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Music world gathers for Grammys
Members of the music industry gathered in Los Angeles Sunday, looking forward to the 46th annual Grammy Awards -- and ready to put the Janet Jackson controversy in the rear-view mirror.
But this year's Grammy broadcast, scheduled for 8 p.m. Sunday ET from the Staples Center, will also be on a five-minute audio and video delay, thanks to the flashing of Janet Jackson's breast last week during the Super Bowl halftime show. The show airs on CBS. Jackson has said she won't attend the show (she was scheduled to introduce a tribute to Luther Vandross). Justin Timberlake will be on hand; he's up for five awards. Both Neptunes -- Pharrell Williams and his partner, Chad Hugo -- won a Grammy at a pre-awards ceremony. (With more than 100 categories, the vast majority of awards are given in advance of the broadcast.) Williams used the opportunity to speak about the Jackson brouhaha. "What happened at the Super Bowl was a bit much, but I happen to know both of those people ... and they've done great things to support people around the world," he said. As they entered the Staples Center, artists were asked about the Jackson controversy, and many said that though what Jackson and Timberlake did was inappropriate, people should move on. A broad spectrum
Zevon is among the artists up for best song, a songwriter's award.
Weird Al Yankovic won a Grammy for his comedy album, "Poodle Hat." Weird Al Yankovic won best comedy album for his record "Poodle Hat." Eugene Levy and Michael McKean won best song written for a motion picture for the title tune from "A Mighty Wind." Best reggae album went to Sean Paul for "Dutty Rock." But hip-hop and rap are the story for the Grammys. For years, the genres have dominated the sales charts but were seldom noticed for the major awards. This year, however, the leading nominees come from hip-hop and rap, and are expected to do well. OutKast has six nominations, including album of the year ("Speakerboxxx/The Love Below") and record of the year ("Hey Ya!"). Also up for six awards are Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Williams of the Neptunes. Eminem is up for five Grammys, including record of the year and song of the year ("Lose Yourself"). "I liken it to music critics' top 10s," Billboard magazine senior writer and section editor Michael Paoletta told CNN. "[The nominees] show diversity, and they haven't always shown that." Record of the year, he said, is almost like a microcosm of the year in music, with all its variation. The category's nominees include "Hey Ya!", "Lose Yourself," Beyonce and Jay-Z's "Crazy in Love," Black Eyed Peas and Justin Timberlake's "Where Is the Love?" and Coldplay's "Clocks." "The voters have woken up to R&B and hip-hop," Paoletta said. He said it helps that the songs themselves have become more mainstream and approachable. "Where Is the Love?" recalls classic R&B, hip-hop and "straight-up pop," Paoletta said, while "everyone who hears ['Hey Ya!'] starts smiling."
June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash, who both died last year, each earned Grammys for their work. Indeed, he added, OutKast is "an across-the-board success story." "They're a critics' darling ... and they made the album they wanted to make," he said of the varied sounds of "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below." And it doesn't hurt that the group had the No. 1 and 2 songs in the country during the Grammy voting period. New sounds Besides OutKast's opus, album of the year nominees include the White Stripes' "Elephant," Missy Elliott's "Under Construction," Evanescence's "Fallen" and Justin Timberlake's "Justified." All indicate Grammy's decision to back diversity -- and popularity, said Billboard magazine's Carla Hay.
Beyonce is also up for six awards. Her song "Crazy in Love" is a record of the year nominee. In the song of the year category, the nominees include Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful," written by Linda Perry; Luther Vandross' "Dance With My Father," written by Vandross and Richard Marx; Avril Lavigne's "I'm With You," written by Lavigne and The Matrix; Zevon's "Keep Me in Your Heart," written by Zevon and Jorge Calderon; and Eminem's "Lose Yourself," written by Eminem, J. Bass and L. Resto. Nominees for best new artist -- always an interesting Grammy barometer -- are Evanescence, 50 Cent, Fountains of Wayne, Heather Headley and Sean Paul. Most observers are backing 50 Cent, whose "Get Rich or Die Tryin' " was the biggest-selling album of 2003. The Grammys are more than just people handing out awards, of course. This year's performers include Prince, 50 Cent, the Foo Fighters, Sting and Sean Paul, Chick Corea, and Martina McBride. There's also going to be a tribute to the Beatles on the 40th anniversary of the Fab Four's arrival in the United States. |
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