Patrick Semansky-Pool/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Amanda Gorman said she feels “amazing” after making history Wednesday as the youngest poet in recent history to perform at a presidential inauguration.
“It’s not often that you wake up on a morning feeling like this,” Gorman, 22, said Thursday on Good Morning America in her first live TV interview since President Joe Biden’s inauguration.
Gorman, a Los Angeles native, became the breakout star of the inauguration with her poem, “The Hill We Climb,” which she finished writing on the night of Jan. 6, hours after rioters took siege on Capitol Hill.
Gorman’s Hamilton references in her inaugural poem caught the eye of Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the Tony-winning Broadway musical, who tweeted to Gorman on Wednesday that she was “perfect.”
On Thursday, Miranda surprised Gorman with a special message delivered on GMA, saying, “The right words in the right order can change the world, and you proved that yesterday with your brilliant piece. I’m so incredibly proud of you and I can’t wait to see what’s next. You smashed it.”
“I almost fell out of my chair,” Gorman said in reaction to Miranda’s praise. “That’s amazing.”
Gorman also received praise for her poem from the likes of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Oprah Winfrey, who gifted her with Maya Angelou-inspired jewelry for the inauguration.
Amid all of the attention she received at the inauguration and in the 24 hours since, Gorman said she was especially touched by meeting Lady Gaga, who sang the Star-Spangled banner on Wednesday.
“It was so incredible meeting Lady Gaga. I mean I’m gaga for Gaga, literally,” she said, adding, “It was just such a great moment because what she does with music I aspire to do with poetry so it was great to have that woman to woman camaraderie.”
By Katie Kindelan
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