Who Is Joy Villa? Singer Wore 'Build the Wall' Gown to Grammys

Joy Villa has once again made a statement on the red carpet at this year's Grammy Awards after arriving in a pro-Trump gown with the words "Build the wall" emblazoned on it.

The singer, who has made headlines with her fashion choices at previous award ceremonies, also held red bag with the word "Make America Great Again" written on it and a shoulder piece that mimicked barbed wire seen on the top of security fences.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the dress was designed by Desi Lee Allinger-Nelson of Desi Designs Couture and appears to have been inspired by the front cover of Pink Floyd's 1979 album The Wall.

Speaking to Fox News, the 27-year-old explained why she chose to make the political statement while arriving at the 61st Grammy Awards ceremony.

"One in three women who are trying to come to this country illegally are sexually assaulted," she said. "Thousands of children are sexually exploited by coyotes bringing them across the border.

"Seventy percent of the heroin in our nation is brought in through Mexico. This is not personal against this country or the people. It's not about race. It's about protecting the people who are in this country.

"I'm Latina, I'm black. I support what the president says about building the wall, so that's what this dress represents."

At last year's Grammy Awards, Villa sported a white gown with a hand painted fetus-in-utero on the skirt while clutching a bag which said "Choose life." In 2017, she also wore another pro-Trump dress after donning a blue "Make America Great Again" outfit, which was designed by Filipino immigrant Andre Soriano .

Speaking to THR, Villa said her choice at outfits at these high-profile events is an "opportunity to show the world who I am."

"I approach it as a show," she added. "I want to 'wow' people. My heroes on the red carpet have always been Cher, Madonna, the wild ones; the worst dressed. Or Lady Gaga with the meat dress. Who even talks about the best dressed? No one even remembers who was best-dressed last year"

Following the publicity surrounding her appearance at the 2017 Grammy Awards wearing the blue MAGA dress, her EP I Make The Static climbed to number one on the Amazon.com and iTunes digital downloads chart in the U.S.

The EP eventually reached number 12 on the Billboard Top 200 when taking into account physical album sales, streams and downloads.

Her last album Home Sweet Home also contained a single entitled "Make America Great Again!"

Born in Orange, California, the singer told Fox & Friends in 2017 that she was considering running for Congress as a Republican in Florida.

As well as singing, Villa has also had several minor acting roles as a teenager, appearing on shows such as Heroes and CSI:NY.

Joy Villa
Singer Joy Villa arrives for the 61st Annual Grammy Awards on February 10, 2019, in Los Angeles wearing a "Build The Wall" dress. VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images

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Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more

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