BET Awards ’09: we love you, Michael!

The show starts off with tape of Michael draping a sequined cape on James Brown at his performance at the ’03 BET Awards.  He did a few fancy foot moves a la JB, and bowed to the Godfather of Soul.  Then we hear the beginning of ABC and see 5 or 6 people [it’s hard to tell] silhouetted in front of a band and a screen showing the Jackson 5.  I can’t tell who iss singing lead on this, but he kinda reminds me of Ralph Tresvant and he’s having trouble reaching the high notes [being a grown man, I can see why].  The background vocals are ok, but we’re just left with a kinda weird feeling best summed up by the face on Weezy, mid-performance.  I can’t find a pic, but watch that stuff if you haven’t seen that.

Oh, snap! It really is New Edition.  With Bobby Brown.  And it’s a little bit scary.  They could’ve at least tried to pitch it a little lower.

So.  Um.  MC Lyte is just the official announcer for the BET Awards?  Like, that’s what she’s doing now?

Anyways, Jamie Foxx is doing really great doing the dance from Beat It, when you consider he had like, no time to practice this wknd.  He’s in the This is a celebration of MJ.  And for real, I’ve never seen grown white people faint for any other artist.  All over the freakin’ world.

I’m happy to see Jeremy Piven – just because I have a huge thing for Jeremy Piven.  Haven’t seen him in a while, since I don’t have HBO.

Tyra (wearing a really cute top) presents top athlete to LeBron.  And Best male Hip-Hop artist: Lil Wayne.  With an entourage.

Ginuwine remembers the Motown 25 performance as his pivotal MJ moment.

BET is seriously having some technical difficulties, cuz Jamie doesn’t know when he’s back on and he’s giving the censors a rough time with his intermittent cuss words…

But Keri Hilson’s performance was pretty good.  Ending on MJ woulda been good…but then she went too far and decided to get her version of the Holy Ghost.  Wasn’t good.

Neyo’s Lady in My Life is simple, and lovely.  And I’m getting tears.  I still can’t believe he’s gone.

Alright Keke Palmer can sing.  But now the spotlight’s on Jamie.  Blame It, y’all.  Tyra knows these words.  What’s up with Snoop on the stage?  He’s just dancing around?  And T-Pain brought his drink onstage?  Wearing a Big @ss Chain?  Ok…now it’s a lil bit weird with Travis Barker on drums and Jamie playing electric guitar.  But that was a great catch by the stage hand.  Jamie just threw that guitar at that guy.

BET needs to come a lil bit more correct to honor MJ.  Things are still running behind.

I’m just not into Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em, but apparently even Taraji knows the words to Turn My Swag On.  Jamie’s for real, though – he isn’t writing any songs.  He’s just talking about his day.  Blah.

Best Collabo: Jamie Foxx and T-Pain.  Cuz, really, Blame It is crazy hot.  Like…8 months later?  Still hot.  I don’t think I’ve seen T-Pain’s face before.  He looks a lot better without the glasses.

Best Male R&B: Ne-Yo.  Cuz who else is there right now, anyway?  He said he wasn’t expecting this, but – I dunno who else was nominated, so…

Dr.’s Davis, Hunt, and Jenkins made a pact to stay in school and become doctors.  That’s cool.  Don’t hear much about that kind of thing.  And they don’t look bad either.

So, I have I am…Sasha Fierce and I’ve listened to Ave Maria, and it just comes across strange to me.  The robe thing that Beyonce had on for the beginning of the performance was weird..but then the change to a bride(?) outfit was a little weird.  And then, instead of Halo, which is what I thought we were going to hear, Bey sings Angel by Sarah McLachlan.  And then she goes into the actual Latin Ave Maria. With a very strong accent.    That skirt was just bizarre, though.  I was just…confused…by the whole experience.  I thought Halo would’ve been more fitting than either/any of that other stuff.

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SheNehNeh and Wanda?  That was hilarious.

Mary Mary are turning it out for Jesus, y’all.  I heard God In Me banging in a car on the road one day and I had no idea it was Mary Mary.  And Queen La is on it, too.  Why don’t I have this album, yet?

WTF?  Zoe Saldana just tells us all that Nichelle Nichols – the woman who “paved the way for…an entire generation” – is not on stage cuz she in the Ladies’ Room?!?!  That’s just a bit crazy.

Best Female Actress: Taraji P. Henson.  [Hot dress, T!]

