I know you are all too damn cool for the 2005 Grammy Awards; but don't you think they deserve a little thread action anyway?

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In fact, there is a MacDonald's on Broadway way down in the Financial District where there is a little stage hanging up in the sky where they have had jazz duos and trios play sometimes.

― Ken L (Ken L), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 17:59 (nineteen years ago) link

Right the fuck on. Selling out is the most senseless concept in the universe. There's two things in this world: Money, and a big stick to stir it up and make more money. And if you deny it, you should get out of the business world, and become a monk. And music is the business world.

― David Allen (David Allen), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:02 (nineteen years ago) link

Wow, I lost my head there.

― David Allen (David Allen), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:25 (nineteen years ago) link

esp since timberlake makes better recs than fishbone ever did!

― live from turkmenistan, Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:27 (nineteen years ago) link

Anthony, I asked this way back in the first 300 posts of this thread but the subject of Usher/Justin didn't come back up again until later: you clearly have a problem with white rappers who may not have as much cred/talent/popularity as many black rappers, so what's your deal with white R&B singers? why do you keep harping on this Usher/Justin thing?

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:45 (nineteen years ago) link

oops, that should be "you clearly DON'T have a problem with white rappers" etc

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 18:46 (nineteen years ago) link

I fully support harping on the Usher/Justin thing because many ILM posters treat Justin like some version of nu-Elvis.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:21 (nineteen years ago) link

It's not a cred thing, Al. I just think the treatment of JT and Usher by the media is noteworthy in its institutional racism and how it hasn't played out commercially.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:26 (nineteen years ago) link

plus what dan said.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:27 (nineteen years ago) link

also what other r&b white singers do I have beef with? I was big-upping Eamon before ANYBODY!

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:28 (nineteen years ago) link

JT is so much better than Usher (who is really bland and sexless to me). I know that contradicts received wisdom, but it's soooo true.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:29 (nineteen years ago) link

I am still wildly amused that ILM posters find a performer whose introduction to the top-40 pop arena was a song where is choreographed schtick involved him ripping off his shirt, dropping trou and rubbing his jailbait abs to the delight of shrieking teens/housewives "sexless".

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:34 (nineteen years ago) link

THIS IS SEX
http://www.ananova.com/images/web/43427.jpg

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:37 (nineteen years ago) link

Awkward geek in baggy clothes running around giving famous women the bad touch is the epitome of sex? Calum gets a bad rap.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:39 (nineteen years ago) link

xpost
I never believed the schtick. Is the "sexless" thing a common critique? It's the first thing that comes to mind for me. Love "You Don't Have to Call" though.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:40 (nineteen years ago) link

The only thing I suppose I will say is that Timberlake's goatee/short hair look just makes me think of Chris Martin of Coldplay.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:46 (nineteen years ago) link

On this thread alone Usher has been called sexless, anonymous, amorphous and charisma-free by several different people.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:52 (nineteen years ago) link

This is never sexy when the look on the dude's face is that of Usher's.

― dan. (dan.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:53 (nineteen years ago) link

(Which is fair enough, Usher is trading as much on a sex appeal image as he is on vocal talent and if you don't buy into that, that's 50% of what he's bringing to the table gone.)

(xpost: I don't think you're supposed to be looking at his face!)

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:54 (nineteen years ago) link

I think a lot of the relative critical reception to JT and Usher has to do with many factors besides race; producers, for instance. Justin hangs out with Pharrell and Timbaland, Usher hangs out with Jermaine Dupri.

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:55 (nineteen years ago) link

But I want the face behind those jailbait abs.

― dan. (dan.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 19:59 (nineteen years ago) link

USHER: I present... MY AMAZING ABS!
AUDIENCE: oh no look at the ninja turtle face flee like the wind
USHER: I can't turn my abs into a heart, people!

(xpost: Al, remind me who produced "U Don't Have To Call" again?)

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:00 (nineteen years ago) link

Bingo!

― dan. (dan.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:02 (nineteen years ago) link

> USHER: I can't turn my abs into a heart, people!

**applause**

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:12 (nineteen years ago) link

milions of people find fabio sexy, too. doesn't mean i have to.

― live from turkmenistan, Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:13 (nineteen years ago) link

nobody's fooled, dude.

btw I used "the media" and not "critics" when I mentioned institutional racism up there. I'm talking about the whole damn thing. God knows US magazine doesn't care who's working with the neptunes.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:14 (nineteen years ago) link

I love how there is always this collective head scratching as to why less people watch the grammies every year and blame it on something like "Desparate Housewives".

WIVES' BEAT THE BANDS
Tue Feb 15, 4:24 AM ET

THE Grammy awards last Sunday drew its lowest total viewership since Tony Bennett (news) won for best album a decade ago.

The telecast drew 18.83 million viewers, according to preliminary figures released yesterday. That was the lowest figure in a decade and the second-lowest in the history of the Grammys (news - web sites) TV show.

The 1995 Grammys were a low-water mark for the music awards because it was a year without a strong contemporary musician. Instead the awards were dominated by old-timers like Bennett, Bonnie Raitt (news) and Eric Clapton (news).

Among the key 18- to 49-year-old age group, the audience was off by nearly one-third.

Sunday's show was marked by a batch of awards for the late Ray Charles, who posthumously won eight categories in all, including album of the year and record of the year.

