The 53rd annual Grammy awards were held at Los Angeles the 13th of February 2011 . It was a night to remember, a night of upsets and surprise winners and some very spectacular performances.
Country stars Lady Antebellum were the big winners of the night. Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez presented them with the award for Best record of the year for their album “Need you now”. which also won Best song of the year.
Lady Gaga who arrived at the Grammy’s in a giant egg took the award for Best Female Pop Vocal performance for ‘Bad Romance’ .She also won the Best pop vocal album for “The Fame Monster”
Eminem won the award for Best Rap album for his album ‘Recovery”. He also won an award for ‘Not Afraid’ .However the controversial rapper who had a mind blowing ten nominations lost in the major categories, ‘Love the way you Lie’ lost Record of the Year to Lady Antellebum and ;Recovery’ lost Album of the year to Arcade Fire
Brumo Mars won the award for best male pop vocal for his composition “Just the way you are”
Cee Lo Green and Justin Bieber were two major stars that walked away empty handed
One of the surprise winners on this star studded night was Esperanza Spalding who won the award for best new artist. This came as a shock to the many Justin Bieber fans who expected their idol to walk away with the award.
Another major surprise was when Arcade Fire won Album of the year for “The Suburbs” beating the likes of Eminem and Lady Antebellum.
But the Grammy’s are not only about winning and losing. It is about entertainment and the many unforgettable performances which graced the night.
The show opened with a performance by Christina Aguilera honoring Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin. She was joined by a slimmed down Jennifer Hudson, Martina McBride, Florence Welch and Yolanda Adams. The ladies performed a medley of Aretha’s greatest hits which I really enjoyed..
There was a very cute performance by teen idols Jaiden Smith and Justin Bieber. Singer Will Smith and wife Jada were seen beaming proudly in the audience watching their talented son perform.
One of the highlights of the evening was the performance by Eminem who has made a miraculous comeback with his album ‘Recovery. Eminem performed two of his major hits. First he sang ‘I love the way you lie’ with Rehana which was superb. I really loved Rehana’s l fiery dress and the stage effects were brilliant
Then Eminem and Dr Dre along with Rehana rocked the house with ‘I need a doctor’. This was Dr Dre’s first performance in a decade and the crowd cheered him on.
Cee Lo resplendent in a psychedelic peacock costume with giant bird feathers performed along with the Jim Henson Company Puppets and Gweneth Paltrow who gave a very sultry performance .Cee Lo sang and played the piano while Gweneth looking stunning in a cat suit and shoes danced and sang on top of the piano with the puppets acting as background singers. I really enjoyed the performance.
Norah Jones, John Mayo and Keith Urban gave a wonderful rendition of ‘Jolene’, one of Dolly Parton’s classic songs. This was. in honor of Dolly, who got a life time achievement award.
Two up and coming folk rock acts Mumford and Sons and The Avett Brothers performed with the legendary Bob Dylan. Dylan’s voice was scratchy and raspy and a bit inaudible as he sang his hit ‘Maggies Farm’ but the crowd loved him.
Another hit performance was by rock legend Mick Jagger.This was the stars first Grammy performance and he rocked the stage with energy and passion,. proving, once again, that his talent is ageless.
But for me, the star of the night was Barbara Streisand. It was rare treat to see her perform. There were no gimmicks or props-just her beautiful voice to mesmerize us. She was introduced by the fabulous Kris Kristofferson and sang the song ‘Evergreen’ from their movie ‘A Star is Born’. Barbara got a standing ovation for her stellar performance.
The magic of the Grammy’s lies in the fact that it honors music from all generations and all genres and that is what made the night so special.
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