During the opening monologue at the Grammys on February 5, Trevor Noah created a magical moment by fulfilling Adele’s dream. Despite being nominated for seven awards at the ceremony, Noah managed to make her night even more extraordinary by introducing her to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Johnson has now shared the story of how it all came together and how the Grammys kept it a secret from Adele.
“We wanted to do something special for Adele,” the former wrestler revealed in an interview with Variety published on February 7. “I know that she is a very big fan of mine and has made that clear publicly many times. But I’ve got to tell you, I am a huge fan of hers as well—her music, her journey, her openness and directness in how she speaks. I’ve always admired that about her.”
In case you missed it, during Noah’s monologue on Sunday night, the comedian mentioned, “The person that Adele has always wanted to meet but never has is Dwayne Johnson.” He confirmed with her, “You’ve never met him?” and she shook her head.
“I found out that he’s a huge fan of yours, too,” Noah said. “I don’t have Dwayne Johnson here tonight, but I do have someone called The Rock.” Johnson then approached Adele from behind, and she laughed and jumped up to give him a hug. The crowd cheered as they chatted. “You two get acquainted; we gotta keep the show moving,” Noah said before continuing. Later in the night, Johnson presented Adele with the award for Best Solo Performance for her song “Easy on Me.”
Recently, Johnson was in production for his 2023 Christmas movie “Red One,” but he and his wife Lauren Hashian managed to fit the 2023 Grammys into their schedule. It turns out that Grammy producer Ben Winston pitched the idea of surprising Adele to the actor. Johnson explained to Variety, “The key to a surprise like that is to actually keep it a surprise. Myself and the Grammys went to great lengths to make sure that Adele was authentically surprised in the moment, and she was.” He also expressed that he loved getting to talk to Adele and her boyfriend, Rich Paul, during the ceremony.
As for the moment later in the night when he presented Adele with her Grammy, Johnson called it “the universe meeting our friendship halfway.” He added, “It was such a special night. And she’s such a special iconic brilliant inspiring artist who has inspired a generation and who will continue to inspire generations to come. I love that woman. We had a really great time tonight. I think probably the best part about it is she’s just cool—and I had never met her before.”
Back in 2021, Adele expressed her love for Johnson and her desire to meet him in a video with NikkieTutorials. “Someone I’ve never met that I think I would actually cry is The Rock, but I know he goes by Dwayne Johnson now,” she explained at the time. “I was the biggest wrestling fan when I was younger.” She added that he had been scheduled to attend one of her concerts but couldn’t make it at the last minute and sent her flowers instead.
“Literally I fell off my chair,” she said of the moment she received them. “He’s amazing. He’s just incredible. I just want him to be my mate. I want him to be my friend.” Suffice it to say, she’ll never forget the moment they met.Noah’s monologue followed Bad Bunny’s opening performance. “That album is so fire it makes Trump want to learn Spanish,” Noah joked, referencing former President Donald Trump. He also quipped about his role as