Live coverage of the 2012 Grammy awards as the death of Whitney Houston looms over the 54th ceremony in Los Angeles. Live blogging: Brian Braiker and Joshua Alston
Joshua – Looks like that's it, Brian! Good year for Adele, eh?
Brian – Indeed. One interesting fact that is a fairly profound reflection of the state of this industry. Novelist and fellow Brooklynite Darin Strauss tweets this reminder:
Whitney's 3rd album was considered a flop because it only sold 4mil in US during its first year --slightly more than Adele's 21 did.
— Darinstrauss (@Darinstrauss) February 13, 2012
in the end, the love Adele took tonight is potentially equal to the iTunes download revenue she will make in the coming weeks. Minus a few pirated downloads, of course.
It was also amazing that two artists got stage time more than once: Foo Fighters and Chris Brown, which is all you need to know to understand that the Grammys is out of touch with what most people want to see. Advertising guru and hip hop illuminati Steve Stoute wrote an open letter to NARAS last year, and it doesn't appear much has changed:
Over the course of my 20-year history as an executive in the music business and as the owner of a firm that specializes in in-culture advertising, I have come to the conclusion that the Grammy Awards have clearly lost touch with contemporary popular culture. My being a music fan has left me with an even greater and deeper sense of dismay – so much so that I feel compelled to write this letter. Where I think that the Grammys fail stems from two key sources: (1) over-zealousness to produce a popular show that is at odds with its own system of voting and (2) fundamental disrespect of cultural shifts as being viable and artistic.
Thanks for reading, and goodniight from all of us.
Brian– Paul McCartney: LL Cool J's homie. And, Joshua, here's an LL Cool J chaser for his admittedly anodyne performance tonight: his epic performance of Can't Live Without My Radio in Krush Groove.
I honestly can do without these All Star On Stage Medley Flash Mobs. The only thing that would redeem this would be if Joe Walsh and Springsteen started making out.
Joshua – L.L. Cool J has been totally forgettable as this year's host. He did his job, read the prompter, introduced folks, he was telegenic as always. But there was a complete lack of personality. What did he do that no one else could have?
AWARDS! Paul Epworth wins Producer of the Year, while Adele wins Album of the Year for "21."
Brian – Poor Gaga, no performance tonight (Minaj out-Gaga'd her anyway) and no award. She will retire to her meat cave later and make her dwarf-slaves serenade her to sleep with extra Careless Whisper saxophone solos tonight.
Joshua – Adele's acceptance speech for album of the year is incredibly humble and endearing. Adele is doing the "who me?" thing that Taylor Swift is so bad at, but she's doing it well. The expectations for her next album will be stratospheric.
AWARD! Adele wins for record of the year for "Rolling in the Deep."
Brian – Adele just thanked "radio programmers" for playing her track. This is 2012, right?
Joshua – Hey, give her a break Brian, you start to run out of people to thank when you win every award ever.
Performance: Nicky Minaj
Brian – Nicki flips Busta's classic Scenario verse and slips into I Feel Pretty and then tosses to a pre-filmed spoof on the Exorcist. And now here's Roman Holiday, a live setpiece for her new single. Look, she's fierce. She gets a lifetime pass for her verse on Kanye's Monster. This is a pop star I can get behind. (Lana del Rey should take notes on how to do artifice with conviction.) Here's what Minaj told AOL's Boombox about the possibility of winning a Grammy:
At the end of the day, everyone wants to be recognized and everyone wants to at least feel like you recognize that this is hard work. People think that they can become an artist overnight. People think that a cute face or a nice car makes them a rapper. But a musician is so much more than that. But in terms of me and my career, the Grammys is everything. It's the only thing to a music artist. It's what you live for. This is what you work for.
Joshua – Can I totally opt-out of the National Dialogue about the Nicki Minaj performance? I just want to opt-out of it. I'm not going near the watercooler all day tomorrow.
