Singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile referenced her coming out at the age of 15 as she picked up three Grammys on Sunday (10 February).

‘It’s our first Grammy!’ Carlile shouted as she picked up Best American Roots Performance for The Joke.

‘This means so much to me’ she added. ‘I never saw us standing here, but it means so much to us to be standing here for this song’.

She went on to win Best American Roots Song for The Joke and Best Americana Album for By the Way, I Forgive You.

Carlile married her wife Catherine Shepherd in 2012. The pair have two daughters together born in 2014 and 2018.

Brandi Carlile just won 3 Grammys in a row, and if there was one for “Best Speech,” it might have been 4 pic.twitter.com/CBtXyX3lyl

— Dave Paulson (@ItsDavePaulson) February 10, 2019

Misfit toys

As she was awarded Best American Roots Song, Carlile read producer Dave Cobb a note she had written if they didn’t win.

‘Americana music is the island of the misfit toys,’ Carlile said.

‘I came out of the closet at 15 years old, when I was in high school, and I can assure you that I was never invited to any parties. I never got to attend a dance.

‘To be embraced by this enduring and loving community has been the dance of a lifetime. Thank you for being my island’.

Grammys 2019

Alongside Carlile, LGBTI stars were at the forefront of the 61st Grammys Awards.

Popstar sensation and famous same-sex family man Ricky Martin opened the show. The Livin’ la Vida Loca star performed alongside Camila Cabello, J Balvin and trumpeter Arturo Sandoval.

He stunned the red carpet by taking his 10-year-old son, Matteo, as his date.

Queer artist Janelle Monáe also performed at the awards ceremony.

Monáe is up for a Grammy for album of the year, Dirty Computer, and best music video for Pynk.

Monáe, who came out as pansexual last year, dedicated her Grammy nominations to her ‘trans brothers and sisters.’

‘My trans brother and sisters, they do it every day. And they are shunned from these sorts of events. So this one is for them,’ she told Variety.

Lady Gaga picked up the first award of the evening for best pop duo/group performance.

Shallow was the centerpiece duet of her fit film A Star is Born with Bradley Cooper.

In her acceptance speech, Lady Gaga said she was proud of how the film confronted mental health issues. ‘If you see someone that’s hurting, don’t look away’ she also urged.