Last night (February 15) marked "the biggest night in music," celebrating the 58th annual Grammy Awards with a star-studded ceremony that saw gramophone trophies handed out over the course of an evening that also boasted performances from pop music's biggest stars. And while the winners may be settled, there are still a few unanswered questions swirling through minds of anyone who stirred up the stamina to watch the more-than-three-hour television broadcast.
One performance that generated a fair bit of confusion was Adele's. The viewing public was given a rare opportunity to see the usually flawless ballad queen fall flat. Jarring bursts of what sounded like Justin Bieber's untuned acoustic guitar plunked away throughout Adele's rendition of "All I Ask," visibly throwing the singer off her game and leaving many cringing and wondering which sound guy was losing his job two minutes later. The explanation was apparently a simple one, according to Adele, who confronted the issue on Twitter after the show:
Ever the optimist, she took the opportunity to cheer herself up with some good old-fashioned American fast-food, so everything seems to have worked out alright in the end.
Also leaving eager onlookers baffled was a no-show from Rihanna. After dropping out last-minute from her performance of ANTI's "Kiss It Better," audiences were left to suffer through a finale from Pitbull, who brought out Modern Family star Sofia Vergara dressed as a bedazzled taxi, followed by an added layer of sleaze courtesy of Travis Barker, Joe Perry and Robin Thicke.
Making it all the more painful, this all went down just moments after Beyoncé was ushered off the stage. Despite proving her status as the reigning queen of live television events with her recent Super Bowl performance, she merely presented the award for Record of the Year at last night's event. According to TMZ, Riri had to cancel on such short notice due to a bout of bronchitis.
The Grammys announced a performance by Ms. Lauryn Hill prematurely and without approval. Ms. Hill had concerts all weekend, leaving no time to prepare, and was uncertain she would even be able to make it to L.A. in time to rehearse for the event. Any performance that could have happened was never confirmed, and should not have been advertised as such. Ms. Hill was invited to do a collaboration with an artist she appreciates. The performance was intended to be a surprise and unfortunately due to its last minute nature, was unable to come to fruition.
Furthermore, if Lady Gaga's televised tribute to the late David Bowie left you less than impressed, you're not alone. In fact, Bowie's own son Duncan Jones had quite the negative reaction on Twitter.
Some questions, meanwhile, will continue to go unanswered. How did Kendrick Lamar lose in any of the categories he was nominated in? Who was holding Kanye West back from his phone all night while his rarely-inactive Twitter feed remained eerily un-updated (even after a pointed jab from Taylor Swift in her acceptance speech for Album of the Year)? Why, Johnny Depp? Why?
We'll probably never know.
One performance that generated a fair bit of confusion was Adele's. The viewing public was given a rare opportunity to see the usually flawless ballad queen fall flat. Jarring bursts of what sounded like Justin Bieber's untuned acoustic guitar plunked away throughout Adele's rendition of "All I Ask," visibly throwing the singer off her game and leaving many cringing and wondering which sound guy was losing his job two minutes later. The explanation was apparently a simple one, according to Adele, who confronted the issue on Twitter after the show:
The piano mics fell on to the piano strings, that's what the guitar sound was. It made it sound out of tune. Shit happens. X
— Adele (@Adele) February 16, 2016
Ever the optimist, she took the opportunity to cheer herself up with some good old-fashioned American fast-food, so everything seems to have worked out alright in the end.
Because of it though... I'm treating myself to an in n out. So maybe it was worth it.
— Adele (@Adele) February 16, 2016
Also leaving eager onlookers baffled was a no-show from Rihanna. After dropping out last-minute from her performance of ANTI's "Kiss It Better," audiences were left to suffer through a finale from Pitbull, who brought out Modern Family star Sofia Vergara dressed as a bedazzled taxi, followed by an added layer of sleaze courtesy of Travis Barker, Joe Perry and Robin Thicke.
Making it all the more painful, this all went down just moments after Beyoncé was ushered off the stage. Despite proving her status as the reigning queen of live television events with her recent Super Bowl performance, she merely presented the award for Record of the Year at last night's event. According to TMZ, Riri had to cancel on such short notice due to a bout of bronchitis.
Another appearance fans were buzzing about was a suspected, though never officially confirmed, cameo from Lauryn Hill during the Weeknd's shot in the spotlight. Unfortunately, the secret was leaked before any of the logistics had been worked out, and the could-have-been-great collaboration ended up falling through. A statement from Hill's rep reads:#NAVY so sorry I couldn't be there ..... Thanks Grammys and CBS for your support tonight.
— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 16, 2016
The Grammys announced a performance by Ms. Lauryn Hill prematurely and without approval. Ms. Hill had concerts all weekend, leaving no time to prepare, and was uncertain she would even be able to make it to L.A. in time to rehearse for the event. Any performance that could have happened was never confirmed, and should not have been advertised as such. Ms. Hill was invited to do a collaboration with an artist she appreciates. The performance was intended to be a surprise and unfortunately due to its last minute nature, was unable to come to fruition.
Furthermore, if Lady Gaga's televised tribute to the late David Bowie left you less than impressed, you're not alone. In fact, Bowie's own son Duncan Jones had quite the negative reaction on Twitter.
"overexcited or irrational, typically as a result of infatuation or excessive enthusiasm; mentally confused." Damn it! What IS that word!?
— Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) February 16, 2016
Some questions, meanwhile, will continue to go unanswered. How did Kendrick Lamar lose in any of the categories he was nominated in? Who was holding Kanye West back from his phone all night while his rarely-inactive Twitter feed remained eerily un-updated (even after a pointed jab from Taylor Swift in her acceptance speech for Album of the Year)? Why, Johnny Depp? Why?
We'll probably never know.
