Grading The 2014 Grammy Winners
So, back in December, around the time the Grammy nominations were officially announced, I wrote a post titled "Grading The Grammys" where I gave my two cents on what I thought of the nominees, who I thought should win and who I thought actually would win. The music industry equivalent to filling out an NCAA tournament bracket in March, I watched yesterday as my picks were scuttled fairly quickly. Using the mentality that it is better to recognize many rather than few and spread an award rather than smother one artist with them, my choices for Grammy winners was a bit different from what actually went down last night in LA. Read on to see who I thought would win, who actually did and how that makes me feel, here below.
Record of The Year
Nominees:
- "Get Lucky" - Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams
- "Radioactive" - Imagine Dragons
- "Royals" - Lorde
- "Locked Out Of Heaven" - Bruno Mars
- "Blurred Lines" - Robin Thicke Featuring T.I. & Pharrell
Actual Winner: "Get Lucky" - Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams
My Prediction: “Royals” – Lorde
Breakdown: I read somewhere in the lead up to this year's Grammys that the award show could very quickly devolve into a sort of Lifetime Achievement Award for Daft Punk, who did have arguably the song of the year in "Get Lucky" which seemed to be on an endless loop throughout the Summer. "Royals" certainly had its own run, but looking back it was somewhat ridiculous to think she could overtake Daft Punk.
[Video] 2014 Grammy Awards Performance Recap
While the awards may have left some excitement on the table, the performances of the 2014 Grammy Awards certainly did not disappoint. Jay-Z and Beyonce started things off with a rousing performance of their track "Drunk in Love" from her recent release that got the energy going in the Staples Center. Lorde performed her 2013 seminal track "Royals" to a certain degree of minimalism, sporting a darker new look and Pharrell and Daft Punk teamed up with none other than Stevie Wonder for a rendition of "Get Lucky" which went on to win record of the year and Kendrick Lamar linked up with Imagine Dragons for an inspired performance than skipped across songs, opening with "m.A.A.d City" which had at least two in the front row out of their seats. Alas, all the showmanship was thus in vain to the almighty Macklemore & Ryan Louis whose Teflon-esque evening continued into their live performance as they trumped the rest of the field by hosting 33 gay marriages onstage with Madonna. There's a lot you can do to create entertainment, but I have to say there's not much more than that. We rounded up the whole lot of Grammy performances and have them streaming here below for your viewing pleasure. Check them out and stay tuned to RH for continuing Grammy coverage.
Beyonce & Jay Z: "Drunk In Love"
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Imagine Dragons & Kendrick Lamar: "Radioactive"
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Lorde: "Royals"
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Pharrell, Stevie Wonder & Daft Punk:
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Katy Perry & Juicy J: "Dark Horse"
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Taylor Swift: "All Too Well"
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Keith Urban & Gary Clark Jr. "Cop Car"
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Pink: "Try"
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Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Mary Lambert & Madonna 'Same Love"
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Lorde: "No Better"
I guess it's Friday the 13th, but if you're a fan of female singers, it must feel like December 25. On the heels of Beyonce unexpectedly dropping a full-length project late last night via iTunes, New Zealand wunderkind Lorde followed suit, releasing her latest single, "No Better" which continues on the hauntingly down-to-earth and introspective narrative that Lorde hooked listeners with on Pure Heroine. Since sliding out of the U.S. after a national tour that featured a special performance at the Barclay's Center in New York and appearances on what seemed like every late night talk show, Lorde has reportedly been hard at work preparing new music as she quietly enjoys the year-end spoils of her break-out 2013. Check out "No Better" below and pick it up via iTunes.
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Grading the Grammy Nominations
As the music industry has evolved over the past decade into the digital world, things have changed quite a bit. Hard copies are hardly ever bought anymore, nor does anyone seem to buy whole albums at all, as the iTunes Store model has taken over and the industry has increasingly become about what the consumer wants as opposed to what the labels want the listeners to hear. While this has resulted in a sort of musical reawakening, creating a culture where listeners can stream, download or play any track they can think of with the touch of a button, music has expanded at a rapid pace, creating new genres and sub-genres and infinite new off-shoots that don't fit cleanly into any one established genre or sound.
Standing behind this industry, bearing the largest prize of all, is the Grammy Awards. This year, the award show enters its 56th installment and, while a dance music category was finally introduced last year, the judging seems more out of touch than ever, but of course this has been an issue for some time. The Grammys are like Social Security. You don't really care about it much until you're too old to get up from the sofa. Generations have rallied against the award for years. In 1991 Sinead O'Connor simply refused to show up and boycotted the show, despite being nominated in four categories. After winning "Best Hard Rock Performance" in 1998, Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder stood onstage perplexed and, staring at the golden trophy, said into the microphone, "I don't know what this means. I don't think it means anything." It's not news that the team behind the Grammy Awards has been out of touch for some time, but at no time in history has it been so blatantly about the money in an industry that today makes significantly less money than it used to. It's macroeconomics of the current American condition played out with celebrities and gold gramophone statues. Plus, Kanye already spoke out. So, for this latest round of Grammy nominations, I figured I would sift through who was chosen and offer up my own choices for the top prizes in music this year.
[Video] Lorde: "Team"
As far as musicians go today, there are few who are able to make fans of everyone. Miley may be idolized by young teen girls, but can't be endured by most of the rest of society, Justin Bieber may have half the world's population following him on Twitter, but still can't seem to click with certain age groups. Enter: Lorde, the 17-year-old Auckland, New Zealand native who's debut single, "Royals" was an instant worldwide smash hit that catapulted her from her tiny island nation to playing the biggest stages in the world. Too young to buy a cigarette or lottery ticket in the U.S., she is quickly cementing herself as an all-around talent that can't be ignored. Everything from her lyrical content, to her sinewy look and brash singing allow for one of the widest audiences in music today.
Today, Lorde dropped her latest single off her critically-acclaimed debut, Pure Heroine, titled "Team". A testament to the power she is quickly gaining, the premier of the video knocked down Internet giants Youtube and Vevo for a period of time. The video was shot in Red Hook, Brooklyn and features Lorde in a sort of underground post-world environment, split with footage of her recent performance at the Aria Awards in Australia, all shot by director Young Recipient. The video came complete with a message from Lorde on the meaning of the track, read and watch below.
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[Video] Lorde Performs on Letterman
Lorde, the 16-year-old New Zealand native that has taken the world by storm throughout 2013 with her intoxicating voice and well-written lyrics that have vaulted her debut album Heroine to the tops of seemingly every chart there is. Fresh off announcing that The Weeknd will be joining her on her remaining North American tour stops, the young crooner stopped by the David Letterman Late Show to perform a half hour set, an unprecedented set for the setting. As the youngest artist to hold down the No. 1 Billboard chart spot, with an album largely written as a preteen, things are literally just beginning for the young Auckland native. Get used to seeing a lot of Lorde. Everywhere. Video below.
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[Album Stream] Lorde: "Pure Heroine"
16-year-old New Zealand wunderkind Lorde, who's single "Royals" is currently sitting at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, released an exclusive stream of her highly-anticipated debut album Pure Heroine via VH1 yesterday. The girl has certain star power and a voice to match, definitely someone worth taking note of. Check out the stream below here.