Mickey Guyton.Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty
“I think what I’m looking forward to is holding my son and watching him get to experience this,” the country star tells PEOPLE of her working holiday withher 16-month-old sonGrayson Clark and herhusband Grant Savoyin the wings.
She’s eager to take in the country’s largest and most spectacular fireworks display with Grayson, a first for the toddler. “I’ve gotten to see some amazing fireworks in my life. I’ve not got to seeA Capitol Fourth’sfireworks in person and I get to do that — not only hosting the event, but I get to have my son there with me and I think that’s going to be the best part.”
“I cannot wait for Grayson to be able to see the fireworks,” the “Black Like Me” singer continues. “Something that’s the best part of being a parent is watching your child see certain things that we loved in life for the first time, and I think this is going to be really cool to see him see fireworks for the first time. Like,reallysee fireworks!”
Guyton will be sharing the stage with an impressive array of musical artists, including actress and vocalistCynthia Erivo, country starJake Owen, actor and pop starDarren Criss, gospel superstar Yolanda Adams, singer-songwriterAndy Grammer, disco icon Gloria Gaynor, blues artist Keb’Mo, pianist Emily Bear, chart-topping singer-songwriterRachel Platten, stage star Loren Allred and Broadway legend Chita Rivera.
“I’m excited because that’s what America is,” says Guyton. “America is pop; America is country; America is R&B; it’s Broadway; it’s everything. And that’s what this program is. And that’s what’s so important and why I’m so excited to be a part of it… I just want to be high-energy and relatable at this show. I just want people to be able to see me and see my personality, but also bring togetherness at America’s birthday.”
“Probably not – I never get to do all that stuff!” she admits with a laugh. “But my husband, he’ll be out there with my son so a lot of times he’ll branch off, because it is a lot of waiting for them. He’ll probably go and see some sights.”
Guyton retains fond memories of the family trips to the area from her own youth.
Guyton, the second Black woman to hostA Capitol FourthafterVanessa Williams, recognizes that her own swift and dramatic rise to stardom after years of dues-paying and nearly quitting performing entirely is a textbook American success story.
“My life was definitely different,” she says. “I had no money; my career was non-existent. And to be here two years later, it’s wild to think that I’ve been able to support my family and have a career. It’s been such a blessing.”
Mickey Guyton.Kevin Mazur/Getty/Roc Nation
MIckey Guyton, Grayson and Grant Savoy.Mickey Guyton Instagram
On a professional level, Guyton is especially excited that she’ll be singing her hit song “All American” at the event, which is a personal meditation on true patriotism. “What’s crazy to me is when I wrote it, I didn’t think, ‘Oh, I’m going to sing this on PBS atA Capitol Fourth,” she explains. “I was just writing a song that was from my heart and I wanted to sing. And I just wanted to show what makes America so great, which is all of our differences.”
“When I wrote ‘All American,’ I was at the heart of the pandemic. I was watching the news a lot. I was watching Twitter a lot and all of these social media platforms, and I was just heartbroken,” she reveals. “I don’t know if it was because everybody was stuck at home and our tensions were so high and we were angry, but that was what I was feeling when I was looking at social media and the news and a lot of times I still feel that. And I just wanted to show that ‘Why are we fighting, again?’ At the end of the day, humanity is what matters.”
“If you’re in need and you need help, the American way is not going to be like, ‘Well, what political party are you affiliated with?’ They’re not going to ask that first. Our first natural instinct, human instinct, is to just help one another. And that’s what I was hoping people would feel from the song.”
A Capitol Fourthairs on PBS Monday, July 4, 2022 from 8 to 9:30 p.m. ET, as well as to the nation’s troops serving around the world via the American Forces Network. The program can also be heard in stereo over NPR member stations nationwide and will be streaming on YouTube and www.pbs.org/a-capitol-fourth. The program will also be available as Video on Demand for a limited time only, July 4 to July 18, 2022.
source: people.com
