Were the Grammys on?

there hasn't been any other nonsense

the whole things was 3.5 hours long, there was plenty of nonsense.

mostly performances though, which is as it should be

Saw a minute of it (my kid got a free trial of whatever service to stream it). I kind of liked the battle of the band look of each act standing around watching the other perform, but at times I also got late '70s/early '80s Solid Gold vibes from the whole tacky affair. I find the antiseptic "live" performances in front of no one even more strangely artificial than ever.

fwiw I think Bill Burr is generally kinda funny but yeah there's no joke there and it's kind of pathetic seeing so many Twitter edgelords revel in the fact that he "offended" a bunch of feminists when in reality I don't think a single person is complaining about it

For those who care, a Billboard analysis of how this year’s elimination of the “nomination review committees”—originally put in place back in 1995, in an effort to make nominations more reflective of current trends—may have impacted the 2022 noms.

Decades of crazy selections

And omissions

Abba gets first nomination for their comeback release decades after their prime:

ABBA’s record of the year nomination for “I Still Have Faith in You” is a shocker. For one thing, the group had never previously been nominated for a Grammy in any category, though its masterminds Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus were nominated individually for their work on the Mamma Mia soundtrack (Andersson) and the Chess musical cast album (both of them).

Sounds like ABBA (and others) were late additions (thanks to last-minute expansions).

didn't marilyn manson just get nominated for something this year, post-allegations?

gonna go ahead and continue thinking my thought, which is that the grammys (and all similar organizations) should be burned to the ground and any remains placed into the memory hole.

genuinely reprehensible. fucking deplorable.

That wouldn’t place Kanye in the memory hole (he’s the reason MM is on a list of names). Ironically, if those review committees had still be in place, they potentially could’ve vetoed Donda.

(… although it’s interesting that that last minute expansion of the AOTY nominees from 8 to 10 is what allowed Donda to sneak in)

The Grammys are useful to me in that they provide a roadmap of what buffoonery I can expect of the Oscars about five years ahead of time.

im glad donda is present

Personally, I’m glad Evermore is present (it apparently snuck in along with Donda, I’mma let you finish, when the AOTY category was expanded from 8 to 10 nominees).

I’m sure many folks are tired of Swift getting Grammy nods—but I think Evermore is not only her best album, but one that (in a way) stands apart from the rest of her catalog, and sets a standard for how good a contemporary album in that style can be. It’s a terrific album that deserves a nomination (and if frickin’ Doja Cat can make it in…).

you think Evermore is better than Folklore?

Yeah, for sure. I’ve warmed to Folklore a bit over time, but I only really like a few of the songs. I find it hard to get through.

That “donda” nom for AOTY would irk me if it had any chance of being the winner over Olivia Rodrigo.

I don’t think Olivia will win that one

https://variety.com/2021/music/news/drake-withdraws-2021-grammy-nominations-1235127358/

how soon before this becomes more and more common?

Apparently Marilyn Manson got withdrawn on a technicality or something?

i'm sure they are trying to find whatever reasons to get him off the list

but more and more it's like what's the upside for drake? he's so dominant in the industry, what does a grammy mean to him?

Jon Batiste- big winner

Also, some folks not happy with SOJA (White & Hispanic reggae band from Virginia suburbs of DC) winning best reggae album over Spice, Sean Paul, Jesse Royal, Gramps Morgan, Etana

https://www.revolt.tv/article/2022-04-03/160919/soja-takes-home-best-reggae-album/

Best rock performance
Making a Fire, Foo Fighters.

Best rock album
Medicine at Midnight, Foo Fighters.

Best rock song
Waiting on a War, Foo Fighters.

Will admit I didn't hear the entire album but are people seriously excited by these?

I mean, look at what they were up against. Was there anything to be excited about here?

Best Rock Performance
"Shot in the Dark," AC/DC
"Know You Better (Live from Capitol Studio A)," Black Pumas
"Nothing Compares 2 U," Chris Cornell
"OHMS," Deftones
"Making a Fire," Foo Fighters *WINNER

Best Rock Song
"All My Favorite Songs," Weezer
"The Bandit," Kings of Leon
"Distance," Mammoth WVH
"Find My Way," Paul McCartney
"Waiting on a War," Foo Fighters *WINNER

Best Rock Album
"Power Up", AC/DC
"Capitol Cuts- Live From Studio A," Black Pumas
"No One Sings Like You Anymore, Vol. 1," Chris Cornell
"Medicine at Midnight," Foo Fighters *WINNER
"McCartney III," Paul McCartney

I will say that Making a Fire is one of the least worst Foo Fighters songs I've heard in the past 20 years. Not saying I'd listen to it twice, but it wasn't terrible once.

Who are these dues paying “members of the academy “ that vote for the Grammys. Read elsewhere that there’s 12,000 members.

Will admit I didn't hear the entire album but are people seriously excited by these?

it's the grammys, of course not. this is how it always is

I wasn’t even aware of Jon Batiste until last night. My bad, I guess

Chris Richards in Washington Post in pre-Grammys writeup--

“We Are” wants to be for everyone. Jon Batiste is a familiar face, a crowd-pleaser famous for jazzing up the “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” as well as one of the most prominent pianists in his field. Here, after performing protest concerts against police violence and voter suppression in 2020, he’s siphoned his politics through a big-tent sound that involves the New Orleans jazz he was raised playing, firm gusts of Stevie Wonder-ish melody, lots of hip-hop flash, a little marching band thunder and more. Lyrically and musically, “We Are” delivers its righteous, pro-justice ideals in energetic, frictionless ways. It is power-to-the-people music that the people can listen to at brunch.

Power Up was good!

he is to Stevie what Bruno Mars is to Prince

dude can definitely play though

I do agree that "Making a Fire" is not terrible as these things go btw but "Waiting on a War" has negative value.

Bonnie Raitt "Just Like That" won song of the year. Bonnie was surprised.

Bad Bunny performance of “Despues De La Playa,” with its mambo/merenegue aspects was fun as he had plena percussionists, dancers, and a band too. 50th anniversary of hiphop performance (supposedly curated by Questlove who was on drums) had lots of participants and was also fun but there was no Doug E Fresh, Slick Rick, Nas or Snoop

I am just catching up but I want to send a hopeful tacheon telegram back to the 1980s/90s, because Grammy winners included Bonnie Raitt, Ozzy Osbourne, Willie Nelson, and Aaron Neville.

Collaborations that were nominated or won included Edgar Winter, Nile Rogers, Stewart Copeland, ABBA, Diana Ross, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Lyle Lovett, Mel Brooks, Robert Plant, Elvis Costello, Mary J. Blige, Reba McEntire, Steve Gadd, and Dolly Parton, Malcolm Jamal Warner, and Harold Faltermyer, Neil Young.

Pretty good night for the late 20th century, going by that (highly cherry-picked) list.

My teenage self wouldn't know what a doja cat is, or a bad bunny, but he knew most of those names and wouldn't be surprised to find they were active participants in the music scene of 2023.

Bonnie Raitt "Just Like That" won song of the year. Bonnie was surprised.

― curmudgeon

I didn't watch them, but when I saw a couple clips this morning I thought Harry Styles isn't good enough an actor to fake his astonishment.

Unless I missed it, there wasn't a single cutaway to Beyonce after she lost album of the year again. Brutal

Meaningless Grammy Awards

More here

The Grateful Dead won their first ever Grammy in a competitive category (Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package)!

If you count their 2007 Lifetime Achievement Grammy, they are now tied for Grammys with Wet Leg 🥰

Beyoncé won best dance/electronic music album for RENAISSANCE during the 65th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles Sunday. The prize gave her 32 Grammys, the most of any artist in the awards' history.

https://i.ibb.co/fHNTW6h/FB-IMG-1675706746846.jpg

"unknown blues singer" - great find

Hey, Raitt! I got a news complaint

I remember some believing that AOTY winner Nick of Time benefitted from the other nominees splitting their votes (the Traveling Wilburys album and Tom Petty's Full Moon Fever were favorites, and on top of that you have a Don Henley album that greatly benefitted from some of Petty's Heartbreakers). I guess the same thing happened this time around.

(less similar this time around, but maybe they split the "younger" votes while the middle-aged and above became a rock solid voting bloc)

I just think the 10 nominees thing now means the top winners are more of a crap shoot than ever before

i noticed that gangsta boo didn't make the in memoriam, were there any other notable slights?

According toRS:

it felt particularly egregious to overlook Three 6 Mafia’s Gangsta Boo and Low singer/drummer Mimi Parker — two hugely important, dearly beloved artists who apparently didn’t merit a mention. If that wasn’t bad enough, they also left out Aaron Carter, Procul Harum’s Gary Brooker, Sixties folk singer/songwriter Bobby Neuwirth, singer Lucy Simon, Nazareth frontman Dan McCafferty, and drummer Alan White, who played in both Yes and John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band. The guy played on friggin’ “Imagine.” Like everyone else listed here, he deserved a special Grammy moment.

(I recall Mimi Parker was included in the RRHOF Induction Ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment... so the Grammys apparently didn't even think to at least reference that as a starting point.)

(or, even worse, decided she didn't make the cut)

any clarification yet on what exactly happened with Killer Mike that he got fully arrested? I assume some kind of fight or assault?

i heard assault on security guard, and that it was a big nothing

well i'm sure the trustworthy LAPD wouldn't exaggerate

Shortly after winning three Grammys, the rapper Killer Mike was arrested at the awards show on Sunday in connection with a physical altercation at the Los Angeles arena where the ceremony took place, the police said.

In a post on social media, the Los Angeles Police Department said that Killer Mike, who was born Michael Render, was booked on a misdemeanor battery charge and that he was being released.

Representatives for the rapper did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Recording Academy, which presents the awards, referred questions to the police.

So basically zero reason to do this

winning best rap grammy and then getting taken away in handcuffs is a pretty baller PR move.

Mike, still killer:

Hours after he was released from police custody in Los Angeles after police said he was involved in a physical altercation on Grammys night, the rapper Killer Mike said in a radio interview Monday morning that the arrest was a mere blip in a triumphant night when he won three Grammys.

“We hit a speed bump and then we head back to the party, man,” the rapper told the hosts of the Atlanta-based Big Tigger Morning Show, saying that he had just left his final party in Los Angeles following the awards show.

I ain’t even mad because it’s pretty iconic for a rap artist to get arrested the same day you won 3 grammys.

A few thoughts, realizing I'm late to the party itt:

- Chapman/Combs duet was magnificent, and as a defender of the Combs cover from the beginning, I'm so glad to see the response has been resoundingly positive and seems to be putting the "appropriation" criticism to bed; his obvious reverence for her -- mirroring the audience's -- was just a joy to watch. There is a long tradition of covers in country music, and it's undeniably wonderful that reintroduced this legend to a new generation of (country) music fans.
- Joni performance got me teary eyed and was a close second. When she changed up the lyrics, I melted.
- Miley performance kicked ass, and AFAICT, was done completely live without overdubs. Really thought when "Flowers" won that she'd take the Album award, too. Her speech was hilarious and authentic and decidedly Miley.
- Olivia performance was very good and made me realize just what a beast of a song "Vampire" is to sing. Could anyone else in the AOTY category could carry that tune (maybe Miley?)? Super impressed with her and just wish she would have been recognized for what was a phenomenal year and album.
- Lana also robbed but that was more expected.
- Trevor Noah was truly awful. That the Recording Academy needed to note their host was from South Africa as a way of proving how diverse the show was? Possibly worse.
- Travis Scott's performance was...bizarre. Someone will need to explain the chair smashing to me.
- SZA, Victoria Monet, and Lainey Wilson all gave great speeches. It was very cool to see a trend emerge throughout the night of women in their 30s who've clearly been hustling and working their asses off for more than a decade get rewarded, and rightly so (ahem, Jay Z). In earlier years, these awards go to less interesting artists.
- I am always blown away by Oprah. What a magnetic orator and human being. Was Fantasia lip syncing?
- Taylor's one of my all-time favorite artists, but she's always been pretty cringe at these award ceremonies, and last night was especially bad (album announcement, Lana drag, Celine snub, awkward speeches). Midnights is such a weird record for the Academy to select for this award! Felt to me like an award for her "year" than for the album itself.

- SZA, Victoria Monet, and Lainey Wilson all gave great speeches. It was very cool to see a trend emerge throughout the night of women in their 30s who've clearly been hustling and working their asses off for more than a decade get rewarded, and rightly so (ahem, Jay Z). In earlier years, these awards go to less interesting artists.

otm

Very good post, Indexed… agree with everything (more or less)

The "Vampire" perf had an extra dose of ~theatricality~... which maybe should have felt OTT, but I think it worked well for that setting. I've seen so many live performances of that song by now, and never tire of it... but that was also one of the best, I think (searching Threads for reactions afterward, I saw someone write – "I love this like I love 'The Rocky Horror Show'... which, yeah, I get; even though Rocky's not my particular jam)

I'm not a Jon Batiste fan, but I liked gospel singer Ann Nesby who was part of his performance. She was testifying.

Wasn't until toward the end of "Optimistic" that I noticed Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis appeared to be on stage with them