Entertainment Weekly - February 24 - March 3, 2017

16 EW.COM FEBRUARY 24/MARCH 3, 2017

says. “If there’s no Beyoncé performance,

that would drive down ratings.” (Ocean, who

declined to submit his albumBlondefor con-

sideration, skipped the show, as did nominees

Drake and Kanye West.) “It’s affected us over

the years that artists who really enjoy doing

the show have lost faith in what the awards

structure is,” says Ehrlich.

Adele’s sweep of five out of five awards

does make some sense: 25 is one of two

diamond-certified albums this decade. (The

other? Adele’s Grammy-winning sophomore

album, 21 .) And her latest LP is the sort of

traditional-sounding pop album that

resonates with older Grammy voters. “Peo-

ple are making a mountain out of a mole-

hill,” one voting member tells EW. “[ 25 ]

was the biggest success in our industry the

last couple years, and that’s why it was

acknowledged—not because Adele is white

and Beyoncé is black.” (The Grammys web-

site says the awards honor “technical profi-

ciency and overall excellence...without

regard to album sales or chart position.”)

Gary Clark Jr., who presented Beyoncé with

the Urban Contemporary award, also says he

wasn’t shocked by the Album of the Year

results: “Did it surprise me? No.”

Still, critics say the Recording Academy,

which doesn’t release the demographic

makeup of its 14,000 voters, can take steps

to diversify its membership, which many

speculate to be largely older and white.

That’s especially important considering the

Oscars have pledged to diversify their own

voter base while adding restrictions to their

existing member pool. “They should do a

better job of encouraging people [to vote]

from the urban and hip-hop fields—doing a

better outreach to younger members [of

the music community],” says the voter.

“Perhaps I’m being naive, but I just don’t

think there’s a conspiracy. The voters are

music lovers, not prejudiced people.” Still,

if the Recording Academy doesn’t make

efforts to address the issue, it may find

more artists boycotting the ceremony. In a

pair of since-deleted tweets, Beyoncé’s sis-

ter, Solange Knowles, offered another path

for artists of color: “Create your own com-

munities, build your own institutions.”

Additional reporting by Kevin O’Donnell
and Lynette Rice

ARTISTS WERE

ENCOURAGED TO

GET POLITICAL

Before the ceremony

began, longtime

Grammys executive

producer Ken

Ehrlich took to the

stage to dispatch

the usual bits of

housekeeping—give

short acceptance

speeches, keep the

program moving—

but he also

encouraged anyone

coming to the stage

to make a state-

ment: “Say

something impor-

tant tonight. We’re

expecting it.” Artists

including J. Lo and

Beyoncé took him

up on it.

THE STAGE WAS

ONE BIG PUZZLE

For much of the

night the stage was

split into two perfor-

mance spaces:

As an artist sang on

one side, crew

were either building

up or taking down

the other side. The

Weeknd’s elaborate

setup was in place

before the show

even started and

was still being

taken apart during

Keith Urban and

Carrie Underwood’s

performance.

Likewise, Beyoncé’s

flowery floor wreath

for “Sandcastles”

was ready to go

before Lukas

Graham and Kelsea

Ballerini dueted,

and the chandeliers

from Alicia Keys

and Maren Morris’

set were assembled

during Katy Perry’s

song.

EVERYONE HOPPED

ON THE CARPOOL

KARAOKE

Host James Cor-

den’s sing-along

didn’t just ensnare

Neil Diamond, John

Legend, and Blue

Ivy Carter. The

entire room joined

in to belt out

Diamond’s “Sweet

Caroline.” It was

one of the loudest

(and most harmoni-

ous) moments of

the evening.

CELEBS GOT

STARSTRUCK BY

ADELE TOO!

Judging by audience

cheers, nobody

seemed to mind

when Adele stopped

“Fastlove” mid-

performance to

restart the George

Michael tribute. But

perhaps nobody

was more supportive

than Faith Hill, who

stood up from her

seat and pumped

her fist in solidarity.

Later, Lady Gaga

popped into Adele’s

dressing room,

where she “was fan-

girling and congrat-

ulating her,” a source

toldPeople and EW.

Sweetest devotion

indeed.



(Clockwise

from top)

James

Corden’s

Carpool

Karaoke;

Katy

Perry; Daft

Punk and

the

Weeknd

4 THINGS YOU DIDN’T SEE AT THE GRAMMYS

Cameras can’t catch everything! From preshow pronouncements to backstage

bonding, EW was your eyes and ears inside the Staples Center.BY NOLAN FEENEY

CORDEN’S CARPOOL KARAOKE, PERRY: CHRISTOPHER POLK/GETTY IMAGES (2); THE WEEKND AND DAFT PUNK: KEVIN WINTER/GETTY IMAGES