Serena Williams wears black to introduce Green Day, her “literally favorite band of all time”

Serena Williams stole the show at music industry icon Clive Davis' exclusive pre-Grammy gala on Saturday night—after scoring a personal invite from Green Day lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong himself.

“When @billiejoearmstrong calls you to present their band, you jump on a plane and do it,” Serena said on Instagram, sharing photos of her meeting with the five-time Grammy winners as well as her stunning black and gold gown.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion paid tribute to Green Day, famously one of her favorite musical acts, ahead of a performance celebrating the rock band’s 30-year anniversary. Serena, who called herself the band's “mascot”, introduced Green Day as they opened the evening with hits "American Idiot" and "Basket Case".

“My literally favorite band of all time,” Serena said in her speech, according to Forbes. “Truly, to know me is to know my love for them.”

Serena took the stage at the Beverly Hilton in a dramatic black column gown by Safiyaa, featuring a sweetheart neckline and pair of contrasting metallic gold balloon sleeves.

She completed the look with a towering curly updo, custom 18 karat gold "Lunaria" earrings by Marco Bicego, as well as her Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Lady Chronograph—a luxury timepiece that retails for upwards of $30,000 USD. It’s one of several AP watches in Serena’s growing collection, with the American having been a brand ambassador since 2014.

“Less talk more gold please,” Serena wrote in an Instagram caption as she teased her appearance before the gala.

The Pre-Grammy Gala & Grammy Salute to Industry Icons is an annual blowout bash held by Davis since 1976, but this year’s event marks the first time it’s taken place in person since the onset of COVID-19. The evening featured a blend of music’s biggest names including Diana Ross, Jay-Z, Beyonce and Bon Jovi, and newer artists like SZA, Ice Spice and Megan Thee Stallion.

But it wasn’t just musicians in attendance, with Serena joining other sports legends like basketball player Scottie Pippen and tennis’ own Martina Navratilova with wife Julia Lemigova, while even more famous names including Tom Hanks, Paris Hilton and Meryl Streep also enjoyed the party.

The 66th Annual Grammy Awards were held on Sunday at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena in a ceremony hosted by Trevor Noah. The evening’s biggest winners included Miley Cyrus, Karol G, and SZA, and also saw a major sweep for Taylor Swift, who won album of the year for “Midnights” to break a tie with Frank Sinatra, Paul Simon, and Stevie Wonder for the most all-time—and then announced a new album, "The Tortured Poets Department” in her acceptance speech.

That’s a feat that probably makes Swift the GOAT of music, which earned her a tip of the cap from one of tennis’ all-time greats, Billie Jean King.

“Congratulations to Taylor Swift, who has made history for most Album of the Year wins by any artist in #GRAMMYs history,” King wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.