P!nk
Oh, one of my favorite ladies of music was both a nominee and a performer last night, but I was just a little...a wee bit, disappointed, in the performance. I had thought she was only going to be doing the Grammy nominated Just Give Me a Reason, but in a nicely surprising twist she did a mini, two-song set ending with that duet and beginning with Try.
Being given the opportunity to do two songs shows just how highly regarded P!nk has become, but in the years that I've followed her, I guess I was waiting for something a little newer and fresher. Not that her performance wasn't great, but it was a little too reminiscent of her famed appearance in the 2010 show, especially the acrobatics during Try. She sang the opener perched high on a trapeze above the stage, showing off her physical prowess, grace and vocal range all at the same time before hitting the actual stage to replicate the beautifully choreographed dance sequence from the video.
Nate Ruess then came onto the scene to begin his part of the duet as P!nk went off stage to change her costume. This killed it a little for me, as the song is so beautifully written from beginning to end that missing that first verse left a void in the performance. All in all, I would guess that a lot of people loved the performance, and it was good, but being the avid P!nk fan that I am, perhaps I'm being a little too critical. Anyway, check out P!nk's performance.
Macklemore, Lewis, Mary Lambert, and Madonna
One of the moments I looked forward to the most was Madonna's appearance with Macklemore and Lewis, who won four Grammy's (Best New Artist, Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for Thrift Shop.) The duo had performed the song at the MTV Awards in August, with Jennifer Hudson joining Lambert on vocals to the chorus, and I assumed that's what we were going to get with Madge last night, but oh no, we got something bigger...much bigger.
Dark Horse
By far my favorite performance of the evening was Katy Perry's Dark Horse. Any of you who follow me know that I've loved, loved, loved this song since the very first time I heard it, and judging from its success, so have many other fans. The unintentional smash was given a nicely choreographed (way better than her appearance under the Brooklyn Bridge, also at the MTV Awards, doing Roar) number that was very dark, very Covenish. Check this one out right here.
Nate Ruess then came onto the scene to begin his part of the duet as P!nk went off stage to change her costume. This killed it a little for me, as the song is so beautifully written from beginning to end that missing that first verse left a void in the performance. All in all, I would guess that a lot of people loved the performance, and it was good, but being the avid P!nk fan that I am, perhaps I'm being a little too critical. Anyway, check out P!nk's performance.
Macklemore, Lewis, Mary Lambert, and Madonna
One of the moments I looked forward to the most was Madonna's appearance with Macklemore and Lewis, who won four Grammy's (Best New Artist, Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for Thrift Shop.) The duo had performed the song at the MTV Awards in August, with Jennifer Hudson joining Lambert on vocals to the chorus, and I assumed that's what we were going to get with Madge last night, but oh no, we got something bigger...much bigger.
First of all, I was NOT crazy about Madonna's look. It was a little ghetto, a little pimp, a little like her character from the Music video, only not nearly as good. She carried a cane which, I dunno, was a little strange. She came in towards the end of the performance and started out singing a much underrated universal love song, Open Your Heart, to the music of Same Love, which I did enjoy. That's just about when all of the craziness happened.
Queen Latifah, who had introduced the segment, announced that 33 couples, both gay and straight, would be joining hands in holy matrimony right then and there. As you can imagine, the scene was pandemonium and a spectacle, and the stunt also received lots of press, from both sides of the aisle. Overall, I didn't enjoy the bulk of it, maybe again because I'm such a Madonna devotee and I can be overtly critical when it comes to her. Check it out on Billboard if you haven't seen it already and decide for yourself.
Dark Horse
By far my favorite performance of the evening was Katy Perry's Dark Horse. Any of you who follow me know that I've loved, loved, loved this song since the very first time I heard it, and judging from its success, so have many other fans. The unintentional smash was given a nicely choreographed (way better than her appearance under the Brooklyn Bridge, also at the MTV Awards, doing Roar) number that was very dark, very Covenish. Check this one out right here.
Of course there were plenty of other performances that people may have enjoyed. Beyonce and Jay Z opened up the show with a rousingly sexual performance of Drunk In Love and big winner Lorde delivered an intense version of her Grammy-winning Royals. If other performances of the night, such as Nine Inch Nails or Ringo Starr or Paul McCartney are more your style, I highly suggest you check out Billboards Grammy page for a whole lot of coverage.