Brian – I think a performance featuring Chris Brown, the Foo Fighters, Deadmau5, Lil Wayne and David Guetta was slated to be a set piece in Dante's sequel to Inferno, which he died before finishing: Inferno 2, Electro Boogaloo.
Just checking: dubstep is what Mitt Romney was talking about when he said "the worst of what Europe has become" right?
Joshua – Um, yeah, I gotta say that was pretty terrible. And since when do people get second performances? Chris Brown and Foo Fighters both got two times at bat. What's Bruno Mars gotta do?
The Whitney Houston Tribute – Jennifer Hudson
Joshua – That was a really lovely tribute to Whitney by Jennifer Hudson, but I wish they had done a little something more. "I Will Always Love You" is a great song, and in many ways her signature song, and also a song that worked as a tribute. But I wish they had figured out a way to represent more of her career, perhaps in a medley of some kind. Obviously the producers didn't have a huge amount of time to put something together, but this was a little too quiet for me, a little too elegiac. I'd have liked something slightly more celebratory.
Janine – Beautiful. Something in my eye.
AWARD! The best new artist Grammy goes to Bon Iver.
Brian – Ahh, yes. Bon Iver. Best "new" artist. I remember when his breakthrough record came out … in 2008. "I am a little bit uncomfortable up here. But with that discomfort I have a sense of gratitude," he said, accepting his award. Let's compare that to what he said he would say in December if he won the Grammy: "
Everyone should go home, this is ridiculous. You should not be doing this. We should not be gathering in a big room and looking at each other and pretending that this is important.' That's what I would say.
Joshua – Best new artist is invariably controversial. This time last year, Esperanza Spalding was upsetting a nation of hormonal tweens by besting Justin Bieber in the category. Nicki Minaj was the front runner based on stardom and name recognition, but the Bon Iver selection isn't terribly surprising. After a history of giving this award to one-hit wonder types, NARAS voters lean towards more serious musicians rather than pop stars.
Rebecca – My old math teacher Mr Cooper walks away with best new artist! I suppose, at an event which has featured Tony Bennett, Glen Campbell and Paul McCartney, winning a new artist gong for your massive second album is not so extraordinary. The humble speech is having quite a year.
Janine – For some viewers, the Grammys can be a gruelling marathon. Seth Rogan has a suggestion.
I wish Jay-Z and Beyonce would get on stage and present their baby to the world like in the Lion King.
— Seth Rogen (@Seth__Rogen) February 13, 2012
Brian – And now the academy is taunting us with a list all the other Lifetime Achievement nominees that didn't get to perform tonight. Oh what I'd give to see the Allman Brothers, backed by the Memphis Horns and joined by Diana Ross singing Jobim.
Brian – I reckon that's the closest we're going to get to an Amy Winehouse tribute tonight. (Not to diminish her moment – Adele deserved it.) NOW BRING ME SOME GLEN CAMPBELL AND SOME BACON-INFUSED BOURBON. I cannot wait for this.
And the Rhinestone Cowboy looks great in his Nudie jacket and sounds good! This is a nice, touching moment. I wish there were about 80% fewer orchestras on stage with him.
Janine – Glenn Campbell is not lip synching. Macca is singing along in the audience. Love that.
Performance: Adele
Janine – Gwyneth Paltrow takes time out from her 43rd cleanse of the year to introduce Adele. Simply standing on the stage in front of her band, she demonstrates that her voice is back with a powerful rendition of Rolling in the Deep.
Brian – I hope Adele's surgeon gets a Grammy.
Janine – Here's Adele's doctor on how he saved her voice.
Joshua – This was a colossal moment for her. She looked fantastic, and while she wobbled a little in the beginning, she sounded really strong. The crowd flipped out. It was practically a coronation.
AWARD! Lady Antebellum picks up the Grammy for Best Country Album for "Own the Night."
