Looking Back At A Strangely Satisfactory Grammys
One week ago marked the 61st Grammy Awards, and if you, like me, tend to watch the Grammys, and if you, like me, love good music, then it's entirely probable that you, like me, were anticipating a massive letdown at the ceremonies.
I don't think I'm being overly dramatic when I say that the Grammys tend to end in frustration and disappointment for many viewers. A show that's billed itself as "music's biggest night" has developed, in recent years, the tendency to reward just that: the biggest music. Perhaps we can't necessarily blame the Grammys for false advertising, but it would seem that the show is posturing itself as Music's answer to the Oscars, and as such, it would be nice to see the Florence + The Machines and Kendrick Lamars and Lordes of the World recognized more than the Taylor Swifts and Drakes and Ed Sheerans.
All that being said, imagine my surprise when the Grammys last week actually rendered me....dare I say...happy? I'm so unfamiliar with this sensation, where I don't click the TV off in anger at the end of the show, and lay awake foaming at the mouth about how Beyoncé's masterpiece lost Album of the Year to freaking Beck.
But it's true, this was the most satisfying Grammy Awards that I can remember; certainly in the 7 years I have been consistently watching them. What made these different? Let us describe the ways.
The Performances
To be fair, the live performances are probably the most consistent highlight of Grammys. Kendrick Lamar most notably, has full-on stopped the show in each of his last couple Grammy sets, but he's not the only one. It's the one thing that sets this show above all other awards shows: it's like getting to watch a music festival for free. This year, though, the performances were especially good. In past years for every Lamar, there was a Shaggy and Sting. For every Bruno Mars-heavy Prince tribute, there was a Lukas Graham. For every Lady Gaga, there was an off-key Adele. This year did not see such lows, with every performance ranging from pretty good to downright great. It came from unexpected sources, too: Camilla Cabello, far from the biggest pop name of the night, opened with a rousing rendition of her hit "Havana," H.E.R., a newcomer to the music scene stunned everyone with her soulful performance of "Hard Place," and probably the performance of the night came from H.E.R.'s antithesis, the relative music vet of the show, Brandi Carlile:
Alicia Keys
With all due respect to LL Cool J and James Corden, who I like a lot, the Grammys were long in need of a host like Keys. Alicia is still one of the most talented musicians in the sphere, and has a universally calming personality that renders her impossible not to love. Her comedic timing was a little rusty to start off the night, but she settled into her groove as mistress of ceremonies, particularly when she welcomed viewers into 'Club Keys,' wherein she played a double piano and performed an impressive medley of hit tunes from the 60s into 2018. It was an enthralling feat that unfortunately is very difficult to find video of. I guess you had to be there.
Hip-Hop and Respect
Another trademark characteristic of the Grammys, as predictable as good performances, is Rap and Hip-Hop getting disrespected on the main stage. This was yet another trend that got bucked in 2019. Sure, Rap missed out on Album of the Year in favor of a white artist yet again, but did we really want the first Rap Album of the Year since 2004 going to Drake or --gulp -- Post Malone anyway?? It was still a great night for the genre as a whole. The 2.25 Rap performances (Cardi B, Travis Scott and the 20 seconds of Janelle Monáe rapping) were among the best, most lively performances of the evening. Cardi won Best Rap Album, becoming the first solo female artist to ever do so, and it was a delightful coronation. And perhaps most notably, Childish Gambino's brilliant, groundshaking "This Is America" became the first Rap track to win Song of the Year, and doubled that up with a Record of the Year victory as well.
Deserving Major Award Winners
Another thing that is sure as the snow in February is Grammy major award winners leaving a bad taste in my mouth. No matter how thrilling the performances are, or how happy I am with the genre winners, the general categories seem to annually end the night on a disappointing note. I am happy to report quite the opposite transpired last week. The aforementioned "This Is America" double-dip was a tremendous development and an unforeseen surprise. The Grammy for Best New Artist did continue the trend of awarding the biggest name of the bunch, but while it would have been nice to see H.E.R. bring it h.o.m.e., it's hard to find fault with Dua Lipa, who has a great story and is one of the more intriguing pop voices out there. And of course, there was the premier prize, Album of the Year, which has a recent history of disappointing selections. To be fair, thanks to a stellar nominating job this year, it would have been hard to screw this up. The Grammys had two terrific options in Kacey Musgraves' and Janelle Monáe's albums, two great options in Black Panther and H.E.R., and two good-and-exciting options in Brandi Carlile and Cardi B. Still, the audible breath of relief and excitement when Musgraves' Golden Hour was announced as the winner felt so much better than my remote-smashing of years past. The Folk/Country album was an extremely deserving winner, one of the most airtight records and pleasant listening experiences of 2018.
Women Dominate the Night
In the end, though, last week was all about women. How could it not be, when the show kicked off with Alicia Keys flanked by Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and freaking Michelle Obama?! Those 5 got proceedings underway with energy and inspiration, and set the tone for a night whose major awards and performances were dominated by women. A year after outgoing Recording Academy president Neil Portnow infamously asserted that "women needed to step up" to see more representation amidst the award nominees and winners-- a quip that Dua Lipa deliciously fired back in her acceptance speech --the 61st Grammys were a celebration and a triumph of women of all colors, backgrounds, and musical genres.
