Bradley Cooper, Kate Winslet, Michelle Obama and More Stars You May Not Realize Are Grammy Winners

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Bradley Cooper, Kate Winslet, Michelle Obama and More Stars You May Not Realize Are Grammy Winners

Something for everyone. The Grammy Awards are known as "music's biggest night," but the Recording Academy also hands out a ton of trophies in non-musical categories — and you might be surprised to find out who's won them. One of the major sources of unusual Grammy winners is Best Spoken Word Album, first awarded in 1959. This prize has gone to statesmen reading their speeches (Martin Luther King Jr.), poets reciting their work (Maya Angelou) and more recently, authors and actors reading audiobooks (LeVar Burton, Cynthia Nixon, Michael J. Fox and many more). It's certainly not easy to win a Grammy, but the sheer breadth of categories has helped a number of stars complete their EGOT: the showbiz feat of winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. The legendary Audrey Hepburn, for example, won an Oscar in 1953 for Roman Holiday, a Tony in 1954 for Ondine and an Emmy in 1993 for Gardens of the World With Audrey Hepburn. Finally, in 1994, the Breakfast at Tiffany's star won a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for Children, making her the first person to win all four awards posthumously. (She died one month before the ceremony.) [jwplayer iHck5IiP-zhNYySv2] Liza Minnelli also received her Grammy last after winning a Tony in 1965, an Oscar in 1972 and an Emmy in 1973. The Cabaret actress took home a Grammy Legend Award in 1990, making her an official EGOT winner — a feat that even her mother, Judy Garland, didn't achieve. (The late Wizard of Oz star was nominated for three Emmys but never won one.) On the non-Hollywood end of the spectrum, the Grammys have also honored a number of former presidents and former first ladies, including Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Jimmy Carter currently holds the record for most presidential Grammys with three wins, but the Audacity of Hope author could tie the Georgia native when the 64th Annual Grammy Awards air in April 2022. The former Illinois senator is nominated for Best Spoken Word Album for the audiobook version of his 2020 memoir, A Promised Land. He's not the only Grammy winner at home, either. His wife, Michelle Obama, took home the gold in 2020 for the audiobook of her memoir, Becoming. The honor came one year after she made a surprise appearance at the ceremony alongside Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Lopez and Jada Pinkett Smith. "From the Motown records I wore out on the South Side [of Chicago] to the 'Run the World' songs that fueled me through this last decade, music has always helped me tell my story," the Illinois native said in February 2019 to rapturous applause. "Whether we like country or rap or rock, music helps us share ourselves, our dignity and sorrows, our hopes and joys. It allows us to hear one another, to invite each other. Music shows us that all of it matters." Keep scrolling for the most surprising Grammy winners over the years:

Credit: Shutterstock (3)

Bradley Cooper, Kate Winslet, Michelle Obama and More Stars You May Not Realize Are Grammy Winners

Something for everyone. The Grammy Awards are known as "music's biggest night," but the Recording Academy also hands out a ton of trophies in non-musical categories — and you might be surprised to find out who's won them. One of the major sources of unusual Grammy winners is Best Spoken Word Album, first awarded in 1959. This prize has gone to statesmen reading their speeches (Martin Luther King Jr.), poets reciting their work (Maya Angelou) and more recently, authors and actors reading audiobooks (LeVar Burton, Cynthia Nixon, Michael J. Fox and many more). It's certainly not easy to win a Grammy, but the sheer breadth of categories has helped a number of stars complete their EGOT: the showbiz feat of winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. The legendary Audrey Hepburn, for example, won an Oscar in 1953 for Roman Holiday, a Tony in 1954 for Ondine and an Emmy in 1993 for Gardens of the World With Audrey Hepburn. Finally, in 1994, the Breakfast at Tiffany's star won a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for Children, making her the first person to win all four awards posthumously. (She died one month before the ceremony.) [jwplayer iHck5IiP-zhNYySv2] Liza Minnelli also received her Grammy last after winning a Tony in 1965, an Oscar in 1972 and an Emmy in 1973. The Cabaret actress took home a Grammy Legend Award in 1990, making her an official EGOT winner — a feat that even her mother, Judy Garland, didn't achieve. (The late Wizard of Oz star was nominated for three Emmys but never won one.) On the non-Hollywood end of the spectrum, the Grammys have also honored a number of former presidents and former first ladies, including Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Jimmy Carter currently holds the record for most presidential Grammys with three wins, but the Audacity of Hope author could tie the Georgia native when the 64th Annual Grammy Awards air in April 2022. The former Illinois senator is nominated for Best Spoken Word Album for the audiobook version of his 2020 memoir, A Promised Land. He's not the only Grammy winner at home, either. His wife, Michelle Obama, took home the gold in 2020 for the audiobook of her memoir, Becoming. The honor came one year after she made a surprise appearance at the ceremony alongside Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Lopez and Jada Pinkett Smith. "From the Motown records I wore out on the South Side [of Chicago] to the 'Run the World' songs that fueled me through this last decade, music has always helped me tell my story," the Illinois native said in February 2019 to rapturous applause. "Whether we like country or rap or rock, music helps us share ourselves, our dignity and sorrows, our hopes and joys. It allows us to hear one another, to invite each other. Music shows us that all of it matters." Keep scrolling for the most surprising Grammy winners over the years:

