In honour of Monday’s Grammy Awards, here’s a list of ten of the most memorable Grammy moments in recent years. For the most established awards night in popular music, the Grammys are pretty light on shock value compared to, say, the VMAs (the younger, flashier Prince Harry to the Grammys’ sedate Prince William), but — as seen below – they’ve still had their share of legendary performances. And a couple of equally legendary stage invasions. . .
Memorable Grammy Moments
10. The White Stripes (2004)
On the back of their commercial breakthrough with “Seven Nation Army” , Jack and Meg White’s performance of that song and Son House cover “Death Letter” announced the former John Gillis as a man with guitar skills just as impressive as his songwriting ones, jamming out at the end like his life depended on it.
9. Christina Aguilera/Lil’Kim/Mya/Pink [feat. Missy Elliott and Patti LaBelle] — “Lady Marmalade” [2002]
Easily the most enjoyable moment of the sometimes-confounding “Moulin Rouge” soundtrack, this Grammy-winning (Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals) cover of the 1974 LaBelle hit transformed the stage into a turn-of-the-century Paris brothel, culminating in an appearance by Ms Patti LaBelle herself wearing more red feathers than anyone ever knew existed.
8. 50 Cent actually is going to let you finish [2004]
After losing out on the Best New Artist Grammy to Arkansas mall goths Evanescence, Curtis “50 Cent Jackson” demonstrated his displeasure by walking onto the stage with them, flashing the peace sign to cameras, walking the length of the stage and strolling off back into the audience. He later expressed remorse and publicly berated Kanye West for his infamous interruption of Taylor Swift’s 2009 VMA speech.
7. Paul McCartney & Dave Grohl — “I Saw Her Standing There” (2009)
Dave Grohl returned to his drum kit to back McCartney on a spirited rendition of the Beatles hit, looking every second like he’d died and gone to heaven. Awww.
6. Gorillaz & Madonna in hologram form (2006)
An awesome technological achievement more than a musical one, cartoon indie kids Gorillaz appeared as 3D holograms [with bored-looking frontman 2D even texting during De La Soul’s guest rap], before a mind-blowingly realistic Madonna hologram arrived to perform “Hung Up” .
5. Jay-Z, Kanye West, TI, Lil’ Wayne & M.I.A. — “Swagga Like Us” (2009)
Introduced by presenter Queen Latifah as “the Rap Pack” , four of modern hip-hop’s elder statesmen traded rhymes in a testosterone-fueled equivalent to “Lady Marmalade” , with tuxedos instead of corsets and a very pregnant M.I.A. providing the hook.
4. Ol’ Dirty Bastard shares his clothing-related woes (1998)
The late Wu-Tang MC mysteriously appeared onstage as country singer Shawn Colvin received her Best Song award, explaining that he’d spent large amount of money on an outfit for the evening in the mistaken belief that Wu-Tang’s 1998 album “Wu-Tang Forever” was going to win in the Best Album category (it had already lost to Puff Daddy earlier in the day). Admittedly the outfit in question, chiefly comprising a long red coat and a white scarf, was pretty awesome.
3. Eminem & Elton John — “Stan” (2001)
The Detroit MC, who had come under fire for his lyrics, replaced British songstress Dido with Elton John [sporting a pink suit] for his performance of the most disturbing #1 hit since. . . well, ever. The result was of one of the most lauded performances in Grammy history.
2. Daft Punk/Kanye West — “Stronger” (2008)
With its sample of Daft Punk’s “Harder Better Faster Stronger” , West’s explosive 2007 single, revived public interest in the French electronica duo. In a performance that stayed true to the Grammy spirit [why have one performer onstage when you can have more than one?] they provided the beats from behind a giant smoke-shooting pyramid while West’s energy, despite his tendency to shout when performing live, was infectious enough to bring even the most staid board member to their feet.
1. Bob Dylan vs Soy Bomb (1998)
One of a group of dancers hired by the Grammy committee to put Dylan at ease during his performance of “Love Sick” by standing in the background with and bobbing their heads to the music, performance artist Michael Portnoy tore off his shirt mid-song, exposing a scrawny chest with the words “SOY BOMB” scrawled thereupon, and proceeded to dance enthusiastically next to Dylan for the next 40 seconds until security finally realized he wasn’t part of the performance.