Rebecca – Lady Antebellum make me feel more English than I've ever felt in my life. Is it stadium-country? Garth Brooks-style? Do they wear headsets under their cowboy hats? I like Taylor Swift, but she's probably got enough awards for one night. Although if Taylor Swift had done a Kanye on Lady Antebellum I would have liked her even more.
Performance: Katy Perry
Brian: Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj need to team up and star as anime super heroines in the Speed Racer sequel. They'd be great Miyazaki characters.
Joshua: Katy Perry's new Part of Me has officially replaced Kelly Clarkson's Since You Been Gone as the Official pop-rock breakup kiss-off song. That performance was brilliant, both as awards-show pyrotechnics and narrative pop stardom.
Brian – Relevant: Stand-up comic and Twitter god Rob Delaney analyzes the lyrics to Katy Perry's TGIF for Vice.
I heard your song "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" recently and I felt compelled to write you and share my analysis. Lyrically, it's basically just an attempt to piece together a crazy night of drinking on the morning after. But let's take a closer look!
AWARD! Adele and her co-writer Paul Epworth win the Grammy for song of the year for "Rolling in the Deep."
Joshua – This is shaping up to be a huge night for Adele. If she gets the post-Grammy sales bump that artists typically do, "21" is going to rack up even more sales. The comparisons to Carole King's "Tapestry" are starting to sound more and more apt.
Performance: Taylor Swift
Brian – Taylor Swift strumms her banjo, which looks like it weighs about as much as her, as if it was a guitar. Dressed like a Dust Bowl era Steinbeck character, winking like a Teen Vogue cover girl. Someone needs to give that girl a whiskey and a clawhammer lesson. Song title: Mean. Is she singing to Kanye?
Joshua – This Taylor Swift performance is really bizarre. You nailed it Brian. I can't help but think of A Mighty Wind. I'm still trying to spot Jane Lynch and Parker Posey.
AWARD! The Grammy for best R&B album goes to Chris Brown for F.A.M.E.
Rebecca – Oh good. Here's Chris Brown, walking away with best R&B album. Perhaps he'll get another standing ovation. I like to think that the first one was less for his performance, more for the fact that he managed not to hit a woman on his way here this evening.
Joshua–Tonight does seem, perhaps, the beginning of a "redemption of Chris Brown" narrative. NARAS voters have apparently gotten past the domestic abuse incident, even if a lot of people will never forgive him. His brief speech was pretty shrewd.
Brian – Stevie Wonder is a national treasure. "I just want to say to Whitney up in heaven. We all love you Whitney Houston." And then he plays the melody from Love Me Do on harmonica to introduce Paul McCartney. There is nobody cooler on earth than Steveland Hardaway Judkins. Who else on earth could successfully rock a braided mullet with male pattern baldness? And who else on earth could introduce Sir Paul? Macca looking dapper in the tux he wore to his Bar Mitzvah. And is that Joe Walsh on guitar, sporting a distinctive GE Smith vibe. I guess Funk 49 royalties only get you so far.
Rebecca – Where are all the actual awards at these Grammy "Awards", you may be wondering? Most of them were doled out this afternoon at a pre-ceremony ceremony, to little-known underdogs like Foo Fighters, Adele, Kanye West and Taylor Swift. Less likely victors were bro-step's leading light Skrillex, who picked up three for his trademark wub-wub noise assault, and classy country-folk duo Civil Wars, who walked away with two. There were roughly 2893 other winners, though none of these categories explain why Mary Mary were being interviewed on the red carpet, sandwiched in between Cut Copy and Ministry.
Performance – Foster the People and The Beach Boys
Brian: I lost internet connection for a bit there. I suspect TimeWarner Cable was too outraged by the Foster the People-Beach Boys duet to let me watch it.
Anyway, here's is a lovely thing that Ben Ratliff of the New York Times wrote last week about the Beach Boys, who are enjoying their 50th anniversary this year. They are charter members of a club that includes the Rolling Stones, El Gran Combo and the Chieftans.
