Top Grammy Moments

As usual, the Grammy Awards were way too long; however, this doesn't mean I didn't enjoy most of the show. Read on to see what my favorite moments were, and of course, what my general thoughts are on the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards.

WHOA! Number one fave Grammy moment just appeared on my TV screen: The legendary Stevie Nicks walking on stage to perform with Taylor Swift. Very pleasant surprise!

The wonder woman from Fleetwood Mac sang the hit "Rhiannon" with the luckiest 20-year-old in the world. The set then went on to include Taylor singing her hit, "Belong with Me," with Stevie as her backup vocalist and tambourine player. UGH. So jealous, but Taylor couldn't be more deserving - she's so humble and talented. She's also the big winner of the night, having picked-up the Grammy for Best Album of the Year.


2. So who knew Pink worked part-time with Cirque du Soleil?!

Her performance was absolutely beautiful as she sang and twirled over the crowd at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles. Her body suit was quite the number as well, especially when she became drenched with water all the while continuing her acrobatic number. I'm not sure, though, how some of the celebrities felt when their couture gowns got soaked in water... ah well.



3. Wearing my 3D glasses for the Michael Jackson tribute (yes, I just so happened to have kept them from a 3D movie screening and had them conveniently stored in my desk drawer).

Great idea for prime time; however, it didn't work that well. That's okay though, because the artists who sang the tribute were fabulous (Celine Dion, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson).


4. Paris, 11, and Prince Michael, 12, accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award for their father, Michael Jackson.

I commend their appearance as it's not easy to lose a parent, never mind being on television in front of millions of people to speak about that special person. Prince acknowledged his father's humanitarian work and said a big thank you to the pop icon's fans for their support.


5. So the rumours were true: Lady Gaga opened the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, but with help from none other than Sir Elton John.

The piano duet was better than I had expected, and that smile on Gaga's face was priceless - she sure is on top of the world. She's fearless by being true to herself, and it sure is paying off.



6. Mary J. Blige, Andrea Bocelli and David Foster's performance of Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," dedicated to the Haitian people.

People from all over the world can download this touching performance at www.iTunes.com/Target, where donations will be made to the American Red Cross's Haiti disaster relief efforts.

7. What a year for Toronto rapper, and former Degrassi: The Next Generation actor, Drake, 23.

Drake has two nominations at this year's Grammy Awards, and he hasn't even released his debut album. Toward the end of the awards show, he shared the stage with heavy-weights Travis Barker, Lil Wayne and Eminem. I liked the performance, and apparently so did Jamie Foxx, who was filming it on his BlackBerry. I was, however, quite annoyed that the sound kept on cutting out for at least one quarter of the performance.

8. Slash's guest appearance on Jamie Foxx's performance of "Blame It."

The hat, the hair, the leather pants, the electric guitar - it couldn't have been hotter. He definitely made that performance...


9. Shocker: Kings of Leon beating out Lady Gaga for Record of the Year.

Don't get me wrong - I pretty much wore out my Kings of Leon CD; but, Gaga's worldwide popularity is undeniable, so I'm definitely surprised by this win.

10. The Grammy's attempts at web 2.0... not impressive, but thanks for trying!

People had the opportunity to vie for a spot on the Black Eyed Peas' Grammy performance by uploading their own rendition of some Black Eyed Peas songs. However, the chosen performances hardly received any attention. They were shown on a couple screens that never received anything more than, at best, a few medium shots. I'm sure many, many people were disappointed.

Also, the Grammy's and CBS collaborated to host "You Pick It, They Play It!" where viewers could go online and choose the song they wanted Bon Jovi to perform as the third in the rock band's Grammy set list. Bon Jovi ended the set with "Livin' on a Prayer" - as chosen by the fans.

To see the full list of this year's Grammy Award winners, click here.

Kanye West shows lack of respect for Taylor Swift at 2009 MTV VMAs

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) haven't even been broadcast in my time zone for 15 minutes, yet there has already been a fair share of dramatic occurrences. I have to begin by saying I am so disappointed in Kanye West. This hip hop artist and fashion designer is known for saying how he feels, but he went too far tonight at the VMAs in New York City.

Taylor Swift is a 19-year-old country-pop singer and songwriter who has won over millions of fans all over the world with her music and sweet personality. Her music is easy to relate to and her down-to-earth personality shines through during interviews and her performances. This young lady won the first award of the night - best female video - and began her acceptance speech by saying how shocked she was at winning her first VMA. However, she was rudely and abruptly interrupted by Kanye West who jumped on stage and grabbed the mic out from her hands. He looked at her and said "he's really happy for her" and that he'll "let her finish" once he's done speaking. Uhh excuse me?

Kanye continued by turning to the audience and saying that Beyonce (a fellow nominee) "had one of the best videos of all time". Okay, let's back track here. Kanye has the nerve to interrupt Taylor and then tells a crowd of millions all over the world that she doesn't deserve to win because apparently Beyonce's video was better than hers? Wow.

As Kanye spoke his mind, the camera got a reaction shot from Beyonce who looked shocked. The director goes back to Kanye, and a completely surprised and sad Taylor can be seen standing defeated behind him. Kanye turns back to Taylor and hands her the mic. She stands there looking down at the stage as if thinking "what just happened?" The crowd began to stand up and cheer her name. It was, however, too late. The singer was disrupted, defeated and the director rightly chose to cut to a video clip.

At first I thought maybe it was some sort of joke made by MTV, but no, it wasn't. My heart goes out to Taylor, and I am very anxious to see if Kanye will apologize to Taylor later on in the show or on his blog.

Back to some lighter news, Janet Jackson made a heartfelt performance in the Michael Jackson dance medley tribute that opened the awards ceremony. She lip synched to 1995's "Scream" - the duet she sang with her brother Michael - and danced at centre stage while the video screen behind her had Michael dancing the same moves.

Apparently I'm writing slowly, because the VMAs are almost over. However, as Diddy and Jamie Sigler presented an award, Diddy mentioned Kanye's name and the crowd immediately began to boo and chant Taylor's name. I'm looking forward to seeing and reading the backlash for Kanye online and in both print and TV media tomorrow.

The VMAs began over two hours ago, and Beyonce just won an award. Demonstrating what a world-class artist should act like, she received her award and recalled how exciting it felt to win an award at 17-years-old while being apart of Destiny's Child. She therefore called Taylor out on stage to have her own special moment. Taylor walked on stage, hugged Beyonce, and asked the audience if she could "try this again".

Check out the video of Kanye making a fool out of himself at the 2009 MTV VMAs: