Rozonda Thomas, who goes by the stage name Chilli, reminisced about her famous 1996 Grammy speech.
For those unaware, the 55-year-old American singer and dancer secured two awards at the 1996 Grammy Awards in the categories of Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best R&B Album.
She delivered a memorable speech after winning the award, saying their paychecks still do not reflect the great amount of success they have achieved after giving years to the music world.
At the iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 26, 2026, she chatted with PEOPLE magazine, reflecting on her viral speech clips.
Voicing her thoughts, Chilli said, “Oh, yes. You know what’s funny? My son sent that to me. He was like, ‘Mom, I’ve never seen this.’ And it’s so funny. Yeah, but that was a real thing.”
“We didn’t get pulled off. But I’m sure the label was not happy that we said that, but it was the truth,” she quipped.
“Hilarious. Yeah, it was the truth,” T-Boz, who also attended the iHeartRadio Music Awards with her, endorsed.
The Let’s Do It Again songstress went on to state she hoped that their story resonated with the artists.
“We hope that our story was helpful to many other artists. And obviously, we’ve learned so much and we are definitely very much in control of our business. So, we don’t play those games,” Chilli noted.
