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Childish Gambino took a departure from his rap roots with his last full-length project Awaken! My Love, but made a big splash in 2018 with his trap-tinged “This Is America” single. The artist born Donald Glover made Grammy history by having the first rap song win the coveted Record Of The Year Grammy Award on Sunday (Feb. 10).

Billboard reports:

With Gambino — a.k.a. Donald Glover — notably absent from tonight’s festivities, the prestigious award was accepted on behalf of co-writer and producer Ludwig Göransson, engineer/mixer Derek “MixedByAli” Ali and mastering engineer Mike Bozzi.

“Creating music with Childish Gambino has been one of the greatest stories of my life,” Göransson told the crowd. “As a kid growing up in Sweden, loving American music, I always dreamt of migrating here, working with an artist like Donald Glover.

“I really wish he was here with us right now, because this truly was his vision, and he deserves this credit,” he continued. “No matter where you’re born or what country you’re from, you connect with it. It speaks to people. It connects right to your soul. It calls out injustice, celebrates life, and reunites us, all at the same time.”

Childish Gambino also took home Song Of The Year, also a first for a rap song, and Best Rap/Sung Performance along with Best Music Video for the track.

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