Tag Archives: Grammys

Kendrick Lamar steals the show at performance-heavy Grammys

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The 58th Annual Grammys were all about the performances last night, and for the most part, they did not disappoint. Among the many beautiful duets, it’s hard to point a finger at which one was best. Early on we got Andra Day and Ellie Goulding belting out “Rise Up” and “Love Me Like You Do” and later breakout artists Tori Kelly and James Bay showed off their magical harmonies with their hit songs “Hollow” and “Let It Go.” Sandwiched in-between there was an impromptu performance shared by a cappella group Pentatonix and the iconic Stevie Wonder. The awards ceremony also showcased a stripped down version of “In the Night” by The Weeknd, the one and only Adele (whose technical issues couldn’t take away from her remarkable rendition of “All I Ask”), Brittany Howard’s pipes with her soulful band Alabama Shakes, and Lady Gaga–assisted by Chic’s guitarist Nile Rodgers–wowed the crowd with a colorful tribute to the late, great David Bowie. The ultimate showstopper, though, was Kendrick Lamar who eloquently rapped his way through his To Pimp A Butterfly hits “The Blacker the Berry” and “Alright.” The theatrically poignant performance started with Kendrick in prison chains and ended with a freestyle that touched on the “modern slavery” plaguing African American communities in our nation today. It truly was one for the ages and I think we can all say in unison that Kendrick Lamar is the voice of hip hop for our generation.

Kendrick is among the big winners of the night; he took home a Grammy for Best Rap Album (To Pimp a Butterfly). Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars claimed Record of the Year with “Uptown Funk,” Taylor Swift’s 1989 was crowned Album of the Year, and Ed Sheeran’s popular ballad “Thinking Out Loud” was named Song of the Year. Meghan Trainor (somehow) ended up beating out James Bay, Sam Hunt, Tori Kelly, and Courtney Barnett for Best New Artist.

Head over to Grammys.com to view the full list of winners.

Sam Smith rules the Grammys

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Sam Smith, the new crooner on the street, expectedly dominated this year’s Grammys with multiple wins and a memorable performance of “Stay with Me” featuring Mary J. Blige. Smith took home four shiny gramophones. He was crowned Best New Artist, the aforementioned soulful, catchy track was named Record of the Year and Song of the Year, and his debut album In The Lonely Hour scored Best Pop Vocal Album. Elsewhere, Beck somehow managed to beat out Smith, Beyonce, Ed Sheeran, and Pharrell Williams and win Album of the Year for his twelfth studio album Morning Phase.

Click here to access the full list of winners.

Sam Smith, Pharrell Williams & Beyoncé lead 2015 Grammy nominations

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Newcomer Sam Smith, Pharrell Williams, and Queen Bey collected the most Grammy nominations (six apiece!) at the nod announcement ceremony this week. Fun fact: Beyoncé is now the most-nominated female artist in history with 53 nods total thus far in her illustrious career. Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me” is up for Record of the Year along with Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” (featuring Charli XCX), Sia’ “Chandelier,” T-Swift’s “Shake It Off,” and Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass.” Smith was also nominated for Album of the Year for his debut effort In The Lonely Hour; in this coveted category he’ll be competing against Beyoncé (Beyoncé), Pharrell (Girl), Beck (Morning Phase), and Ed Sheeran (X). In addition, Smith’s “Stay With Me” hopes to be crowned Song of the Year as is “All About That Bass” (Meghan Trainor), “Chandelier” (Sia), “Shake It Off” (T-Swizzle), and “Take Me To Church” (Hozier). Smith’s luck doesn’t end there; he’s also up for Best New Artist along with Iggy Azalea, Bastille, Brandy Clark, and Haim (woo!). Click here for the full list of nominees.

The 57th Annual Grammy Awards airs Sunday, Feb. 8 on CBS.

Daft Punk, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis & Lorde rule the Grammys

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Daft Punk pretty much swept the Grammys this year, taking home five statues for their latest effort Random Access Memories and its hit single “Get Lucky” featuring Pharrell Williams. The electronic duo nabbed Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, Best Dance/Electronica Album, and Best Engineered Album. Their performance with Nile Rodgers and Stevie Wonder is one for the ages.

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis also had a show-stopping performance involving simultaneous marriages in the aisles. They were awarded five Grammys: Best New Artist, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for “Thrift Shop,” and Best Rap Album for The Heist.

Also gaining much recognition is up-and-comer Lorde whose mega single “Royals” off her debut album Pure Heroine received Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

Click here to view a list of all the winners.