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Viola Davis

The Woman King actress became a Grammy winner in February 2023 when she picked up a trophy for narrating the audiobook of her memoir, Finding Me. 

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Steve Martin

The Only Murders in the Building star has nabbed five Grammys over his career. In addition to the two he won for Best Comedy Album, he’s also received accolades for his bluegrass music. His track "Love Has Come For You" won a Grammy for best American roots song at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.

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Orson Welles

The filmmaker took home three Grammys for his spoken word poetry. The first was for Great American Documents, in which he read the Declaration of Independence. He also won awards for Citizen Kane and the sci-fi radio play Donovan’s Brain. 

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Bo Burnham

The comedian's Netflix special Inside included the song “All Eyes On Me,” which won Best Song Written for Visual Media in 2022.

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Louis C.K.

The scandal-ridden comedian won Best Comedy Album in 2022 for Sincerely Louis C.K., his first special since 2017. The set was controversial since he joked about the sexual misconduct claims against him.

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Michelle Obama

The former first lady won a trophy for Best Spoken Word Album in 2020 for the audiobook of Becoming.

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Carrie Fisher

The late Stars Wars actress took home the Best Spoken Word Album award in 2018 for the audiobook of her memoir The Princess Diarist.

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Lily Tomlin

The Grace and Frankie star won Best Comedy Album in 1972 for This Is a Recording.

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Martin Scorsese

The Oscar-winning director won a Grammy in 2006 for Best Music Film for No Direction Home, his documentary about Bob Dylan.

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Rashida Jones

The Parks and Recreation alum earned an award for Best Music Film in 2019 for her work on Quincy, a documentary about her father, the legendary music producer Quincy Jones.

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Tiffany Haddish

In 2021, the Girls Trip star took home the gold for Best Comedy Album for Black Mitzvah.

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Robin Williams

The late actor and comedian received nine Grammy nominations throughout his career and won five awards, including Best Comedy Recording for Reality … What a Concept in 1980 and Best Spoken Comedy Album for Robin Williams Live on Broadway in 2003.

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Bradley Cooper

The A Star Is Born actor scored two nominations in 2019 for “Shallow,” his song with costar Lady Gaga. They won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, but lost Record of the Year.

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Steve Jobs

The late Apple cofounder posthumously won The Recording Academy’s Trustees Award in 2012.

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Magic Johnson

The retired NBA star, who is HIV-positive, won Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Album in 1993 for his What You Can Do to Avoid AIDS audiobook.

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Martin Luther King Jr.

The late civil rights activist posthumously won Best Spoken Word Recording in 1971 for his speech "Why I Oppose the War in Vietnam." It was his third nomination and only win.

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Audrey Hepburn

The late Breakfast at Tiffany’s actress won Best Spoken Word Album for Children in 1994 for Audrey Hepburn’s Enchanted Tales. 

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Barack Obama

The former president won back-to-back Grammys for Best Spoken Word Album for his books Dreams From My Father and The Audacity of Hope in 2006 and 2007, respectively.

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Betty White

The Golden Girls alum won Best Spoken Word Album in 2011 for her audiobook If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t).

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Stephen Colbert

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert host has been nominated for three Grammys and won two: Best Comedy Album for A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! in 2010 and Best Spoken Word Album for America Again: Re-Becoming The Greatness We Never Weren’t in 2014.

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Hillary Clinton

The former Secretary of State won Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Album for It Takes a Village in 1997. She was nominated again in 2004 for her audiobook Living History.

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Bill Clinton

The former president won two of his four Grammy nominations: Best Spoken Word Album for Children for Wolf Tracks and Peter and the Wolf in 2004 and Best Spoken Word Album for his audiobook My Life in 2005.

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Zach Braff

The Scrubs alum won Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media in 2005 for Garden State.

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Kate Winslet

The Titanic star won Best Spoken Word Album for Children in 1999 for Listen to the Storyteller.

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Whoopi Goldberg

The EGOT winner scored Best Comedy Recording in 1986 for Whoopi Goldberg - Original Broadway Show Recording.

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Joaquin Phoenix

The Oscar nominee won Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media in 2007 for Walk the Line.