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Posts tagged as “Grammy Awards”

Pharrell Williams Tops Grammys with Producer, Record of the Year Wins

By goodblacknews on January 27, 2014

Pharrell Williams, Daft Punk and Nile Rodgers accept Best Duo/Group Grammy Award
Pharrell Williams, Daft Punk and Nile Rodgers accepting Best Duo/Group  Performance Grammy Award

Although he easily could have been remembered solely for his avant garde Vivienne Westwood hat this Grammy year, Pharrell Williams‘ musical forays trumped his sartorial whims last night, garnering him Producer of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance honors.  Williams also has partial claim to the Album of the Year award, which electronic duo Daft Punk won for Random Access Memories (featuring two Pharrell collaborations.)  Other notable winners were Mackelmore & Ryan Lewis, (Best New Artist, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Album), Alicia Keys (Best R&B Album), Bruno Mars (Best Pop Vocal Album), Ziggy Marley (Best Reggae Album) and Jay Z and Justin Timberlake, who won Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Holy Grail.”
Beyoncé and Jay Z opened the show with the steamy, risqué “Drunk in Love,” kicking off a night filled with larger-than-life performances including Pink‘s literal and vocal acrobatics on “Try” and “Just Give Me A Reason,” Katy Perry‘s witchy snap vibe on “Dark Horse” with Juicy J , Kendrick Lamar and Imagine Dragons‘ brilliant, burning mash up of “m.A.A.d City” and “Radioactive,” and Pharrell, Nile Rodgers and Daft Punk with Stevie Wonder on a version of “Get Lucky” that flawlessly blended in Chic’s “Le Freak” and Wonder’s “Another Star.”
One of the biggest, funnest surprises of the evening came late in the show when Queen Latifah introduced Mackelmore & Ryan Lewis, Mary Lambert and Trombone Shorty‘s performance of “Same Love.” Midway through the song, Latifah re-appeared to officiate a wedding ceremony for thirty-three couples – heterosexual and homosexual – in the aisles of the Los Angeles Staples Center.  As they said their “I dos”, Madonna strolled out in a white suit, hat and cane, melding the chorus of “Open Your Heart” into “Same Love.”
A full list of the Grammy winners follows below:
Album of the Year: “Random Access Memories,” Daft Punk

Record of the Year: “Get Lucky,” Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams
Song of the Year: “Royals,” Joel Little, Ella Yelich O’Connor (Lorde)
Best Country Album: “Same Trailer, Different Park,” Kacey Musgraves
Best Pop Vocal Album: “Unorthodox Jukebox,” Bruno Mars
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: “Holy Grail,” Jay Z and Justin Timberlake
Best Pop Solo Performance: Lorde
Best Rock Song: “Cut Me Some Slack,” Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Krist Novoselic, Pat Smear
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance: “Get Lucky,” Daft Punk
Best New Artist: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Maya Angelou to Receive Honorary Book Award

By goodblacknews on September 5, 2013

Dr. Maya Angelou poses at the the Special Recognition Event for Dr. Maya Angelou � The Michael Jackson Tribute Portrait at Dr. Angelou's home June 21, 2010 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. (Photo by Ken Charnock/Getty Images)
Dr. Maya Angelou poses at the the Special Recognition Event for Dr. Maya Angelou The Michael Jackson Tribute Portrait at Dr. Angelou’s home June 21, 2010 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. (Photo by Ken Charnock/Getty Images)

The book world is finally honoring Maya Angelou.

The poet and author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings will be this year’s recipient of the Literarian Award, an honorary National Book Award for contributions to the literary community, the National Book Foundation announced today. It is the first major literary prize for the 85-year-old Angelou, who has been celebrated everywhere from the Grammy Awards to the White House. She has received three Grammys for best spoken word album, a National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor.

Speaking by telephone with The Associated Press, Angelou said she couldn’t wait to be in the same room as “some very big names in the literary world” and that the Literarian prize made her feel that she was “picking in high cotton.”

“Dr. Angelou’s body of work transcends the words on the page,” the book foundation’s executive director, Harold Augenbraum, said in a statement. “She has been on the front lines of history and the fight for social justice and decade after decade remains a symbol of the redemptive power of literature in the contemporary world.”