Jay Z leads 2014 Grammy nominations

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Rapper Jay Z scored the most Grammy nominations this year with a grand total of nine. It is worth mentioning, however, that he efforts are not included in any of the big three categories. Record of the Year contenders are Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive,” Lorde’s “Royals,” Bruno Mars’ “Locked out of Heaven,” and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines.” Those artists vying for Album of the Year are Sara Bareilles (The Blessed Unrest), Daft Punk (Random Access Memories), Kendrick Lamar (Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City), Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (The Heist), and Taylor Swift (Red). Bareilles’ “Brave” and Katy Perry’s similar sounding “Roar” are going head-to-head for Song of the Year; the rest of that category includes Pink’s “Just Give Me A Reason,” Bruno Mars’ “Locked out of Heaven,” and Lorde’s “Royals.” Speaking of the rising 15-year-old star, Lorde was snubbed and not included in the Best New Artist section which is occupied by nominees James Blake, Kendrick Lamar, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kacey Musgraves, and Ed Sheeran. Click here for the full list of nominees.

The 56th Annual Grammy Awards airs Sunday, January 26th at 8PM on CBS.

2013 Grammy winners: It’s all over the place!

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There really wasn’t a single solitary winner at this year’s Grammys, which happened to feature some really great live performances. Gotye won the coveted Record of the Year award with his catchy ubiquitous tune “Somebody That I Used To Know”; Gotye and his featured artist Kimbra also won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for this song. Mumford & Sons took home Album of the Year for their sophomore effort Babel; the group also won Best Long Form Music Video for “Big Easy Express.” Fun. also got some recognition as they beat out Frank Ocean to be named Best New Artist and their song “We Are Young” was crowned Song of the Year. An honorable mention goes to Skrillex who managed to scoop up three Grammys; his EP Bangarang was named Best Dance/Electronica Album, the track “Bangarang” won Best Dance Recording, and “Promises (Skrillex and Nero Remix)” won Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical.

To view the full list of winners, click here.

Five separate artists lead the 2013 Grammy nominations

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On December 6 the 2013 Grammy nominations were announced and instead of one artist leading the pack (last year it was Kanye West), a grand total of five separate artists landed six nods each and they are Frank Ocean, Fun., Jay-Z, Mumford & Sons, and Kanye West. Newcomer Frank Ocean and his debut album Channel Orange deservedly owns a giant chunk of the spotlight: Channel Orange is up for Album of the Year (against The Black Keys’ El Camino, Fun.’s Some Nights, Mumford & Sons’ Babel, and Jack White’s Blunderbuss); Ocean’s “Thinkin Bout You” is vying for Record of the Year with “Lonely Boy” (The Black Keys), “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” (Kelly Clarkson), “We Are Young” (Fun. featuring Janelle Monáe), “Somebody That I Used To Know” (Gotye featuring Kimbra), and  “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” (Taylor Swift); he’s also up for Best New Artist with Alabama Shakes, Fun., Hunter Hayes, and The Lumineers; he’s also in the Best Urban Contemporary Album category; and his contribution to Kanye West and Jay-Z’s “No Church in the Wild” grabbed him two more nods. He did not, however, break into Song of the Year; those that did include Ed Sheeran (“The A Team”), Miguel (“Adorn”), Carly Rae Jepsen (“Call Me Maybe”), Kelly Clarkson (“Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”), and Fun. (“We Are Young).

Click here to view the full 2013 Grammy nominees list. The 55th Annual Grammy Awards airs Sunday, February 10 at 8PM on CBS.

2012 Grammy winners: Adele sweeps

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Singer songwriter Adele came out on top at this year’s Grammys with six wins in the following major categories: Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album (21), Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Short Form Music Video (“Rolling in the Deep”), and Best Pop Solo Performance (“Someone Like You”). Other notable winners include Kanye West with four trophies for Best Rap Album (My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy), Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (“All of the Lights”), and Best Rap Performance (“Otis”); Foo Fighters took home five Grammys for Best Rock Album (Wasting Light), Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song (“Walk”), Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance (“White Limo”), and Best Long Form Music Video (“Foo Fighters: Back and Forth”); Lady Antebellum won Best Country Album (Own the Night), Chris Brown’s F.A.M.E. won Best R&B Album, and Bon Iver was crowned Best New Artist and also won Best Alternative Music Album (Bon Iver, Bon Iver).

To view the full list of winners, click here.

