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For many fans, getting to go to the Grammy Awards and see their favorite performers up close and personal sounds like a dream come true. Well, in 2024, that dream was a reality for Katelyn McLaughlin when she was a “seat filler” at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.

It’s a job that many people never knew existed, but it’s the reason cameras don’t catch an empty chair in the audience when stars step away.

Now, McLaughlin is spilling all the details about her gig that night. Here’s what she said about sitting alongside Taylor Swift, sharing jokes with Ed Sheeran, and why Jay-Z left the entire room feeling on edge.

Speaking on behalf of OLBG, McLaughlin told Showbiz Cheat Sheet that a seat filler’s whole job is to “keep the audience of an event looking full on camera. During commercial breaks, people are constantly getting up to go to the bathroom, grab a drink, or talk to someone at another table, and producers don’t want empty seats showing to the audience at home. Once the show starts back up again, everyone has to stay seated where they are until the next commercial break, so seat fillers step in to fill those gaps if there are empty chairs.”

McLaughlin also talked about how she found out about the opportunity to become a seat filler at the Grammys, explaining, “I kept seeing people posting on TikTok about being seat fillers. It looked like such a cool thing to do, so I started following the organization in the U.S. that deals with seat fillers, and in December 2023, they posted about taking applications.”

She revealed that seat fillers are given strict instructions about how to dress for the ceremony, recalling, “They give pretty specific dress guidelines. You have to wear formal attire in dark colors like black or navy. You can’t wear anything with a long train or cape that drags on the floor, and comfortable shoes are a must since you’re on your feet a lot and moving quickly.” 

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McLaughlin was asked if she witnessed any awkward moments during the ceremony. She did courtesy of one of the biggest names in music.

“The most awkward was definitely Jay Z when he got up on stage with his daughter, Blue Ivy, ” McLaughlin said. “He gave a long lecture about how Beyoncé had never won Album of the Year and how everyone should be ashamed. I’m not sure how it came across to viewers at home, but in the room, it felt uncomfortable. I thought he was doing some kind of comedy bit at first.”

McLaughlin is referring to when Jay called out the Recording Academy during his speech when he accepted the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, saying, “I don’t wanna embarrass this young lady [Beyoncé] right here, but she has more Grammys than anyone and never won Album of the Year. So even by your own metrics, that doesn’t work. Think about that. The most Grammys … That doesn’t work.”

The following year, Beyoncé won the Album of the Year Grammy for Cowboy Carter.

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