Copeland joined Swift onstage during her career-spanning performance at the 2019 American Music Awards
Working with Taylor Swift is an experience Misty Copeland will never forget.
Joining Swift onstage during her career-spanning performance at the 2019 American Music Awards is something that Copeland recalled as being “incredible” during an appearance on this week’s Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace?
“You know, I have to say that Taylor Swift was one of the most humble, down to earth [individuals],” Copeland told host Chris Wallace. “You know she spent hours and hours just hanging out with me and my dance partner, Craig Hall, before the performances and was just so invested.”
Copeland and Hall performances as Swift closed out her award show performance, which celebrated her artist of the decade honor, with the track “Lover.”
The ballet dancer, who has also worked with Prince, said that she often strives to branch out to perform on different stages.
“I think it’s really important for ballet to be seen by a wide range of people. And I think that it should be for everyone,” she said.
Like Swift, Copeland has been a trailblazer in her profession after becoming the first African American woman to be a principal dancer at American Ballet Theatre in 2015.
She spoke with PEOPLE about the accomplishment in May 2016, describing it as something that gave her an “added boost of power.”
“[Now], I have this other mission that is so much bigger than me and my dancing career. It’s shaped me as a woman and a ballerina. It’s allowed me to be this voice and vessel for generations and generation to come, and those that came before me that didn’t have the opportunity to share their voice or their art,” Copeland told PEOPLE.
At the 2024 Grammy Awards, Swift broke one of her latest records by becoming the only artist to ever win album of the year four times.
“For me, the award is the work,” said Swift during her acceptance speech. “All I want to do is keep being able to do this. I love it so much. It makes me so happy. It makes me unbelievably blown away that it makes some people happy who voted for this award too. All I want to do is keep doing this. So thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to do what I love so much.”
