So after watching the Pre-show, we are now watching the live to the east coast telecast of the Grammy Awards... This gives me a good time to recap....
Taylor Swift opened the Grammy Awards and I suppose it was a nice number, I just didn't feel the energy...
Kendrick Lamar won his fifth Grammy of the day, as he received the best Rap Album nod for To Pimp a Butterfly.. I'm feeling proud of him because i was fortunate to be in attendance as Mayor Aja Brown presented him with the Key to the City at City Hall in Compton,CA. gave me an introspect as to his background nd humble begnnings.
The Lionel Richie tribute was pretty cool.. John Legend sang Easy, Hello was absolutely unequivocally royally sung by Demi Lovato, Penny Lover was performed by Luke Bryan, You are by Meghan Trainor and Brick House was brought to us by Tyrese - love Tyrese but it was an unimaginative placment and one must note that Brick House was sung by Walter Orange in the Commodores not Lionel.... The tribute was rounded out by All Night Long.. sung by everyone...
Ariana Grande introduced the Weeknd. And then she felt it necessary to imitate-sing The Weeknd.... It was awful and some in the crowd let her know it... She was booed.
I'm also hearing that Lauryn Hill had rehearsed with the Weeknd and was supposed to sing with him and for some reason she wasn't here...
Also, Rihanna is on our media rundown sheet as scheduled to perform "Kiss it Better" but she didn't.... No word where she is....
My boss Stevie Wonder hooked up with the awesome a capella group @pentatonix to perform an incredible a capella version of "That's the Way of the World" in tribute to Earth Wind and Fire and Maurice White.... it was infinitely dope....
ok. Kendrick Lamar....... that's all I got.
So I'm live blogging from the media room at the 58th Grammy Awards..more to come.....
Showing posts with label Grammy Awards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grammy Awards. Show all posts
Monday, February 15, 2016
Contemplations of the 58th Grammy Awards: - 3:03pm
I'm sitting here in the media room of the 58th Annual Grammy Awards watching the Pre-show.... Most folk don't know that there is a three hour preshow where a huge amount of Grammy categories are awarded including most of the black/urban categories. I really like to hear this because I get such a well rounded exposure to different music. For instance, I didn't know about the jazz vocalisms of Cecile McLorin Salvant. She's won the Grammy for Best Jazz album.. I am really loving her music....
The buzz is all about Kendrick Lamar with 11 nominations... well thus far in the pre-show, Kenrick has won 4 awards..... Pretty impressive.... Best Rap Performance, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar..... In the media room, Thundercat came back to speak to us as one of the singers on Kendrick Lamar's track which won the best rap/sung collaboration "these walls".. I asked him to reflect back on his beginnings and contrast with how he feels right this moment.. He took a deep breath and began to express his gratitude for Locke High School in Watts and Mr. Reggie Andrews... He was so grateful for Mr. Reggie Andrews that he kept saying his name.... So I called Reggie and put them on the phone together... priceless.....
In th gospel categories, Kirk Franklin won for Best Gospel Performance/Song for I just want to be Happy..... During his acceptance, he brought up several of those who he was up against. Because they represented the future of gospel music. In the media room, I asked him what he thought about the future.. He expressed that it was an honor to be among these new young cats and being able to pour into them..... He also reinforced that Gospel Music is like a Mission Field as opposed to being about blowing up.. I felt this to be tremendously profound...especially with how I have been observing the gospel music field lately.
This has been a decent night so far... Live blogging from the 58th Annual Grammy Awards....East coast.. here they come!!!!
The buzz is all about Kendrick Lamar with 11 nominations... well thus far in the pre-show, Kenrick has won 4 awards..... Pretty impressive.... Best Rap Performance, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar..... In the media room, Thundercat came back to speak to us as one of the singers on Kendrick Lamar's track which won the best rap/sung collaboration "these walls".. I asked him to reflect back on his beginnings and contrast with how he feels right this moment.. He took a deep breath and began to express his gratitude for Locke High School in Watts and Mr. Reggie Andrews... He was so grateful for Mr. Reggie Andrews that he kept saying his name.... So I called Reggie and put them on the phone together... priceless.....
In th gospel categories, Kirk Franklin won for Best Gospel Performance/Song for I just want to be Happy..... During his acceptance, he brought up several of those who he was up against. Because they represented the future of gospel music. In the media room, I asked him what he thought about the future.. He expressed that it was an honor to be among these new young cats and being able to pour into them..... He also reinforced that Gospel Music is like a Mission Field as opposed to being about blowing up.. I felt this to be tremendously profound...especially with how I have been observing the gospel music field lately.
This has been a decent night so far... Live blogging from the 58th Annual Grammy Awards....East coast.. here they come!!!!