Janine – All becomes clear: they put the crap Beach Boys covers in so that the actual Beach Boys would look better in comparison.
AWARD! Foo Fighters win the Grammy for best rock performance for Walk.
Rebecca – In the battle of the beards, Dave Grohl has emerged triumphant. Neat, groomed and manly. Wait, this wasn't the best facial hair category category? Are you sure? This Grammy seems to have fallen to Foo Fighters by default, since they were the only rock band doing rock music in the running for best rock performance. I wonder if Chris Martin could grow a beard like that?
Performance – Rihanna and Coldplay
Joshua: This Coldplay-assisted version of "We Found Love" is really working for Rihanna. The visuals are a little retro though. And I'm almost certain I mean retro in the negative way.
Brian: I'm sorry, I just fell asleep. I'll get back to live blogging as soon as Chris Martin's voice stops changing. These are hard times in a young man's life and I commend his bravery for performing in public.
Janine: This will be playing over a montage of X Factor losers shortly.
Related: We're getting a Chipotle ad here in New York which features a a cover by Willie Nelson of Coldplay's The Scientist, reconfigured as a hymn to traditional agricultural methods. It is my favourite thing about the Grammys so far and I am downloading it now.
Performance – Foo Fighters
Brian – Everyone noticed that Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters is wearing a Slayer t-shirt, right? Which makes perfect sense given the obvious influence Slayer has had on this song. He's 43, though, and I can only hope to look this good when I'm 43. In mumblenumber years. This song, Learning to Walk, is really weak though. Remember when Grohl was in Nirvana?
AWARD! Jay-Z and Kanye West win the Grammy for best rap performance for Otis.
Joshua – Jay and Kanye aren't there to pick up their award. Maybe they're in Paris getting f'd up?
Rebecca – No denying that Jay-Z and Kanye's Otis was the standout rap performance among a lacklustre shortlist, though it's a shame Nicki Minaj didn't win, if only because it would have been nice to see the Pope spitting a few bars.
Brian – Yo Kanye, I'm really happy for you, I'ma Let you finish, but you already flipped the best Otis Redding sample of all time – OF ALL TIME – on Gone, off of 2005's Late Registration. Otis is seriously thin in comparison:
Joshua – Jason Aldean's microphone gave out on his duet with Kelly Clarkson. First glitch of the night, congrats Jason!
Performance – Chris Brown
Brian – LL Cool J says Chris Brown "moves like no other." Unless you count Mike Tyson. I like this song. It really packs a punch. Chris Brown will be playing all of his best-known hits tonight. Except one.
Joshua – You sure don't pull punches, Brian. I have to say, Chris Brown is unbelievably talented. This is a big night for him if he can remind America of how amazing a performer he is. Perhaps his story can end up filed under "Everybody Makes Mistakes."
Janine– No, Joshua, judging by twitter, it won't.
THAT AWKWARD MOMENT YOU REALIZE AN ENTIRE CROWD IS CHEERING SOMEONE WHO BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF A VERY FAMOUS WOMAN #fuckchrisbrown
— Samhita Mukhopadhyay (@desifeminista) February 13, 2012
Brian: I'll pull punches when Brown pulls them. I agree he's talented but I suspect this is not going to do much for his image. And I find it really hard to feel sorry for him.
AWARD: Grammy for best pop solo performance goes to Adele for Someone Like You.
Joshua – She seems weirdly nervous considering how many nominations she's got and how many people are pulling for her. She must be really anxious about the performance.
Brian – Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt take the stage, ostensibly to present an award. Alicia says "We love Whitney Houston." But ... they're going to sing an Etta James song. The two launch into a lovely duet of Sunday Kind of Love. And my goodness, where did Raitt get that voice anyway? You all know she's a southern girl, right? As in Southern California. This is quite lovely. You know how to follow this up? With a Chris Brown performance.
