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Whoopi Goldberg addressed the backlash surrounding Beyoncé's historic wins at the 2025 Grammy Awards, defending the artist's recognition for her genre-crossing album Cowboy Carter. The View moderator shut down conservative criticism during the show's "Hot Topics" segment on February 4, 2025, particularly targeting author Raymond Arroyo's comments on Fox News.
Arroyo had questioned Beyoncé's wins, notably for Best Country Album and Album of the Year, comparing her to artists like Frank Sinatra and Dolly Parton.
Speaking on Fox News's "The Ingraham Angle," the author said:
"The country artists are not really happy about this...Dolly Parton has 10 Grammys. Frank Sinatra had 11 Grammys. Beyoncé has 35. How is that possibly commensurate with that talent? I mean come on."
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Whoopi Goldberg stated that Beyoncé's victories were well-earned and backed by legitimate voting from industry professionals and dismissed Arroyo's claims as inaccurate and unfair.
"Are you aware that when the Grammys began in 1959, there were only 28 categories, now there are 94? The year that Frank Sinatra got six nominations despite having two No. 1 albums, he only won one Grammy that night for his album cover — not even for his singing, for the album cover. Listen, man. You can't do that. She earned it," Whoopi Goldberg said.
The View co-host, who is a former member of the Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, added:
"Come on, man! People voted for it. Sometimes you win, sometimes you don’t. Same with the Oscars."
Whoopi Goldberg refutes Grammy criticism on The View
Whoopi Goldberg took the opportunity on the February 2025 episode of The View to respond to Arroyo's remarks made during his Fox News appearance on The Ingraham Angle. He suggested that voting for categories like Best Country Album was not taken seriously, joking that "Lady Gaga's cat sitter" might have been among the voters.
Arroyo's comments implied that Beyoncé's success was not entirely based on merit, as reported by EW.
Whoopi Goldberg hit back at these statements, clarifying how the Grammy voting process works.
"Sir, are you aware that you have to be in the music industry to be a Grammy voter? So, the cat sitter can't just vote," she said, addressing Arroyo directly through the camera.
Released in 2024, Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter broke new ground for the artist, blending country and pop elements. It earned her not only the Best Country Album award but also her first-ever win for Album of the Year, making her the first Black woman to win in the category since Lauryn Hill in 1999.
This victory marked a significant moment in Grammy history, as only three Black women—Lauryn Hill, Natalie Cole (1992), and Whitney Houston (1994)—have ever won Album of the Year.
The album's lead single, Texas Hold' Em, became another milestone for Beyoncé, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard country chart and the Billboard Hot 100. Despite initial resistance from some country radio stations and being shut out of the 2024 CMA Awards, Beyoncé's success in the country genre attracted widespread acclaim, as reported by the Guardian.
Following the success of Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé is reportedly working on new music while continuing her Renaissance world tour, which has been extended due to high demand.
