For years, the occasion wasn't much of a big deal. When the Recording Academy announced Grammy nominations, it was usually done in a nondescript room in either New York or Los Angeles. A small, diverse group of pop stars would read off the names of nominees, throwing in corny asides here and there.
But last night, the academy changed up an old, rather boring tradition with a concert dubbed The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!! -- Countdown to Music's Biggest Night.
The hourlong show with the clunky title, which was broadcast from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, was an obvious attempt to drum up attention for the 51st Annual Grammy Awards show airing Feb. 8.
The idea for the nominations concert was undoubtedly born out of desperation, given that last year's Grammy telecast was the least-watched ever with 17.2 million viewers. But the new format largely fell flat. Much like the Grammy telecast itself, the nominations concert - live!! - was somewhat listless with wooden banter from the hosts, country-pop sensation Taylor Swift and hip-hop veteran LL Cool J.
Idiosyncratic New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne, whose latest album Tha Carter III was this year's biggest seller, led the nominations with eight, including one for album of the year.
British super group Coldplay was right behind Wayne with seven nominations for its album Viva La Vida. Perhaps one of the band's strongest releases, the CD was a huge seller when it was released in the summer. Viva La Vida is also up for album of the year.
Grammy rap darlings Kanye West and Jay-Z each garnered six nods. Hit R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo, who also wrote Jennifer Hudson's ubiquitous smash "Spotlight," received six nominations. His latest CD, the tepid Year of the Gentleman, is up for album of year.
The opening of this yawn-inducing show couldn't have been cheesier. There stood Mariah Carey, stiffly belting a Phil Spector-inspired Christmas ditty as go-go dancers, decked out in white boots and fur-trimmed plastic-looking red dresses, shimmied behind her. The performance was apparently a nod toward the holiday season, but it was still pointless.
Afterward, the academy continued an unfortunate Grammy trend: Instead of featuring the freshest sounds from some of pop's biggest names, the young stars sing faithful covers of yesterday's classics. In last night's show, the old songs were inducted into this year's Grammy Hall of Fame.
