoulder custom gown by Oscar de la Renta, the First Lady also announced the winner of Song of the Year to be Bonnie Raitt.

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Jill Biden announces Shervin Hajipour's Baraye as the Grammy winner in the Social Change Award category

After the Social Change Award was presented to Shervin Hajipour for Baraye, people grew all the more curious about the song and why it has become a sensation on social media.

The song was released amid the Mahsa Amini protests in Iran after Mahsa Amini was arrested for wearing her hijab “improperly” and died while in police custody.

After her death, Iran saw a nationwide protest, which was also joined by many Iranian celebrities. During this time, Shervin Hajipour released Baraye, which was highly praised for its vocals and meaning. The word “Baraye” means "because of" in Farsi. The song currently has more than 6 million streams on Spotify, 2.1 million streams on SoundCloud, and millions of views and streams on other platforms.

Appreciating the positive social impact of Baraye, First Lay Jill Biden said:

“A song can unite, inspire, and ultimately change the world. Beginning this year, the Recording Academy is presenting a new award recognizing a song that responds to the social issues of our time, and has the potential for positive global impact.”

While the song is available on many websites, it was initially forcefully removed from social media. Moreover, Hajipour was arrested on September 29, 2022, two days after the song was released.

However, the singer was released on bail a few days later, on October 4, 2022. Hajipour was accused of “propaganda against the system” and “inciting people to violent acts.”

Today, the song has become so popular that even Coldplay covered Baraye during one of his concerts in Buenos Aires. While introducing the song, Chris Martin said:

“We’re going to sing a song that right now is being sung by many people in Iran.”

Shervin Hajipour is yet to comment on his win.