It has taken me two days to fully process everything that occurred at the Grammys. I wasn’t shy about my disapproval of the nominations, but of course I was going to watch it anyway and hope for the best. Well, unfortunately, compared to the past few Grammys, this one contained only a few moments I think will be included in future montages. With that being said, let’s critique music’s biggest night!
The Good
The Duos
The theme of the night seemed to be to pair so many artists together, regardless of their music genre, to include as much talent as possible. These pairings were mostly successful. Andra Day and Ellie Goulding, possibly the oddest duo on stage, somehow blended their soft and powerful voices together in stripped down versions of their songs.
John Legend and Demi Lovato
During the Lionel Ritchie tribute, John Legend was obviously a perfect choice due to his soulful voice, but Demi Lovato shocked the audience with her pitch perfect version of “Hello.”
“Song of the Year”
Stevie Wonder graced the stage with Pentatonix to honor Maurice White of Earth, Wind, & Fire. While their voices sounded amazing, the real highlight came when Stevie Wonder read the winner for “Song of the Year.” The winner’s name was written in braille which Mr. Wonder joked about at first but then used the moment to rightfully ask for more accommodations for the disabled. He then announced the winner which was Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud.” The award was arguably the most deserved of the night considering Ed has been nominated for years, but is only now being award for his eclectic work. Better late than never, Academy!
Tori Kelly, James Bay, and Kendrick Lamar
The two standout performances of the night definitely go to Tori Kelly and James Bay’s duet and Kendrick Lamar’s relevant medley of “Alright” and “The Blacker The Berry.” Kelly and Bay sang renditions of their songs “Hollow” and “Let It Go” flawlessly, without trying to over sing each other, and proved they most definitely deserved their nominations. Kendrick Lamar used fluorescent lighting, dancers, and unique cinematography to convey the influential messages of his songs.
Honorable Mentions
Other highlights include Alabama Shakes winning Best Rock Performance and Brittany Howard showing the world that everyone should become a huge fan of the band after her great performance. Lady Gaga was also in her element performing David Bowie’s greatest hits. Taylor Swift, who won “Album of the Year for her chart topping, pop album 1989, gave one of the final speeches of the night. Taylor dedicated her speech to young girls everywhere as she stressed the importance of feminism and reminded them to not let others tear you down. Cough – Kanye – cough.
The Bad
The Opening
Now, lets move on to the bad moments, because there were quite a few. It is practically undeniable that Taylor Swift is a great performer and that I am in awe of her. Don’t hate me, but I didn’t love her performance. It was falsely advertised as a song that would be televised for the first time, but she had sung “Out of the Woods” before on television. Maybe it is because I saw her perform that song in the exact arena, in an almost identical outfit, last year, or because her 2013 Grammy Opening was spectacular, but I expected more.
The Weeknd
Another underwhelming performer was The Weeknd. After being awkwardly introduced by Ariana Grande and her uncomfortable pun, The Weeknd sang “Earned It” and “In the Night.” Although he had never performed the second song on television before, his performance seemed predictable. He even appeared to be over it toward the end of the song.
The Awful Sound
The biggest issue of the night was the sound. Live broadcasts are bound to have snafus, but they shouldn’t have glitches throughout the entire program. When introducing “Best Country Album,” people could be heard backstage rehearsing. Adele suffered the most from these unacceptable microphone problems. During her performance of “All I Ask,” a mic fell on the piano strings which caused a constant banging throughout her entire piece. Hopefully she can sing another song from 25 to make up for it next year.
Speech Timing
One thing I will never understand about award shows it why they do not factor in enough time for the artists to give speeches. The time allotted appeared to be shortened and so many people were rudely cut off while thanking people. Get your acts together, Grammy planners.
Subpar Performances
Additional musicians responsible for lackluster moments include Gwen Stefani, Justin Bieber, and Meghan Trainor. Gwen Stefani premiered a live video for her new song “Make Me Like You” – a great concept, but not a good enough song to live up to her past material. Justin Bieber always runs out of breath when he sings live which is distracting and also made it sound like he was straining his voice. Meghan Trainor managed to win “Best New Artist” which was awkward because she is not a new artist and she clearly did not sing as well as her fellow nominees when she was included in the Lionel Ritchie tribute.
The Strange
Where are the Awards?
For an award show, few awards were actually handed out live. Approximately seven awards were presented while others were given away during a pre-Grammy show. Next year, there should absolutely be more presenters and winner revelations.
T-Swizzle: All Day, Everyday
The camera operators were unmistakably Swifties because the entire night included Taylor’s reactions to the winners whether or not she was even nominated. I love Taylor, but Kendrick Lamar and Ed Sheeran should have received more camera time when they won their awards.
No “Fromation”
Beyoncé was only there to announce an award, which was disappointing because a full, live performance of Formation is necessary. She handed out the last award, “Record of the Year,” even though “Album of the Year” is the most coveted honor.
Unnecessary Performances
Some random performances were thrown into the mix. Luke Bryan was one of the five artists singing Lionel Ritchie songs, and it was just a peculiar choice to say the least. Miguel had a mini tribute to Michael Jackson that was probably included last minute after Rihanna cancelled due to bronchitis. Johnny Depp played guitar with his band Hollywood Vampires, and one of the singers was dressed like he had attacked someone before coming on stage.
Pitbull
Pitbull closed the show, which was confusing because he tried to bring out so many people on stage with so little time. Luckily Sofia Vergara made it in time to show off some sexy dance moves before the credits rolled. Robin Thicke was not so fortunate.
Moment of the Night:
Bruno Mars
The funniest moment of the night occurred when the last award, “Record of the Year,” was handed out. Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars won for “Uptown Funk.” The track dominated airwaves, so I guess Bruno Mars knew he would win because he started shouting and cheering before the winner was read! Never change, Bruno, never change.
**Images from giphy.com and tumblr.com