The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards

By Lily Vartanian

This past Sunday, January 31, 2010, was a date most artists within the music industry look forward to all year: The Grammy Awards. The Grammys is an annual music awards ceremony, celebrating and acknowledging mainstream musicians, as well as honoring the past musicians. Aired on CBS, this year’s Grammy’s ceremony proved to be a wonderful event filled with awards and recognition, as well as passionate tributes and performances.

Some of the artists who received Grammy Awards included Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Kings of Leon, Jason Mraz, and Michael Buble. Taylor Swift took home Album of the Year for her second album entitled “Fearless.” Beyonce made Grammy history, collecting six trophies, including song of the year for her single, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” making her the first woman to collect such a large number of Grammy Awards in one night. Other wins included Record the of Year for the band Kings of Leon, and the Black Eyed Peas as well as Jay-Z picked up three awards each.

Although the Grammy ceremony usually comes with high predictions and expectations for winners as well as performers, the performances certainly did not disappoint this year. Performances included not only a large variety of duets and collaborations, but also many unpredicted performances. Lady Gaga included an unusual performance of her song “Poker Face,” and then collaborated with Elton John. Melding her song ”Speechless” and his classic “Your Song” together featuring dueling pianos and glitter-painted faces, it started the night off to quite an interesting start.

Later, performances by The Black Eyed Peas, Jamie Foxx, Pink, Beyonce, and even a tribute to Michael Jackson helped the night cherish what brought the artists together: music. In a 3-D tribute to Jackson, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Celine Dion, Jennifer Hudson and Smokey Robinson sang along with Jackson’s “Earth Song.” His children Prince and Paris later accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award for their late father, reiterating his message. “Through all his songs his message was simple, love. We will continue to spread his message and help the world,” Prince said during the ceremony.

The night is certainly one to go down in history, but for more than one reason. This year’s ceremony attracted the most viewers it’s seen in past years, getting the attention of 25.8 million viewers, the most its had in six years. The New York Times collected the facts, finding that “not only was that up 35 percent from the 19 million who watched the awards show a year ago, but it also dwarfed recent awards shows like the Golden Globes (17 million) and the Emmy’s (13.5 million).”

Nonetheless, the Grammy Awards will continue to prove the achievements of many rising stars, past artists, as well as current performers in one honorable night.