Grammy Awards

I'm surprised not to have seen any discussion on the Grammy Awards this weekend, which seem by consensus to have been one of the best-run and most artistically successful Grammies in recent memory. For my part, there was definitely a lot of powerful Trouser Press-relevant content: Annie Lennox's cover of Prince-via-Sinéad-O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U," Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs' surprisingly effective "Fast Car" duet, and others. And of course, pretty much everyone was moved by Joni Mitchell singing with her physical capacity much reduced, but with grandeur and gravitas on "Both Sides Now." "What Was I Made For" is a frankly terrific ballad by Billie Eilish and it will certainly sweep the Oscar as well. I don't think Midnights is one of Taylor Swift's best records (I would have been fine with "Antihero" if it'd been song of the year) and Miley's "Flowers" is a nothingburger of a self-empowerment disco anthem, which are a few minor complaints. I thought maybe Lana Del Rey got short shrift but I was on the whole very happy with the broadcast. And Olivia Rodrigo had a great performance but she was shut out.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/07/2024 10:32PM by zwirnm.

No discussion from me because my interest level was below zero if that's even possible. But glad you enjoyed it!

I didn't watch, and to be fair those do sound like genuine highlights, but I also saw it was reported that the show's big finish was the return of Celine Dion and Billy Joel. I'm sure they're good people, but I don't think their work is worth unearthing again, especially under the ridiculously misguided notion that those records were somehow the cultural highlight of the '70s, '80s or '90s.

Céline Dion just presented an award, which Taylor Swift accepted rather gracelessly. Billy Joel's big comeback single was ... heavy-handed and tedious and I'm sure I'm not going to willingly listen to it.

I didn't realize Swift set a record for most AOTY wins. She's made fine country and pop records, and looking at her four wins, two of them were up against lackluster competition so I can't argue against them. But another was over Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly, arguably the best album of the decade, and I don't think her latest is nearly as good as those of fellow nominees Olivia Rodrigo, boygenius or SZA (or even Lana Del Rey). Come to think of it, it's kind of ridiculous how Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean and Beyoncé have never won that award while Swift has four, but I guess that's what the Grammy Awards are known for.

Much like how the Oscars don't televise the "no-name" categories - i.e., those with whom I am more likely to be acquainted - the Grammys don't televise the "no-name" categories, either. I would imagine that's GOT to suck for the nominees who worked their tail off, only to get their award away from the red carpet and possibly not even 'night of.' In both cases (Oscars and Grammys), the acceptance speeches for them are almost always more inspiring - e.g., "this dress costs more than my movie!" How can you not love that? So, yeah - I still watch the Grammys, because I'm not in a town where we've got any good radio so it's easy to miss all the good music that came out a given year (not knocking our LPFM station but they're indie rock-centric.)

With the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Oscars (and really the awards broadcast) has become their main source of funding, so when ratings started to tank, it was the start of the ongoing and controversial tinkering with the broadcast, where they basically throw a lot under the bus in an attempt to bring general viewers back in. Nothing's really worked, and I think it's simply because of cultural changes beyond their control. I'm sure it's the same with the Grammys where the organization gets most of their money from the broadcast, so any consideration or illusion that it's supposed to celebrate the arts is throw under a bus to get ratings. Having said that, I don't have a clear idea on what they do - I know they have educational programs and I'm guessing like the AMPAS they have a preservation wing that may even extend to an archive.