The red carpet was laid. The Los Angeles sun was shining and the Staples Center was filled to capacity with celebrities. It’s safe to say the 57th annual Grammy Awards were underway. The Grammys are arguably the biggest award given to musicians. While the awards are the reason for the show, the show itself is more about the the fashion and the performances.
LL Cool J hosted. Kinda. I feel like he didn’t really “host”. He moreso popped up every once in a while to make an appearance, but I don’t recall him saying or doing anything remotely memorable or interesting. Who keeps asking him back?
Ariana Grande hit the stage with her hit “Just A Little Bit of Your Heart” and while the pint-sized powerhouse can sing her lil face off, I couldn’t understand anything she was saying. We all know she can hit the high notes, low notes, riffs, runs and falsetto, but I just want her to pronounce her words more clearly. Usher sang a Stevie Wonder tribute that showed why Usher is the superstar that he is. Lady Gaga dropped the outrageous antics and performed “Cheek to Cheek” with Tony Bennett. I had almost forgetten how talented Lady Gaga was. Pharrell sang a new version of “Happy”. Yep, he’s still singing that. He didn’t wear a hat this year though. He wore a short suit that turned white when the camera flashed. Madonna is knocking on 60 but still performing like she is 20. Dressed in a sequin clad matador costume, Madge danced and sang in a sea of men wearing horns that looked more like devils and less like bulls.
Rihanna surprised everyone when she sang a very impressive “Four, Five Seconds” with Paul McCartney. But that’s only after she disappointed them by showing up in an oversized pink puffy… dress? She looked like a sexy shower sponge. Sia hit the stage and still concealed her face. Her mystery is almost as dramatic as her performance of “Chandelier”.
Stevie Wonder and Jamie Fox presented the Grammy for Record of the Year. Stevie is a legend. That’s undeniable. He’s incomparable. He’s brilliant. But, seriously, who is retwising his locs? No one thinks it’s time to just let em go? Okay, sorry, that was out of order.
Probably the most powerful moment of the night was when President Barack Obama appeared via satellite and presented a PSA about domestic violence. Katy Perry sang a heart-felt, “By the Grace of God” while a shadow danced a lyrical dance in the background. As I watched and listened, all I could think about was Chris Brown being in the audience. Considering his highly publicized incident with Rihanna, I was curious to see how he was reacting in the crowd.
Oh and Kanye is still petty. When Prince present the award for Album of the Year and it wasn’t Beyonce, Kanye was about to pull a Kanye and run on stage to interupt Beck, the recient of the Grammy. When Kanye got on stage, he must have had a change of heart because he turned back around and returned to his seat. Honestly though, I have never heard of Beck. My money was on Sam Smith or Ed Sheeran for the win.
And no award show would be complete without Beyonce. Queen Bey sang “Precious Lord, Take My Hand”. Although she looked great, the song felt forced and lacked a sincere connection. Many felt that Ledisi should have sang the song because she sang it in the move, Selma. Beyonce belted out the hymn and introduced Common and John Legend who performed a strong and impactful rendition of their anthem, “Glory”. This was definitely a show highlight.
Overall, the Grammy Awards were a high class and well produced, two and a half hour snooze fest. No, seriously, I dozed off a few times. For a complete list of winners and performers, visit www.grammy.com.
