The 45th annual Grammy awards showcased a variety of talent,
fresh faces and stiff competition. For many years, the music
industry’s biggest night was held in Los Angeles, but this year
they moved it back east for the first time in five years to New
York City at the famous Madison Square Garden.
Winners in this year’s top categories included Eminem, Coldplay,
India.Arie and the Dixie Chicks, to name a few. The night seemed to
belong to jazz artist Norah Jones.
Jones, the daughter of Indian music artist Ravi Shankar, took
home an impressive eight awards including Record, Album and Song of
the year as well as Best New Artist. The Texas native beat out
radio favorites Vanessa Carlton, Nelly and Avril Lavigne. Jones
comments on the excitement over her win for “Don’t Know Why” were
due to the awards presenters.
“I can’t believe this–Aretha Franklin and Bonnie Raitt. I’m
freakin’ out,” Jones said in press release. “This song was recorded
as a demo, and look what happened to it.”
“I would have never guessed that Norah Jones would win so many
awards. I am really happy for her, though. She seems to be what
music is all about, writing your own lyrics and being able to
perform it well,” MSU freshman Emma Carver said.
Country music favorites the Dixie Chicks took home four awards
for best country vocal, instrumental and performance and album.
Solo crooner Faith Hill took home the best female country
performance.
Comedians also have their chances to get in on the act. Funnyman
Robin Williams received an award for best spoken comedy album from
his live 2002 show.
Even as the performances and winners served as the night’s high,
the red carpet interviews (and outfits) kept the attention for the
first couple of hours before the show.
People magazine chose their overall picks for the night’s best
and worst dressed. Sheryl Crow, Nelly, John Mayer and Gwen Stefani
all wore ensembles that were worthy of the best dressed list, while
others weren’t quite as lucky. Fashion forward rapper Eve, who
usually makes headlines for her pricey pieces, went home with the
shame of being dubbed one of the worst dressed.
“What she had on was ugly. The shortness of the dress was
alright, but it was too gold. Kinda had that streetwalker vibe to
it,” MSU senior Destini Dunn said.
Another sad bunch was TLC. They picked leather and satin bustier
type suits donning the memory of their late group member and
friend, Lisa “Left-eye” Lopes. Although their intentions were in
the right place, a mirror was definitely not.
Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue found her place on the list
as well. The pint-sized diva wore what is usually a big hit on red
carpets everywhere, a Givency couture gown, but the length of the
dress looked to have overshadowed her small frame.
Neo-soul artist India.Arie chopped her signature locks for this
year’s event and wore a plain white turtleneck type dress with
gaudy accessories. The singer might have ended up on the worst
dressed list this year, but she did go home with two awards for
best R&B album and best urban/alternative performance for her
song “Little Things.”
“I was really happy they sent India.Arie home with a Grammy this
time,” MSU senior Keyona Lacy said. “If they had overlooked her
again, I was going to be really upset and contemplate not watching
anymore. Last year was really disappointing because she was
nominated seven times and didn’t win once. I wonder was this their
opportunity to make up for their mistake?”
Among the show’s performances were a tribute to the Bee-Gees and
a salute to the Clash led by winner and music veteran Bruce
Springsteen, Dave Grohl, Steve Van Zandt and Tony Kanal of No
Doubt.
“I was happy with the overall picks for the night. Last year, it
seemed like some were robbed while others who weren’t quite as
worthy went home with trophies,” Dunn said. “I really wonder who
makes up the panel when it comes to the choosing of winners?”
The Grammy awards are spearheaded by the distinguished Recording
Academy. The history of the Recording Academy dates back to 1957.
Members wanted to recognize the talent that artists brought to the
world of music and reward their efforts. Not only did they honor
musicians, they brought the hard work of the “behind the scenes”
magic created by sound engineers and producers to the forefront as
well. The academy is also co-founder of the National Coalition for
Music Education, an advocacy group of music professionals and
educators who promote the existence of arts and its impact on child
development.
While one of the biggest accomplishments of the academy boils
down to just one night, there are other ventures that receive less
publicity yet go the distance in musical endeavors.
The Grammy Foundation is the non-profit wing of the Recording
Academy. Its purpose is to stress the important issue of music/arts
education and preservation. During the “off” season of the show,
the foundation is hard at work providing music education to young
people throughout the country with a variety of mentoring programs,
concerts and music ensembles to expand the knowledge of arts in
public school systems. The group works to keep music in schools
with the help of grants, donations and outside funding
For a complete list on the nights winners, and information on
the The Grammy Foundation and their programs, visit the official
Web site at
“http://Grammy.aol.com/”>Grammy.aol.com.