In what came as no surprise to anyone, last night’s Grammys ceremony was a downer (so many ballads!). Not a problem, though; by now, we can entertain ourselves, so GIFs and Twitter jokes helped sustain us. Lots of GIFs and Twitter jokes.
Globally, there were 20.9 million tweets about the telecast between 5 p.m. and 11:40 p.m. Easter time—you can see them in the map above—and 45 million Facebook reactions. Compare that to the 25 million people who watched in the U.S., and it’s clear that the second screen was the first and only destination for many of us.
As for popular topics, Kanye West topped the conversation—his am-I-or-nah fakeout crashing Beck’s Album of the Year acceptance speech got the most tweets-per minute, followed by Madonna’s minotaur-laden performance and Sam Smith’s win for Record of the Year. Meanwhile, Smith’s win for Record of the Year also topped Facebook conversations, followed by AC/DC’s opening number (remember, your dad’s on Facebook now), Madonna’s performance (so is your mom), and Smith’s win for Best Pop Vocal Album.
Smith’s win for Record of the Year got more shine than any of his other three wins largely because he thanked the man who broke his heart, inspired his song “Stay with Me,” and “got me four Grammys.” (Not thanked: Tom Petty.) It was an “Awww, shucks” moment that everyone wanted to chime in on—but it was also just the beginning. People took to social media to weigh in on the beef-ending reunion of Kanye and Taylor Swift (the last person whose acceptance speech he crashed), Prince’s umpteenth reminder that he’s a national treasure, and Kristen Wiig’s interpretive dance during Sia’s “Chandelier” performance (taking a page from Kate McKinnon and Jim Carrey). And in case you missed them—after all, Bob’s Burgers and The Walking Dead were on—here are all the best moments—and the snark that grew out of them.
The Happy Reunion of Kanye West and Taylor Swift
Back in 2009, Taylor Swift won a MTV VMA that Kanye West thought Beyoncé deserved, leading to his infamous “Imma let you finish” speech. Now these many years later, they seem to have put that all behind them. And maybe West has moved on to other artists to interrupt … ?
Kanye West (Maybe?) Starts a Beef with Beck
When Beck beat Beyoncé for album of the year, West faked like he was going to … well, pull a Kanye. Much to Bey and Jay Z’s relief, though, he played it off like a joke. Which isn’t to say he didn’t feel some type of way about it; speaking to E! News after the show he did say “Beck needs to respect artistry and he should have given his award to Beyoncé.”
Sam Smith Dedicating His Award to the Guy Who Broke His Heart
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Kleenex for everyone.
Kristen Wiig Pwning Sia’s ‘Chandelier’ Performance
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Did anyone see this coming? Because we didn’t. In a night light on levity, Wiig was a sight for very sore eyes.
President Obama Speaking Up to End Violence Against Women
Sure, Katy Perry left Left Shark at home for her somber Grammys performance, but this video that played beforehand was the best non-music-related moment of the show. It’s already been re-watched on YouTube more than a half a million times—not bad for a politician.
Madonna’s ‘Living For Love’ Exit
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Proper divas know how to make an entrance. Life-long members of the Diva Club like Madonna also know how to make an exit. When her cadre of minotaurs hoisted her into the air at the end of her “Living for Love” number, she looked like the best prize you could ever hope to get out of a bowling alley claw machine.
Pharrell’s Ferguson Homage During ‘Happy’
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Pharrell’s performance crammed in so many elements it sounded like a Stefon sketch: “a bellhop outfit, a classical pianist, legendary film composer Hans Zimmer on electric guitar, a gospel choir, and a tribute to one of the saddest stories of 2014.” Still, it was a lovely version of a song you’ve probably heard too many times by now, with an unexpected poignancy.
Prince Being the GOAT Yet Again
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We would like to nominate Price for Best Awards Presenter of All Time.
Tony Bennet and Lady Gaga’s ‘Cheek to Cheek’ Performance
Tony Bennet & Lady Gaga – Cheek To Cheek… by artoonnii
Fine, we’re convinced; these two are great together. Bring on the Las Vegas cabaret residency!
Annie Lennox Saving Hozier’s ‘Take Me to Church’ Performance
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Last night, Hozier turned in another boring performance of his boring track “Take Me to Church.” Luckily, Annie Lennox showed up halfway through to sing “I Put a Spell On You” and take control of the whole damn thing—while also causing a lot of Facebook chatter. More like “take me to school,” amirite?
Rihanna Slays Everything
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If you haven’t heard the Rihanna/Paul McCartney/Kanye West collaboration “FourFiveSeconds” you may not know what a crazy earworm it is. (You also probably haven’t been reading our Audio Visuals column, which you should be doing.) Anyway, the trio brought the song’s incredibly infectious sound to the Grammys stage last night. RiRi only made the above expression once, but it made up for rarity with intensity. TAKE THAT, GRAMMYS STAGE.
Beyoncé Finally Performs
The night concluded with Beyoncé’s rendition of “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” followed by Common and John Legend’s performance of “Glory” from Selma. It was perfect. The story behind it was fantastic, too.
Taylor Swift’s Happy Feet
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Swift opened the night by presenting Best New Artist to Sam Smith. In doing so she joked that she once lost that award in 2008 (to Amy Winehouse) and advised this year’s losers to “shake it off” if they didn’t take home the Grammy. She then proceeded to shake it throughout the entire night, dancing at every turn—even to ELO. (Or, at least, she was dancing when she wasn’t on Tumblr.)
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