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This Grammys Moment Between Taylor Swift & Cynthia Erivo Is “Holding Space” In My Mind

Taylor Swift and Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo sat next to each other at the beginning of the 2025 Grammy Awards, and the two were literal BFF goals. Swift finds friends wherever she goes, and in this case, at one point, it looked like she recreated the hilarious “Holding Space” meme with the legendary Elphaba actress as the Grammys opened on Feb. 2. 

During the broadcast, Erivo couldn’t find her assigned chair, so Swift scooted over so they could share a seat while the cameras were rolling. While host Trevor Noah spoke to the camera, Swift and Erivo were caught in the background talking, with Swift grabbing Erivo’s nail — similar to what Ariana Grande did in the now-viral moment during the Wicked press tour. Swifties on Twitter/X were utterly obsessed with the two, who appeared to be “holding space for the lyrics of ‘Defying Gravity.’” Though, perhaps Swift was simply admiring Erivo’s nails.

While it’s not really confirmed if Erivo and Swift purposefully meant to create the meme, I’m “holding space” for the possibility that they did this just for all the Wicked fans and Swifties out there.

Fans noticed Swift and Erivo enjoying their time at the beginning of the awards show together, dancing to performances from Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish, and Dawes. And after the two had their fun, Erivo found her spot during a commercial break.

The two popular singers were fixtures at the award show. Erivo also performed at the show, while Swift served as a presenter for the Best Country Album category. Swift was up for a number of awards, including Album Of The Year (The Tortured Poets Department), Best Pop Vocal Album (The Tortured Poets Department), Song Of The Year, (“Fortnight” featuring Post Malone), Record Of The Year (“Fortnight” featuring Post Malone), Best Music Video (“Fortnight” featuring Post Malone), and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (“Us.” with Gracie Abrams).

cynthia erivo at the 2025 grammy awards
Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
taylor swift at the 2025 grammy awards
Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

This won’t be the last award show Erivo will appear at this year. Wicked is nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. So, make sure to hold some space for Oscars night on March 2, too. Surely, the musical cast will have a reason to be “Dancing Through Life” this awards season, and I — for one — will be sat for it.

Maria Serra is the SEO editor at Her Campus Media, providing updates to evergreen content across all brands including Her Campus, College Fashionista, and Spoon University. She also writes new fashion content for College Fashionista, foodie finds and shopping tips for Spoon U readers, and sex and wellness stories for the HC girlies. As a certified emo girl, it’s no surprise that her previous work includes a wide array of music stories. In the recent past, she served as the assistant editor of Alternative Press magazine where she interviewed her favorite groups including The Aces and The Maine. She also worked with music PR firms including 2bEntertainment, and served on campaigns for rockers such as My Chemical Romance and Mod Sun. Currently, she works as a freelance writer with idobi Radio where she shares music and alternative news with fellow pop-punk lovers. She is planning to expand her work into the freelance world with everything from modern rock tunes all the way to more sex and wellness works. After all, she does have a minor in human sexuality and is quite proud to have that necessary and cool academic background. In her free time, she is a stand-up comedian, sketch performer, and improviser in the Cleveland area working primarily with Imposters Theater. Additionally, she is a dog mother to a perfectly round chihuahua-pug named Bobbie who has four teeth but is still a delightful companion nonetheless. She is debating on whether or not Bobbie needs her own TikTok account… we’ll see. mariaserra@hercampus.com