Kanye West leads 2012 Grammy nominations

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On December 1 the 2012 Grammy nominations were announced and rapper Kanye West leads the pack with seven nominations. Though this may sound like great news, of the seven nods only one falls in a major category. And that nod is for “All of the Lights”, a cut off West’s 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy which competes against Mumford & Sons’ “The Cave”, Bruno Mars’ “Grenade”, Bon Iver’s “Holocene”, and Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” for Song of the Year. Twisted Fantasy and his latest effort Watch The Throne were snubbed and didn’t find a seat at the Album of the Year category. Instead, West’s albums will be competing against one another for Best Rap Album, along with Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter IV, Lupe Fiasco’s Lasers, and Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday. West also landed nominations in the following categories: Best Rap Performance (with Jay-Z on”Otis”), Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (with Rihanna, Kid Cudi, and Fergie on “All of the Lights”), Best Rap Song (“All of the Lights” & “Otis”), and Best Recording Package (Watch The Throne). Following close behind ‘Ye’s seven nods is Adele, Foo Fighters, and Bruno Mars with six each. Rapper Lil Wayne and newcomer Skrillex landed five a piece.

Click here to view the full 2012 Grammy nominees list. The 54th Grammys airs Sunday, February 12 at 8PM on CBS.

2011 Grammy winners: Lady Antebellum rules the night, Arcade Fire takes home top prize

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Last night’s Grammy Awards proved to be an exciting night filled with some stellar performances and surprise wins. The most memorable performances include the opening ode to Aretha Franklin (performed by Florence Welch, Christina Aguilera, Martina McBride, Yolanda Adams, and Jennifer Hudson), Lady Gaga’s high energy rendition of her new single “Born This Way,” Muse’s flashy “Uprising” performance (what a fantastic song, they deserved the win), the unofficial rap group comprised of Bruno Mars, B.o.B., and Janelle Monae, Mumford and Sons with the Avett Bros., Eminem and newcomer Skylar Grey welcoming back Dr. Dre, Mick Jagger (he’s still got it), and Arcade Fire not one but two performances. In the end, though, my favorite performance of the night has to go to Cee-Lo’s “Forget You” duet with Gwyneth Paltrow and a whole bunch of muppets. The man was dressed as a colorful armored peacock, props! From egg hatching to peacocking, all in all it was an entertaining show to say the least. It also happened to be the highest rated Grammy broadcast since 2004 attracting 26.7 million viewers with a 10.0 adults 18-49 rating.

Now let’s cover the night’s big winners. Lady Antebellum took home five Grammys including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Country Album; “Need You Now” was all over the place. Though Eminem headed into the show with a whopping 10 nominations, Recovery only nabbed him two wins (Best Rap Album and Best Rap Solo Performance for “Not Afraid”). Lady Gaga, John Legend, and Jay-Z each took him three trophies, while Esperanza Spalding pulled off the night’s biggest upset to steal Best New Artist from Justin Bieber, Mumford & Sons, Florence & the Machine, and Drake. Alt. rock band Arcade Fire also surprised many by taking home Album of the Year against big names like Eminem, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and the night’s shiner Lady Antebellum. Their encore performance at the end of the telecast solidified their highly deserved win.

Jump after the break to view more winners, or simply head over to the official Grammy site to see them all. Continue reading 2011 Grammy winners: Lady Antebellum rules the night, Arcade Fire takes home top prize →

2011 Grammy nominations are in

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Today the 2011 Grammy nominations were announced.  Leading the pack in a big way is rapper Eminem with 10 nominations; his comeback album Recovery and hit singles “Love the Way You Lie” and “Not Afraid” were recognized.  Em shares the coveted Album of the Year nomination with Arcade Fire (The Suburbs), Lady Antebellum (Need You Now), Lady Gaga (The Fame Monster), and Katy Perry (Teenage Dream).  Bruno Mars (7 noms) and Jay-Z, Lady Antebellum, and Lady Gaga (6 noms each) and B.o.B and John Legend (5 noms each) follow Eminem for most nominations.  Cee-Lo Green’s “F–k You” did get nominated for Record and Song of the Year and it better win at least one of those categories!  Other notables nods went to Sara Bareilles, Florence & the Machine, Drake, The Roots, and La Roux.  Jump after the break to see a shortened nomination listing (click here to see all nods) and let the speculation begin.  The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards airs live on February 13, 2011 at 8PM on CBS.

[Via MTV] Continue reading 2011 Grammy nominations are in →