The lack of a single, living artist with a large following dominating the awards — as, for instance, Alicia Keys has in the past — may be to blame. So was the competition from the runaway hit "Desperate Housewives."

The awards won the 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. prime-time hours relatively easily among total viewers.

But at 9 p.m., "Desperate Housewives" outdrew the Grammys by nearly 3 million viewers.

— Post wire services

― darin (darin), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:27 (nineteen years ago) link

milions of people find fabio sexy, too. doesn't mean i have to.

Haha! I'll take "Spectacularly Missing The Point" for $600, Alex.

The specifics of how one particular person doesn't find Celebrity X sexy has absolutely no bearing on how (random large number Y) people find Celebrity X sexy.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:32 (nineteen years ago) link

EMBRACE YOUR MINORTYNESS OF YOUR MINORITY OPINION

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:33 (nineteen years ago) link

http://www.n-chicken.net/tomfoolery/grimace/donatello.gif

HOTTT

― Leon the Fatboy (Ex Leon), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:39 (nineteen years ago) link

"The specifics of how one particular person doesn't find Celebrity X sexy has absolutely no bearing on how (random large number Y) people find Celebrity X sexy."

so why are you surprised that people find usher sexless, then, even though lots of other people don't? how does one contradict the other?

― live from turkmenistan, Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:46 (nineteen years ago) link

Could this be the most wrongheaded grammy wrap-up of all time? I think it could!

― J (Jay), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:53 (nineteen years ago) link

I don't find Usher particularly sexy myself, but I really don't see how Usher and JT vary in this regard aside from pigment and poise. The relation between those two is a lot less than Usher and Fabio.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:55 (nineteen years ago) link

a lot closer, I mean

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 20:56 (nineteen years ago) link

I don't think JT is that sexy either. He looks kind of like he has the mange.

― Leon the Fatboy (Ex Leon), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:00 (nineteen years ago) link

and Usher's falsetto breaks in "Confessions, pt. 2" and "Burn" actually feel deft and emotionally gripping rather than awkward battiness like in "Like I Love You" (though frankly I'm not surprised that some critics prefer the batty), so when I say "poise" I'm referring to both vocally and physically.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:02 (nineteen years ago) link

And I enjoy the battiness too. I've sung "Like I Love You" at karaoke cuz its fun as hell and a friend rapped the Clipse part as if it was Jad Fair on a PCP jag.

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:04 (nineteen years ago) link

I just like the JT singles more than any Usher track - and I'm sure they'd be something different, maybe even better, if Usher sang them - since people keep saying his voice is technically superior.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:13 (nineteen years ago) link

(xpost: Al, remind me who produced "U Don't Have To Call" again?)

-- The Ghost of Dan Perry (djperr...), February 15th, 2005.

doing one single with the Neptunes =/= doing half an album with the Neptunes and having Pharrell appear with you in a bunch of videos. at least as far as what's going to buy you more critical goodwill.

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:31 (nineteen years ago) link

Clearly no one here has seen the Behind the Music where there's this great "OH NO HOW WILL WE MARKET USHER" moment. They've been sexing up his image as much as possible for years. Maybe that's why it seems so plastic and creepy to me.

I am also very disappointed that the Grammys had very little Lil Jon. Did they tie him down or something?

― mike h. (mike h.), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:34 (nineteen years ago) link

I was also wondering where he was.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:36 (nineteen years ago) link

"a friend rapped the Clipse part as if it was Jad Fair on a PCP jag"

you're getting too critico-poetic here, anthony.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:41 (nineteen years ago) link

I tried to tell my wife that Usher was funny-looking. She shot me the ice grill and said "Dude, he's sexy." My daughter thinks he's cute. Outvoted by his target audience!

― The Obligatory Sourpuss (Begs2Differ), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:41 (nineteen years ago) link

I just coined the term "critico-poetic," by the way.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:42 (nineteen years ago) link

it's a good term, tim, but I can TOTALLY see/hear that karaoke performance in my mind.

― The Obligatory Sourpuss (Begs2Differ), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 21:44 (nineteen years ago) link

so why are you surprised that people find usher sexless, then, even though lots of other people don't? how does one contradict the other?

Because people use their personal opinion ("I don't find Usher sexy") to contradict observed data (when Usher drops trou and rubs himself, many people in the audience react in a manner that could best be described as an en masse shout of "YUM YUM GIMME SOME"). My position is not the one which is attempting to contradict observed results.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 22:09 (nineteen years ago) link

I'm not saying that Usher doesn't do "Sexy" things, but I am saying that I don't think he really means it. I find it odd, and some others find it creepy. I mean, it's like Debbie Gibson in Playboy. I'm sure a lot of people will pleasure themselves to it, but that doesn't mean it's not odd/creepy.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 22:16 (nineteen years ago) link

INVOKE THE CREEPY
http://www.celebrites-selection.com/photos_copper/albums/wpw-51/Usher%20Raymond%20photo%2010.jpg

― miccio (miccio), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 22:24 (nineteen years ago) link

haha spence he totally means it, dude's a dog

― j blount (papa la bas), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 22:24 (nineteen years ago) link

Given that I've agreed with the assessment that Usher looks like a turtle, I would hope people would realize that I don't think he's the pinnacle of Mandingodom, either.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 15 February 2005 22:25 (nineteen years ago) link

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