So Sunday past, the 61st annual Grammy Award Show took place in Los Angeles, California. And I was keeping up with the show via a livestream I got off of Twitter and on-and-off my cousin Marsha’s smart TV.

I watched with the anticipation of being disappointed throughout the entire show. However, my pessimistic approach to this year’s Grammy’s may have been unwarranted as it wasn’t quite as bad this go-round.

Most of the artists I found myself rooting for to win in 2019 got their just desserts. Notwithstanding, the show still could’ve been a lot more memorable and iconic.

And so today, I’ll be giving my top 5 dislike, disagreements, and disappointments with the Grammy’s this year.

FAIR WARNING: My opinions are subjected to my own personal biases.

Shall we begin?

#5. Alicia Keys As Host

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love me some Alicia Keys! “Concrete jungle wet dream tomato” , am I right? She is a fifteen-time Grammy award winning artist of impeccable caliber. But I was not connecting with her hosting role. I did not feel any magic emanating from her as a host. It felt contrived and mostly awkward.

And not the haha, funny kind of awkward. Trust me, I live that particular brand of awkward each day, so I’d know. Her brand of awkward was more so unsettling and felt flat. And I get that she’s mellowed out a lot over the years and subjected herself to a more minimalistic lifestyle (appearance-wise), but to be frank, she sounded high throughout the night.

Calm, cool, collected, and high as a highway unicorn. Every time she spoke all I could hear was “The music maaan” ,“My brothers and sisters in music maaaan” , and “Music brings us all together maaan”. Like Scoob, do you know where they put the snacks maaan?

Maybe I’m taking this a bit far, but you get my point. Love her as a musician and artist, but not as a host. Too kumbaya for me.

#4. The Performance Line-up Was Lackluster

From the news broke that Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and Childish Gambino turned down the opportunity to perform at this year’s Grammy’s, I know we were in for a snooze fest. Additionally, Ariana Grande’s performance was scrapped, which also sucked.

So heading into the show with these things in mind, I decided to remain hopeful that I’d still be wowed by those who were set to perform. And for the most part, I wasn’t. The best performance of the night was Janelle Monae’s extended rendition of ‘Make Me Feel’. I also enjoyed Camila Cabello teaming up with Young Thug, Ricky Martin and J Balvin.

Cardi B’s performance was fun. Loved Gaga’s ‘Shallow’ performance and Brandi Carlile’s vocally captivating ‘The Joke’ run. Oh, Chloe X Halle’s performance was captivating as well. And as much as I like how the fusion of Dua Lipa and St. Vincent sound on paper, the execution left more to be desired.

So yeah, the Grammy’s could’ve basically kept everything else that night. Last year’s performances made this year’s look like a joke. Even though they did offer Lorde a chance to perform solo last year. But whatevs.

#3. Travis Scott Did Not Win A Grammy

If you all read my 5 Artists Who Deserve A Grammy in 2019 post, you’d know that I was especially rooting for Travis Scott to get his moment underneath the sun. At least one Grammy for ‘Sicko Mode’ should have been awarded to him.

It was easily one of the most forward-thinking rap songs of 2018. Mind you, I’m not discrediting anyone else who won over him in the categories he was nominated. I just feel like he put forth some of the more engaging content of the past musical year.

It would appear that wearing a billionaire as a good luck charm doesn’t ensure you a Grammy win. Bummer, I loved ‘Sicko Mode’. But there’s always next time right?

#2. People Criticized Cardi B For Winning A Grammy

People tend to forget that these are just awards, awards that do not dictate the worth of any artist. (Lol I sound like Drake right before they cut him off!) But seriously folks, we all know that these awards shows (especially The Grammy’s) have a lot of politics and racial issues filtering their choices in regards to who is actually deemed a “winner”, let alone nominated.

But I find it unfair to bash someone for winning an award they worked very hard to obtain. ‘Invasion Of Privacy’ was one of the most-acclaimed albums of 2018 by any MC male or female. It may not have been the most intricate or poetic, but it had people moving from side-to-side from start to finish. And I felt anyone in the Rap Album category deserved the win.

Then again, this is all comes down to personal preference and which body of work you found yourself connecting with most. Look, I like Cardi B as a personality more than an artist, but I will not sit up here and type that did not enjoy a polite portion of her album. The lady is a testament that hard work really pays off.

#1. Janelle Monae Did Not Win A Grammy

Even after giving the most memorable, show-stopping performance of the evening, the academy once again pays dust to another amazing body of work. Now, I’m not knocking Kacey Musgraves’ ‘Golden Hour’ in the least. Nothing wrong with some good ole Country Pop.

That album just doesn’t do it for me personally. Sonically, it was bearable, vocally it was bearable, it was just there really. On the flip side, ‘Dirty Computer’ was electrifying, groovy, pulsing with flavors old and new, it spoke to so many political and racial issues of today, and gave music listeners an engaging narrative.

It had a prevalent conscience about it and made no apologies for it. It was as inspiring as Pop music got in 2018. Then again, the Academy has been known to go for the safer choices for the Album of The Year Award. The non Hip-Hop albums that didn’t really push any artistic boundaries, ruffle any feathers, or speak profoundly to cultural issues.

But as a fellow Pop-enthusiast, I felt like Janelle was under-nominated and deserving of at least 1 win. It was classic case of Grammy’s deja vu with Lorde’s ‘Melodrama’ (Yes, I had to say it!). Hopefully, Janelle gets her moment next time because she definitely proved that she is a creative force to be reckoned with.

So yeah, in a nutshell, these are my thoughts on the 2019 Grammy Awards.

Did you enjoy the list? Who would you like to see take home a Grammy in 2019? Let me know in the comment section below.

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