Best New Artist: Keri Hilson.  ATL, y’all.  [not into the dress though.]

And now, Jamie and Ne-Yo – Miss Independent Remix.  I like this song, but the dancer is a little bit weird.  Fabolous comes out for the rap and I wonder…haven’t heard anything from him in a while…What’s up with Jamie calling out the recession?  Once was funny.  Twice was kinda..weird.

Ooooh wee.  Keith Sweat is just as ugly as he ever was.  Oooh, wee! 

the music of my life

Seems like music is everywhere, all the time in my life.  I’ve been singing since I was 2, and there’s always a song in my head.  This has become a wondrous gift in the last 6 months or so, when things at work were so incredibly bad…Songs of encouragement, and strength, and songs that mirrored my pain flew into my mind at turns.  Comforting, reassuring, inspiring me.

Often, though, I sing what I’m doing.  And I don’t realize it until someone else hears me.  This makes for some awkward conversations, sometimes.  My favorite inconsistency about my personal musical soundtrack is the fact that I always sing a song when I get my spoon in the lunchroom at work.  I do not sing one when I only get a fork.  My spoon song is not lyrically intensive – as evidenced here:

Spoon – eh, spoon – eh, spoooon.  Spoon – eh, spoon – eh, Spoon.

But it’s very fun to sing.  I find that the word fork is just not quite so musical.

So, today on CNN I saw this on the crawl: music a ‘mega-vitamin’ for the brain.  And reading the article, I see

[music is] capable of influencing and improving motor function, communication and even cognition.

That’s pretty cool.

I totally know it’s great for memory, because I’ve memorized an awful lot of songs in my life.  From commercials to tv theme songs to pop songs, folk songs, and hymns.  And putting history facts to music [a la SchoolHouse Rock], is how I’ll never forget that women got the right to vote in 1920 – via the 19th amendment to the Constitution.  And, of course, that’s how I learned the Preamble.

all about the band

More and more, the AI band is the best part of the show.  Certainly, they’ve shown their talent in weeks [and years] past, but tonight they were killing it.  [So there were a lot more pieces this evening, but you know, still great.]  But here’s my fave Natalie Cole:

[i can understand the feelings, but can’t get down with the somewhat anti-feminist vibe.  but i still love this song like crazy.]

Taylor Hicks back on Idol.  Huh.  I liked him better than that other girl…Kim?  Kerri?  Karen?  But she really would’ve made a better Idol.  He does do good Southern-down-homey music.  But I gotta fast forward.

I love Jamie.  Y’all know this.  Blame it on the…shoot…I don’t drink.  The song is hot, but I kinda hate that there’s so much autotune – he doesn’t need it.  And I guess this isn’t really the right song for the Idol crowd – they’re mostly preteens, and they don’t drink either. [or at least they shouldn’t be]  Maybe this song is going out to Paula.  She’s standing up.   I think I’m gonna have to call him on song choice though.

So it’s down to Matt and Adam – who’s gone?  MATT!  YAY!!!!!!  Matt should’ve gone two weeks ago.  But at least he’s gone now.  Peace.  Oh…and happy 100 days.  woo.

Foxx on Fox

I love Jamie Foxx.  I think he’s probably my favorite celebrity crush.  He’s beautiful, funny, and his voice is like buttah.  I remember watching his comedy special in the early 90s…and that’s when I fell.

Tonight Jamie came back to Fox to mentor the idols.  Kris, Allison, Matt, Danny, and Adam.

Kris was low-key as always and no big deal.  Allison’s Someone to Watch Over Me was predictably lovely, though I would’ve liked her to do a little more with the melody.  I was completely embarrassed for Matt because he came off as a know-it-all in front of Jamie, and he wasn’t that great.  Then he performed and he was his same-ol’ reliable self: a bad performer.

Then, I was completely embarrassed for Danny because he was dressed exactly like Matt had been and looked like a total dork [just like Matt had].  But his rapport with Jamie was real, so I forgave him for his fashion faux pas.  Then he sang the crap out of a song I don’t remember hearing before.  Best performance of the night, IMO.

Adam’s rendition of Feeling Good was totally his own, and I hated it.  For me it almost bordered on disrespectful, even though I know it wasn’t necessarily intentional.  I just hated it very strongly, although I agree that it was performed well.  UGH – I just thought it was awful.

Personally, I’ll stick with Jamie – old and new: