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Adele 6 for 6 at Grammys, Whitney still swept the night
Adele displaying her awards
Soul singer, Adele triumphed in her return to music’s stage on Sunday, scooping up six Grammys and winning every category in which she was nominated including album of the year for “21” and best record with “Rolling In the Deep.”
Late Whitney Houston who just passed on Saturday seemed to have clouded the evening as she was being remembered by fellow artists in acceptance speeches and songs. Jennifer Hudson sang Houston’s signature hit “I Will Always Love You,” and Grammy host LL Cool J offered a prayer for Houston’s family, friends and fans.
But Adele really stole the show.
The 23-year-old, who has taken the music world by storm, underwent surgery on her vocal cords late last year and had been resting her voice on doctor’s orders until music’s biggest night. The British singer took the stage to belt out “Rolling In the Deep,” and finished to a standing ovation.
Adele claimed three of the music industry’s top awards, album, record and song of the year, and added best pop solo performance, pop vocal and short video to her stack of trophies.
“Thank you so much. This is ridiculous,” she said upon accepting the record of the year Grammy. “I want to say thank you to every radio programmer and broadcaster that has been playing ‘Rolling in the Deep’ … because I know it’s not really a pop record.”
She flashed a big smile and a thumbs up. Rockers Foo Fighters were the other big winners, picking up five Grammys including best rock performance for the hit “Walk.”
“This record was a special record for our band, rather than go to the best studio in the world down the street in Hollywood, and rather than use all the fanciest computers that you can buy, we made this one in my garage with some microphones and a tape machine,” said Grohl, before he took his speech as a chance to slam music industry trends like autotune and pitch-correction.
Whitney Houston
“To me, this award means a lot because it shows that the human element of making music is what’s most important, singing into a microphone and learning to play an instrument, and learning to do your craft, that’s the most important thing for people to do, it’s not about being perfect, it’s not about sounding absolutely correct, it’s not about what goes on in a computer, it’s about what goes on in here, and it’s about what goes on in here,” says Grohl.
As joyous as the show was for Adele, it was equally as serious with tributes to late pop star Whitney Houston, who died suddenly on Saturday, and was found in the bathtub of her Beverly Hills hotel room. The cause is still unknown.
Other winners at the Grammys include Chris Brown, whose album “F.A.M.E.” won best R&B album. The win was a comeback of sorts for Brown, after a four year period of a tarnished public image from fallout for his domestic violence against ex-girlfriend Rihanna, which fell on the weekend of the 2008 Grammy Awards.
Newcomer Bon Iver took home the prize for best new artist, and Lady Antebellum took the award for best country album. Kanye West won for best rap album, for “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.” West did not attend the ceremony.
List of all the winners at the 2012 Grammy’s
The 54th Annual Grammy Awards were a hugh hit and gave an amazing tribute to Whitney Houston’s passing. The winners are announced and some of today’s top musicians walked away with the big award!
Best Country Album:
Own The Night – Lady Antebellum
Song of the Year:
“Rolling in the Deep” – Adele
Best R&B Album:
“F.A.M.E.” – Chris Brown
Best Rock Performance:
“Walk” – Foo Fighters
Best Rap Performance:
“Otis” – Ja-Z & Kanye West
Album of the Year:
“21” – Adele
Best Country Solo Performance:
“Mean” – Taylor Swift
Best Traditional R&B Performance:
“Fool For You” – Cee Lo Green
Comedy Album:
“Hilarious” – Louis C.K.
Spoken Word Album:
“If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t)” – Betty White
Historical Album:
“Band on the Run (Paul McCartney Archive Collection – Deluxe Edition)” – Paul McCartney
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Chris Brown to remain on monitored probation, might sing at the Grammys
Chris Brown and Rihanna
The Kiss Kiss hit maker, Chris Brown has just lost his bid to end his supervised five years probation following a Los Angeles judge’s ruling.
The star’s legal team had taken his case to Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday with high expections, but Judge George Lomeli ruled Brown should continue to report to a probation officer in his home state of Virginia and complete more of his community service.
The ruling comes just days after reports say Brown will perform at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, the first time he has been back at the prize giving since he was forced to pull out of the 2009 event following his bust-up with Rihanna. Earlier, Chris Brown was handed five years probation after pleading guilty to assaulting his ex-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009 and was also ordered to take a series of domestic violence classes and complete six months of service in community.
Brown has completed half of his six months of community service, and Lomeli declared the 22 year old should remain under supervision until he puts in more hours. Judge Lomeli has scheduled another progress hearing for 10 July, 2012.
Meanwhile, there has been word on the street that Chris who hasn’t attended any Grammys since the battering incident with Rihanna in 2009 is also set to stage a comeback and is likely to perform at the February 12 event.
Last February, just in time for the 2010 Grammys, a judge eased the restraining order after Rihanna’s lawyers accepted a request from Chris’ lawyers to lift it, however a previous engagement prevented the 22-year-old singer from attending the ceremony.
Chris Brown has been nominated for Grammys in five of the past six years, but he has never taken home a trophy. His hit single “Look At Me Now,” which features rappers Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes, is up for two Grammys: “Best Rap Song” and “Best Rap Performance.”
Rihanna, on the other hand, has won a total four Grammys, three with Jay-Z and one alone, which she won last year for her smash single “Only Girl (in the World).”
Though Brown’s performance has yet to be formally announced, an anonymous source told the Associated Press Monday that the singer — up for 3 Grammys — will take the stage at the show on Sunday night, while Rihanna — who is up for four awards — is also scheduled to perform at the show, which is known as the biggest music event of the year.
Though there have been reports that since the 2009 fall out, both have been seen together in recent times, and they have told newsmen that they are now “best friends”, this is the first time Rihanna and Chris Brown will be seen together in the same room.
Related articles
- Chris Brown to remain on supervised probation (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Chris Brown Will Perform At The Grammys (huffingtonpost.com)
- Grammy Watch: Chris Brown to Perform, But Are We Ready? (blogher.com)
- Chris Brown To Perform At 2012 Grammy Awards Three Years After Rihanna Incident (inquisitr.com)
Femi Kuti shuns Grammys, The Beach Boys and Adele making a comeback
Femi Kuti
Award winning Nigerian Afro-beat star, Femi Kuti, who has been nominated in the World Music category of the 2012 Grammy Awards which is slated to hold on Sunday February, will not be attending the Awards in Los Angeles rather, he will be ensconced in the New Afrika Shrine, Agidingbi, Lagos, performing for his devoted fans .
According to his 49-year-old singer and band lead dancer, Yeni Kuti, the Afrobeat star does not see any reason to attend because of his earlier experience.
“his argument is that he cannot travel all the way to Los Angeles and come back empty handed” Yeni said.
Some of his fans and followers don’t seem surprised at his decision to shun the 54th edition of the Grammy Awards, because the singer had also shunned Last year’s too.
Femi, who is taking a third shot at the coveted awards, has been twice unlucky in 2003 and 2010. His first outing at the awards in 2003 left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Speaking to newsmen after his failure to clinch any of the previous grammys, Femi said “When I arrived at the red carpet, nobody came for me, my record company didn’t come, I felt stupid and so I knew I could not win. I sacked my manager, a French man, and they sacked me too. Since then I vowed never to attend the Grammy Awards again. My father never went for any awards and where they presented him an award, he didn’t go personally and when they brought the award to him, he would send them back with the award. One day, I was at the World Music Awards and I brought the awards. He asked, “Did I send you? You better take it back. As I grew older, I understood what he was saying then.”
In the World Music category, Femi’s “Africa for Africa” album wil be contending with Malian band, Tinariwen’s Tassili; Latin/Roots music band, AfroCubism’s eponymous album; and South African male choral group, Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s Songs From a Zulu Farm.
Interestingly, Africa for Africa, which was released in Europe and the US by Femi’s American label, Knitting Factory Records, has yet to be released in Africa.
Meanwhile, the 2012 Grammys seem to favour British artist, Adele and iconic 1960s group, The Beach Boys who will be staging comeback performances at the music industry’s annual star-studded awards bash.
Paul McCartney, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen are also among major acts to play Sunday in Los Angeles, where country legend Glen Campbell, suffering from Alzheimer’s and on a farewell tour, will receive a lifetime achievement award.
Adele, playing her first live show since undergoing throat surgery last year, is nominated in six categories at the Grammys, just one behind top-tipped US rapper Kanye West, with seven nods.
The British soul singer broke records with her breakthrough second album “21,” including the hits “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You.” It is unclear what she will sing Sunday night at the Staples Center.
But arguably an even bigger comeback will be by the Beach Boys, who will perform on stage for the first time since announcing a 50th anniversary reunion tour and album.
The original members of the band, famous for hits including “Good Vibrations,” “California Girls” and “Surfin’ USA,” will play with two Grammy nominees, Foster The People and Maroon 5, organizers said.
“I miss the boys and it will be a thrill for me to make a new record and be on stage with them again,” said core band member Brian Wilson, announcing the reunion in December.
West is nominated in the most categories at this year’s Grammys — the music industry’s version of the Oscars — while the Foo Fighters and Hawaiian crooner Bruno Mars were tied with Adele, with six nominations.
Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” is tipped for Record of the Year, along with Bon Iver’s “Holocene,” Mars’s “Grenade,” “The Cave” by British folk rockers Mumford and Sons, and Katy Perry’s “Firework.”
The London songstress’s album “21” also leads the nods for Album of the Year, and will fight it out with the Foo Fighters’ “Wasting Light,” Lady Gaga’s “Born this Way,” Mars’s “Doo Wops and Hooligans” and Rihanna’s “Loud.”
West’s seven nods include “All of the Lights” for Song of the Year, up against Mumford and Sons’ “The Cave,” Mars’s “Grenade,” Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” and Bon Iver’s “Holocene.”
Although West garnered the most nods, mainly in rap categories, he could come away disappointed. Last year Eminem topped the nominations with 10 nods but went home with only two gongs.
In the running for Best New Artist — the category Adele won in 2009 — are The Band Perry, Bon Iver, J. Cole, rapper Nicki Minaj and Skrillex. The latter was shortlisted for five awards, as was Lil Wayne.
Other performers at Sunday’s show include Springsteen and the E Street Band, veteran crooner Tony Bennett as well as more current stars including Perry, Minaj and Taylor Swift.
British megagroup Coldplay will play with Rihanna, while ailing “Rhinestone Cowboy” star Campbell — on his Goodbye Tour before retiring — will perform with award-winning country stars The Band Perry and Blake Shelton.
Former Beatle McCartney will perform at the show, after being honored at a pre-Grammys tribute show also featuring legendary soft rockers James Taylor and Neil Young with Crazy Horse.
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