February 13, 2011. The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards entertained as expected with vibrant performances from pop icons Lady Gaga to Cee Lo Green to Eminem. But it was a rare performance by Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger who stole the stage with a riveting soul man revue tribute to Solomon Burke and rivaled entertainers last night forty years his junior.
Awards went to heavyweights Lady Gaga, John Legend, and Jay-Z garnering three trophies each. The evening belonged to the country threesome Lady Antebellum, taking home five awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Refreshing surprise winner was singer and jazz bassist Esperanza Spalding who passed up Drake and Justin Bieber for the title of Best New Artist. Bruno Mars won Best Male Pop Vocal for “Just The Way You Are” and Album of the Year "The Suburbs” went to the Canadian indie band Arcade Fire.
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Lady Gaga arrived on the red carpet enclosed in an egg before later reveling herself on stage and sharing a little of her anticipated new single “Born This Way.” Gaga went on to accept her award for Best Pop Vocal Album “The Fame Monster” sporting a black ensemble complete with Madonna-inspired mannequin body parts. Gaga was given a run for her money in the costume department however by Cee Lo Green. Green performed his record of the year winner “F*** You” dressed in flamboyant Elton John-esque feathered attire alongside The Muppets and actress/singer Gwenyth Paltrow.
If the bright feathers weren’t comic relief enough there was Seth Rogan who made a joke about getting high with Miley Cyrus backstage that got a particularly loud roar of laughter. Another fun duo of the night was Justin Bieber and Jaden Smith who rocked side-to-side singing their song “Never Say Never” and basking in the obvious glow of pride that was emanating from Will and Jada in the audience.
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Photo by Sally Rosen - OFC Contributor Cee Lo Green Grammy winner shown here at SunFest |
More serious performances included. Keith Urban, John Mayer, and Norah Jones’ tribute to country superstar Dolly Parton proved to be a true example of vocal talent. Eminem’s performance with Rihanna, Adam Lavine, Skylar Grey, and the always missed, Dr. Dre also brought chills. Eminem seemed to inspire the live audience and bring a real passion to the stage, a fire that had obviously been duly noted as the rapper went on to win the award for Best Rap Album for “Recovery.”
The Aretha Franklin tribute was inspiring, although it turned into a battle of divas instead of a harmony towards the end. Jennifer Hudson and Florence Welch complimented the group nicely, as did Christina Aguilera, who tripped and fell at the end of the performance. Aguilera's Super Bowl snafu karma continued to follow her into the Grammys. Legends graced the stage including Barbara Streisand singing her classic love song "Evergreen" and Bob Dylan collab with Mumford & Sons and Avett Brothers.
The show went out with a sexually charged performance of “What’s My Name” by Rihanna and Drake and an insanely energetic performance by Arcade Fire, complete with blinding lights and dirt bike riders equipped with helmet cameras. Arcade Fire wrapped up the evening with an encore performance after receiving their award for Album of the Year.