Performance: Bruno Mars
Brian Bruno Mars does a very nice impression of Janelle Monae doing an impression of James Brown.
Joshua – I think Bruno Mars is totally pulling off his James Brown imitation. He even folded in a Whitney Houston shout-out, the first of no doubt many in-performance tributes.
Brian – and welcome Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian music writer, who joins us to assess the performances. And Rebecca's not so blown away by Bruno:
Bruno following Bruce - if we're getting these performances in alphabetical order, Taylor Swift is going to be tired by the time it's her turn. It's more of the same from Mars, with a tight, synchronised, retro performance, but it doesn't quite reach the dizzying heights of his Janelle Monae hook-up at the last year's Grammy's.
Brian: Joe Levy, contributing editor at Rolling Stone, tweets about the archive Whitney clip.
Whitney pays tribute to Whitney. Okay. That's one way of saying no one else is up to the task.
— Joe Levy (@RealJoeLevy) February 13, 2012
Brian: LL Cool J begins, eloquently:
How do we speak to this time, to this day? There's no away around this: we've had a death in our family. So at least for me – for me – it only feels right to begin with a prayer for a woman who we loved, for our fallen sister Whitney Houston. Hevaenly Father, thank you for sharing our sister Whitney with us.
Joshua: LL Cool J's mournful opening speaks to how much of an overhaul this show has gotten overnight, with a more serious and revenential tone – at least for the opening. Had the producers hired a comedian to steer the show, it would have been a very tricky night.
Brian – LL Cool J is all class and charm and optimism and warmth. He's the anti-Gervais.
And we're off. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kick off the ceremony with their new single We Take Care of Our Own in their first public performance since the Big Man, Springsteen's saxophonist Clarence Clemons, died last year. The band is backed by a full orchestra and sounds very 70s-vintage Springsteen. Macca's in the front row with his new bride, both looking young and like their enjoying themselves. Springsteen is looking extremely powerful and energetic for a 97-year-old man.
Brian – E! has reported that Whitney Houston's ex-husband Bobby Brown has boarded a plane and is due to be arriving in Los Angeles by 9 pm. Meantime, the family released this statement to MTV today:
I am deeply saddened at the passing of my ex-wife, Whitney Houston. At this time, we ask for privacy, especially for my daughter, Bobbi Kristina. I appreciate all of the condolences that have been directed towards my family and I at this most difficult time.
Brian – A blonde Rihanna, who looks stunning in a low-cut black gown, just called her outfit – which she claimed to have designed with Georgio Armani – "simple and sexy and a little bit gangsta at the same time."
Joshua: I'm over here dying over Rihanna's dress. Even with my fashion ignorance, I know an OMG red carpet moment when I see one.
Janine – Insight from E!'s Giuliana Rancic: Nicki Minaj's outfit "is a little too costume-y and it's not really fashion anymore". It's the Grammys, love.
Brian – A bit of a primer about the Grammys while we're waiting for the show to kick off: Albums and songs released between September 1, 2010 and September 30, 2011 are eligible for consideration. So, mercifully, Drake didn't make the cutoff. His record will feel pretty old when if finally gets the nod next year. (Still doesn't explain why Bon Iver is in the running for best new artist – the dude was on Rolling Stone's 2008 hot list.) Winners are selected by members of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences. Record companies and labels submit songs and albums for consideration by the the academy's 12,000 voting members.
Joshua – There was some controversy this year though, over the consolidation of several categories that some people thought disproportionately affected minorities. Jesse Jackson threatened to protest the ceremony, but it seems like that didn't pan out. After Whitney Houston's death, it would have seemed a bit petty anyway.
Janine – Hold everything! Nicky Minaj has rolled up in a red veil accompanied by what I feel certain must be the real actual Pope.
Brian – NOBODY EXPECTS THE NICKI MINAJ INQUISITION
Joshua – There will definitely be a lot of conversation about Nicki's bright-red monastic hood, as well as her very own pope to escort her. I can't wait to hear the details about how this hot, new couple got together. Opposites attract, and what have you.
Joshua – Gotta love the irony of live fashion criticism. Kelly Osbourne is giving her no-holds-barred assessments, meanwhile her bizarre lavender hair color makes her look like she plays bass in a Jem and the Holograms cover band.
Brian – and welcome the Guardian's Janine Gibson, who's joining us for the red-carpet action, which we're watching on E!, by the way. Not literally, of course.
Unlike all other fashion commentators, we know nothing at all about fashion. So it's important to only emphasise the positive and say that Britain's Jessie J looked lovely in Julien Macdonald. In the spirit of positivity, this analyst has nothing at all to say about soon-to-be-divorced Katy Perry who would probably rather be at home with a pint of ice cream and a onesie anyway.
Brian – Fergie looks great. And perfectly attired for the AVN Awards. (Don't Google that.)
Joshua – Well, I don't know anything about fashion, but according to my boyfriend, Fergie's bright-orange Gaultier dress is "amazing."
Brian – I'm not mad at Fergie's dress in the slightest. Amazing is a good word. "Classy," maybe not. But like I said, I'm not going to argue with it. Katy Perry, on the other hand, with the ice-blue hair and matching dress looks like she's auditioning to be the understudy for Storm in the next X-Men movie. Meanwhile E! TV just did a nice explainer of who Whiz Khalifa is for the folks at home.
Joshua Alston – Hey Brian, thanks for the introduction! Wiz Khalifa and Amber Rose just showed up on the red carpet. It has to be pretty nerve-racking to go to an event and know you're almost certainly going to run into your ex.
Brian – Yes! Khalifa basically said he was going to propose to Amber within a year, which was clearly news to her. Will that be the big headline of the night?? (Probably not.)
Joshua – That will absolutely be the headline of the night on the hip hop gossip blogs. I'm really curious to see what the show is like tonally, given how shell-shocked everyone seems to be after Whitney Houston's death.
Brian Braiker – Hello and welcome to the Guardian's live blog of the 54th annual Grammy Awards!
I'll be your host along with Joshua Alston and Guardian music writer Rebecca Nicholson.
The Grammys themselves have a host for the first time: Nicky Minaj and LL Cool J will be tag-teaming us through this musical journey. Minaj will unveil her new song, from the forthcoming Roman Holiday record.
The one to watch tonight, however is Adele. With six nominations – album of the year (21), record of the year (Rolling in the Deep), song of the year (Rolling in the Deep), best pop vocal album (21), best pop solo performance (Someone Like You) and best short form music video (Rolling in the Deep) – look for her to take home the most hardware at the end of the night. She'll also have the sympathy of the crowd: this will be her first public performance since having throat surgery last year. Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, themselves nominated for album of the year, just called Adele's "the greatest record ever" as he was interviewed on the red carpet, so pity the competition.
Tonight will also mark Katy Perry's first public appearance since her divorce from Russell Brand. And all eyes will be on Rihanna and Chris Brown, who will both be in the building – and both performing – for the first time since Brown rather brutally beat her up after the 2009 awards show.
The Beach Boys will be on hand, celebrating their 50th anniversary, Kanye West – who has the most nods with seven nominations – will also be on hand, but expect him to be on his best behavior. Lady Gaga likely won't make an appearance. And tonight will be the night the world meets Skrillex, the American dubstep auteur who will be performing.
But of course the name that's on absolutely everyone's lips tonight is Whitney Houston. The R&B superdiva died shockingly (if not unsurprisingly) yesterday of causes that have yet to be revealed. Jennifer Hudson has been confirmed as a performer in a Houston tribute, and there have been rumblings about Chaka Khan joining her. Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt will be doing an Etta James tribute, and noticeably absent is any mention of some kind of honor for Amy Winehouse.