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Grammy Awards Contemplations
It is interesting that noted music, marketing and advertising impresario Steve Stoute would place a $40,000 full page ad in the New York Times as an open letter to the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS). His letter strongly criticized the organization for perceived missteps in the presentation of the Grammy Awards. In Mr. Stoute's opinion, the Grammy Awards "have clearly lost touch with contemporary popular culture."
Stoute wonders how indie rock band Arcade Fire had the Album of the Year.. He says that Justin Bieber was clearly the year's best new artist as opposed to Esperanza Spalding. He wonders why hip hop artists who captured the imagination and pocketbooks of the American music buying public were snubbed award after award. He points out the contradiction that even as those artists were not winners, the Academy had the foresight to present them as performers - all in the name of generating ratings. You can read the entire Steve Stoute letter here, on the Huffington Post.
While I disagree with some of the examples Mr. Stoute uses in his critique of the Grammy Awards (The Joni Letters is absolutely the bomb!! and deserved the honor that year), I have to agree that the Grammy Awards seem a bit mis-directed. We should note here that the Grammy Awards is not a validation of one's popularity based on sales. It is an award presented solely as a result of votes cast by members of the Academy. It is indeed an award of the artist, songwriter, producer, technician's peers.
It also should be noted that the majority of awards in the rap, hiphop, urban, r&b and gospel categories are presented in a "pre-show" that takes place hours before the international telecast. Additionally, there are other categories that the masses of the people will never see. (Did you know that Tia Carrera won for best Hawaiian Album???) There are more than 100 categories and perhaps ten or less make it to the main telecast.
It is during this "pre-show" that I found the most profound disparities particularly in the traditional gospel category.
In this category, the nominees were Pastor Shirley Ceasar- certainly one of Gospel's Hall of Famers, Marvin Sapp - without a doubt one of gospel's preeminent artists, Karen Clark Sheard - a Grammy Winner from one of gospel's most famous families, Vanessa Bell Armstrong - an renowned gospel artist who made a STRONG comeback, and Patti Griffin, a renowned country/Americana singer/songwriter who happened to make a gospel album. Ms. Griffin walked away with the honor that night.
It is shocking because the traditional gospel category was filled with time honored gospel nominees. And only a few, if any, familiar with the gospel music industry even knew who Patti Griffin was. No Airplay, no Internet buzz, no cognizant place in the gospel arena, yet, she won the Grammy for best Traditional Gospel Album.
So does this demonstrate that the Grammy Awards have lost touch with the cultural identity of the music the Academy purports to support? or is it a sign that the artists and those who labor in these categories do not participate with what the Academy has to offer? Did gospel peers step forth and vote? or did Patti Griffin benefit from her crew getting votes in and then slip away with a win?
Whatever the case, The Grammy Awards should review its process and do a better job of recruiting, retaining and motivating it's electorate because clearly, something is wrong.
For a complete list of Grammy Award nominees and winners, click here.
Stoute wonders how indie rock band Arcade Fire had the Album of the Year.. He says that Justin Bieber was clearly the year's best new artist as opposed to Esperanza Spalding. He wonders why hip hop artists who captured the imagination and pocketbooks of the American music buying public were snubbed award after award. He points out the contradiction that even as those artists were not winners, the Academy had the foresight to present them as performers - all in the name of generating ratings. You can read the entire Steve Stoute letter here, on the Huffington Post.
It also should be noted that the majority of awards in the rap, hiphop, urban, r&b and gospel categories are presented in a "pre-show" that takes place hours before the international telecast. Additionally, there are other categories that the masses of the people will never see. (Did you know that Tia Carrera won for best Hawaiian Album???) There are more than 100 categories and perhaps ten or less make it to the main telecast.
It is during this "pre-show" that I found the most profound disparities particularly in the traditional gospel category.
 |
| Patty Griffin Best Traditional Gospel |
So does this demonstrate that the Grammy Awards have lost touch with the cultural identity of the music the Academy purports to support? or is it a sign that the artists and those who labor in these categories do not participate with what the Academy has to offer? Did gospel peers step forth and vote? or did Patti Griffin benefit from her crew getting votes in and then slip away with a win?
Whatever the case, The Grammy Awards should review its process and do a better job of recruiting, retaining and motivating it's electorate because clearly, something is wrong.
