2011 Grammy Awards soulhead.com Recap and Prediction Results + Whitney Tribute

Words by Ron Worthy

Last night saw the world of music celebrate some of today’s best and pay tribute to the recently departed Whitney Houston, who died on Saturday at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel. The show was replete with the customary performances, many of which left us wanting for the glory days. A few highlights were Bruno Mars’ splendid (albeit slightly annoying) performance, Nicki Minaj’s Halloween inspired Madonna tribute, and of course, Jennifer Hudson’s emotional performance of Whitney’s (and Dolly Parton’s) hit “I Will Always Love You.” It, along with moving tributes by Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys and many others made the night a bit more special than it otherwise would have been.  However, it was clear that it was Adele’s night, who swept the major categories and tied Beyonce’s record for the most Grammy’s in one night by a female artist.

We really enjoyed L.L. Cool J as the host and we were impressed with his handling of an incredibly difficult and unexpected intro. We were also inspired by Sir. Paul McCartney’s new Valentine inspired ditty and loved the way he closed the show with such classic melodies.

We could have done without as much Chris Brown, however. While his dancing prowess is well documented, he did not even deserve to share a nomination with the likes of Ledisi, R. Kelly or Kelly Price, much less win the category. Please. Someone has clearly got the fix in. No disrespect to this brother or his team, but he simply did not deserve that award for best R&B album and definitely not two performances, the same number as a Beatle? Please!

For all the splendor of the show, it had the air of the 80s shows where there was 1 clear chosen winner (ala Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Prince) and everyone else just knew they were going to lose. The night was clearly owned by Adele, who belted out her mega hit “Rolling in the Deep” with all of the expected revelry. Not missing a note and looking beautiful, she made believers out of any on the sidelines. We went in fans and come out evangelists.

That said, we feel she pales in comparison to Ledisi, who was tucked away in the audience, not even offered a chance to showcase her incredible talent. With one of this years best vocal performances on her Pieces of Me LP, she deserved at least 1 duet in tribute to Whitney. She was robbed and if she is reading this, please know that you will always have a home here for your music or announcement or whatever. Your voice and talent will go down as one of the best voices of our time. When it is all said and done, you, too will go down as one THE VOICES. Kudos on a great year regardless of the awards.

Below are the results of last night’s predictions (list by Wikipedia.com).  Our picks are highlighted in Green. Where we missed, the winner will be shown in Green and our answer in Black.

Record of the Year
Album of the Year
Song of the Year
Best New Artist

Pop

Best Pop Solo Performance
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Best Pop Instrumental Album
Best Pop Vocal Album

Dance/Electronica

Best Dance Recording
Best Dance/Electronica Album

Traditional Pop

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album

Rock

Best Rock Performance
Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance
Best Rock Song
Best Rock Album

Alternative

Best Alternative Music Album

R&B

Best R&B Performance
Best Traditional R&B Performance
Best R&B Song
Best R&B Album

Rap

Best Rap Performance
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
Best Rap Song
Best Rap Album

Jazz

Best Improvised Jazz Solo
Best Jazz Vocal Album
Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album

Gospel/Contemporary Christian

Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance
Best Gospel Song
Best Contemporary Christian Music Song
Best Gospel Album
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album

Latin

Best Latin Pop, Rock or Urban Album
Best Blues Album

Reggae

Best Reggae Album

World Music

Best World Music Album

Spoken Word

Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Story Telling)
  • Bossypants – Tina Fey
  • Fab Fan Memories – The Beatles Bond – Various Artists
  • Hamlet (William Shakespeare) – Dan Donohue & Various Artists – Oregon Shakespeare Festival
  • If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t) – Betty White
  • The Mark of Zorro – Val Kilmer & Cast

Comedy

Best Comedy Album

Best Instrumental Arrangement

Results:  18/40 Overall – Grade F.  Yes, we got hosed overall, but did well in some categories. Better luck next year, when we will be staying in our lane.

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