R.I.P. Cleotha Staples of the Staples Singers

By goodblacknews on February 26, 2013

 
APphoto_Obit-Cleotha Staples
Cleotha ”Cleedi” Staples (pictured), the eldest member of the famed soul/gospel group, The Staple Singers, passed away on Feb. 21 of causes related to Alzheimer’s disease. The performer had battled the disease for over a decade, according to Philly.com.  She was 78.  Cleotha was born in Drew, Miss., on April 11, 1934 to Roebuck “Pops” Staples and his wife Oceola. She was soon followed by siblings Pervis, Yvonne, Mavis and Cynthia.
After relocating to Chicago in search of better employment opportunities, Cleotha’s father managed to work a few manual labor jobs while Oceola toiled at a hotel stint overnight. Pops began to teach his children gospel songs in order to keep them entertained during the evenings while their mother worked. Pops’ sister Katie enjoyed her brother and his family’s singing so much that she invited them to sing at her church one Sunday morning in 1948. Congregants loved what they heard and begged for three encores.  This event marked the beginning of the Staples family’s professional singing career.
The Staple Singers “Respect Yourself” On Soul Train: 
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X-UPmTAWMg&w=420&h=315]

Bruno Mars, Rihanna and Sting to Perform Together at Grammys

By goodblacknews on February 4, 2013
From left, Bruno Mars, Rihanna and Sting will perform together at the Grammy Awards on Sunday.From left, Evan Agostini/Invision, via Associated Press; Jon Furniss/Invision, via Associated Press; Hussein Malla/Associated PressFrom left, Bruno Mars, Rihanna and Sting will perform together at the Grammy Awards on Sunday.

To the ever-growing list of artists already scheduled to perform at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, add this unlikely combination: Bruno Mars, Rihanna and Sting. The trio will perform together during the show, the Recording Academy announced Monday, as will Kelly Clarkson. All but Sting also are nominees for awards this year.
In another unusual pairing, the show will also have Sir Elton John and the 21-year-old British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performing together in a live setting for the first time. The Black Keys, Fun., the Lumineers and Frank Ocean will also be making their debuts as Grammy performers on the Sunday night broadcast on CBS.
The ranks of Grammy presenters is also swelling, with Prince, Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson and Jennifer Lopez now confirmed in that role. They join a list that also includes Carly Rae Jepsen and Katy Perry from the pop world; the country music stars Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and Keith Urban; and two stars of hit television series, Kaley Cuoco and Neil Patrick Harris.
article by Larry Rohter via nytimes.com
 

Born On This Day in 1938: Singing Legend Etta James

By goodblacknews on January 25, 2013

Etta JamesBorn Jamesetta Hawkins in Los Angeles, CA on January 25, 1938, Etta James was an American singer whose style spanned a variety of music genres including blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, soul, gospel and jazz.  Starting her career in 1954, she gained fame with hits such as “Roll With Me, Henry“, “At Last“, “Tell Mama“, “Something’s Got a Hold on Me“, and “I’d Rather Go Blind” for which she wrote the lyrics.  James is regarded as having bridged the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and is the winner of six Grammys and 17 Blues Music Awards. She was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, the Blues Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Grammy Hall of Fame in both 1999 and 2008. Rolling Stone ranked James number 22 on their list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time and number 62 on the list of the 100 Greatest Artists.  To learn more about Etta James, click here, and watch her perform “Something’s Got A Hold On Me” below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ0ObhAYo4M
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson

Happy Birthday, Beyoncé!

By goodblacknews on September 4, 2012

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ob7vObnFUJc&w=560&h=315]
Happy 31st Birthday, Grammy Award-Winning recording artist Beyoncé Knowles-Carter! Learn more about her life and music here  and watch her “Love On Top” above.

Whitney Houston's Memorabilia Set To Be Displayed At The Grammy Museum

By goodblacknews on July 25, 2012

Nearly six months after Whitney Houston’s untimely death, fans will have the opportunity to view the legendary singer’s vast collection of memorabilia at a special exhibit at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles.  The exhibit dubbed “Whitney! Celebrating the Musical Legacy of Whitney Houston,” will display items such as Houston’s bible, photographs and her famous white gown worn during the 1994 Grammy Awards will be among the many things.

Whitney Houston’s Memorabilia Set To Be Displayed At The Grammy Museum

By goodblacknews on July 25, 2012

Nearly six months after Whitney Houston’s untimely death, fans will have the opportunity to view the legendary singer’s vast collection of memorabilia at a special exhibit at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles.  The exhibit dubbed “Whitney! Celebrating the Musical Legacy of Whitney Houston,” will display items such as Houston’s bible, photographs and her famous white gown worn during the 1994 Grammy Awards will be among the many things.