For a complete list of Grammy Award nominees and winners, click here.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Music is Life is Music: Grammy Contemplations
THE 53RD ANNUAL GRAMMY® AWARDS PROMOTIONAL CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS ARTISTS' MUSICAL JOURNEYS
Campaign Creative Features GRAMMY Nominees Arcade Fire, Justin Bieber, Eminem, Cee Lo Green, and Katy Perry
Interactive Web site — MusicIsLifeIsMusic.com — and MusicMapper App Lets Artists and Fans Map and Share Their Musical Journeys Through Social Networking and Geolocation, While Augmented Reality and QR Codes Unlock Exclusive GRAMMY Content
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (January 24, 2011) — The Recording Academy® and TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles unveiled MusicIsLifeIsMusic, a cutting-edge and inventive promotional campaign for the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards®, airing live on CBS Sun., Feb. 13, 201l, 8 – 11:30 p.m. ET/PT. The campaign — which features print, outdoor, digital, TV, an interactive microsite (http://www.musicislifeismusic.com/), and the MusicMapper app — celebrates the songs that have had significance in one's life and the places connected to those songs. Utilizing social networking and geolocation, music fans can then map out their musical journeys and share them with others. This marks the fourth year in a row that TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles and The Recording Academy have partnered on the advertising for the annual GRAMMY Awards telecast.
The MusicIsLifeIsMusic Print and Out of Home creative broke last week (along with wild postings, digital and GRAMMY partner activation) and features GRAMMY nominees Arcade Fire, Justin Bieber, Eminem, Cee Lo Green, and Katy Perry. Earlier this month, 11-time GRAMMY winner and current 10-time nominee Eminem kicked off the first in a series of three GRAMMY promotional TV spots and the second one, with current four-time nominee Katy Perry, just debuted. The commercials are an illustrated interpretation of each artist's life and a journey through their musical and personal milestones. A third TV spot with another GRAMMY winner and current nominee will hit shortly.
"MusicIsLifeIsMusic tells the stories of both nominees and music fans, celebrating the songs that mean the most to us and the places where we connect with them," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer of The Recording Academy. "This year's campaign really emphasizes the social and mobile music experience, and allows music fans to connect with each other in a way like never before. We are grateful to our friends at TBWA\Chiat\Day for their ongoing partnership and collaboration, and to HTC and Rdio for their support on this year's campaign."
Patrick O’Neill, Executive Creative Director at TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles said, "The best parts of our lives are connected to music, and amazing tracks help define those unique moments. The MusicMapper app brings geolocation and music together in a fresh, engaging way. It's like your audio autobiography."
Through musicislifeismusic.com and the MusicMapper application, which was developed in partnership with HTC MobilityNOW (www.htcmobilitynow.com), fans worldwide are able to connect songs with places and their special memories in a way never before possible. The mobile application — available now for Apple's iPhone and Google's Android — lets the user drop a virtual pin to a specific location using Google Maps, select a song through social music service Rdio (http://www.rdio.com/), and tag a note describing how that song and location defined a special moment in his/her/their life. This can then be shared by posting to a Facebook profile or Twitter account. The application also provides a direct link to each song within Rdio where users can add it to their collection or playlists, or sync it to their mobile phones for offline playback. Additionally, Katy Perry appears in a demo video showing users how the MusicMapper application works, and her musical journey on musicislifeismusic.com reveals some of the songs and artists that have had a memorable impact on her life and career, such as: how Queen's "Killer Queen" changed her life; how "Karma Police" reminds her of sneaking into a Radiohead concert at the Santa Barbara Bowl; how she was inspired to write "California Gurls" after hearing "Empire State Of Mind" at a party; and how she has the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds song title "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For" engraved on the inside of her engagement ring.
Not only will users have the opportunity to map their own musical journey, they will be able to explore other MusicMapper tags through an augmented reality view that provides an innovative, real-life glimpse at how "music is life is music." By using a mobile device camera, users can see others' tags, Flickr photos, and Foursquare check-ins associated with a space when they enter said space. Additionally, fans have the ability to unlock exclusive GRAMMY content, based on their physical location as determined by SimpleGeo. Via a QR code reader on all print material and outdoor advertisements, users may access eight full-length GRAMMY performances from past shows including: Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama"; Coldplay's "Viva La Vida"; LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out"; MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This"; Ricky Martin's "La Copa De La Vida"; Radiohead's "15 Step"; Smashing Pumpkins "1979"; and Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With It."
For more information on the 53rd GRAMMY Awards and the "MusicIsLifeIsMusic" campaign, please visit: http://www.grammy.com/ or http://www.musicislifeismusic.com/, and download the MusicMapper app through iTunes (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/musicmapper/id407243114?mt=8) or Android (www.appbrain.com/app/musicmapper/com.xtreme.grammy). For GRAMMY coverage, updates and breaking news, please visit The Recording Academy®'s social networks on Twitter and Facebook: www.twitter.com/thegrammys, www.facebook.com/thegrammys.
About The Recording Academy
Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards — the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music — The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture.
Campaign Creative Features GRAMMY Nominees Arcade Fire, Justin Bieber, Eminem, Cee Lo Green, and Katy Perry
Interactive Web site — MusicIsLifeIsMusic.com — and MusicMapper App Lets Artists and Fans Map and Share Their Musical Journeys Through Social Networking and Geolocation, While Augmented Reality and QR Codes Unlock Exclusive GRAMMY Content
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (January 24, 2011) — The Recording Academy® and TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles unveiled MusicIsLifeIsMusic, a cutting-edge and inventive promotional campaign for the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards®, airing live on CBS Sun., Feb. 13, 201l, 8 – 11:30 p.m. ET/PT. The campaign — which features print, outdoor, digital, TV, an interactive microsite (http://www.musicislifeismusic.com/), and the MusicMapper app — celebrates the songs that have had significance in one's life and the places connected to those songs. Utilizing social networking and geolocation, music fans can then map out their musical journeys and share them with others. This marks the fourth year in a row that TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles and The Recording Academy have partnered on the advertising for the annual GRAMMY Awards telecast.
The MusicIsLifeIsMusic Print and Out of Home creative broke last week (along with wild postings, digital and GRAMMY partner activation) and features GRAMMY nominees Arcade Fire, Justin Bieber, Eminem, Cee Lo Green, and Katy Perry. Earlier this month, 11-time GRAMMY winner and current 10-time nominee Eminem kicked off the first in a series of three GRAMMY promotional TV spots and the second one, with current four-time nominee Katy Perry, just debuted. The commercials are an illustrated interpretation of each artist's life and a journey through their musical and personal milestones. A third TV spot with another GRAMMY winner and current nominee will hit shortly.
"MusicIsLifeIsMusic tells the stories of both nominees and music fans, celebrating the songs that mean the most to us and the places where we connect with them," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer of The Recording Academy. "This year's campaign really emphasizes the social and mobile music experience, and allows music fans to connect with each other in a way like never before. We are grateful to our friends at TBWA\Chiat\Day for their ongoing partnership and collaboration, and to HTC and Rdio for their support on this year's campaign."
Patrick O’Neill, Executive Creative Director at TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles said, "The best parts of our lives are connected to music, and amazing tracks help define those unique moments. The MusicMapper app brings geolocation and music together in a fresh, engaging way. It's like your audio autobiography."
Through musicislifeismusic.com and the MusicMapper application, which was developed in partnership with HTC MobilityNOW (www.htcmobilitynow.com), fans worldwide are able to connect songs with places and their special memories in a way never before possible. The mobile application — available now for Apple's iPhone and Google's Android — lets the user drop a virtual pin to a specific location using Google Maps, select a song through social music service Rdio (http://www.rdio.com/), and tag a note describing how that song and location defined a special moment in his/her/their life. This can then be shared by posting to a Facebook profile or Twitter account. The application also provides a direct link to each song within Rdio where users can add it to their collection or playlists, or sync it to their mobile phones for offline playback. Additionally, Katy Perry appears in a demo video showing users how the MusicMapper application works, and her musical journey on musicislifeismusic.com reveals some of the songs and artists that have had a memorable impact on her life and career, such as: how Queen's "Killer Queen" changed her life; how "Karma Police" reminds her of sneaking into a Radiohead concert at the Santa Barbara Bowl; how she was inspired to write "California Gurls" after hearing "Empire State Of Mind" at a party; and how she has the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds song title "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For" engraved on the inside of her engagement ring.
Not only will users have the opportunity to map their own musical journey, they will be able to explore other MusicMapper tags through an augmented reality view that provides an innovative, real-life glimpse at how "music is life is music." By using a mobile device camera, users can see others' tags, Flickr photos, and Foursquare check-ins associated with a space when they enter said space. Additionally, fans have the ability to unlock exclusive GRAMMY content, based on their physical location as determined by SimpleGeo. Via a QR code reader on all print material and outdoor advertisements, users may access eight full-length GRAMMY performances from past shows including: Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama"; Coldplay's "Viva La Vida"; LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out"; MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This"; Ricky Martin's "La Copa De La Vida"; Radiohead's "15 Step"; Smashing Pumpkins "1979"; and Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With It."
For more information on the 53rd GRAMMY Awards and the "MusicIsLifeIsMusic" campaign, please visit: http://www.grammy.com/ or http://www.musicislifeismusic.com/, and download the MusicMapper app through iTunes (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/musicmapper/id407243114?mt=8) or Android (www.appbrain.com/app/musicmapper/com.xtreme.grammy). For GRAMMY coverage, updates and breaking news, please visit The Recording Academy®'s social networks on Twitter and Facebook: www.twitter.com/thegrammys, www.facebook.com/thegrammys.
About The Recording Academy
Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards — the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music — The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture.
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