Billboard Awards - Kesha Bleeds on Stage

2016 Billboard Awards were a night of extremes. Here's my brief thoughts as a former singer, actress, performer, dancer and all round noisy pants with opinions:

These opinions, as always, are my own and not those of the dogs lying at my feet or the teenagers nearby complaining about never having enough snacks in the house.

Britney Baby - She wasn't drunk, high, and her hair extensions survived the stripper-like choreography and hair swishing. Highly entertaining and even though she wore little more than pasties and a thong, Brit has never pretended to be anything other than a sex symbol. She doesn't try to be a role model for young women anymore. Her Vegas show is full of expletives and stripper poles, apparently. Two words to describe her extremely suggestive set: sexy and powerful.

Justin Beiber - Love the Biebs! He's a cutie with oodles of talent and did a good job last night. His set wasn't flashy, he didn't beg us to like him, he lip synced to his own track as well as singing along (unlike Britney, I believe) and as a performer who was nominated in several categories this year and had a great chance of winning something, I was happy to see him dance. Two words to describe his enjoyable set: capable and understated.

Kesha

Kesha - What can I say about this artist who hasn't performed in 5 years because of her legal battles with her record label? Dr. Luke allowed her to perform tonight and we're glad he did. Dressed in a white suit and tie, the artist performed the show-stopper of the night--a version of Bob Dylan's "It Aint Me Babe," lyrics that begged Dr. Luke to let her go without her ever mentioning the man she accuses of so many more things than mismanagement. I teared-up with Kesha's raw rendition. Had she been on her knees it wouldn't have been any more clear. It was like she was bleeding all over the stage. #FreeKesha Two words: Heart Wrenching

Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani - A muchly anticipated duet by The Voice sweethearts who kept their relationship secret for a long time and aren't seen in public much. He looked like a country star, she wore a beaded gown and movie star hair with pink eye shadow (?) and they sang in harmony staring at each other nervously. They did not look like they were having a wonderful time at all but who knows. Two words: Disjointed and anticipated

Meghan Trainor - This once country (?) singer looked like a cross between Britney and the new Taylor Swift in her choreography and song choice. I believe Ms. Trainor has abandoned country officially with her new song, No, a great message for young women. I like her. I liked her transition and admire her spunk. Two words: Brave and Tuneful

Nick Jonas - He sang beautifully. And Live, not Lip Syncing! I doubt he wore makeup and he def has never worn braces. This guy is the real deal. His duet with Tove Lo, Close, was well done although she was a little pitchy, then the set rotated and we got Devi Lovato who I love! She was awesome, hitting high notes that shouldn't even be notes, strutting and selling her new song Cool for the Summer. Two words: Nick: Real Demi: Showful

Ciara

Ludacris and Ciara - As hosts they did a good job but they are no Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, or most other duos who get the honor to host a major awards show. Ciara changed gowns and hairstyles every time we cut to commercial which made it more interesting but the chemistry between the two hosts was just lukewarm.

Ariana Grande - Great performance, gorgeous voice, fun ponytail. She reminded me of a female Justin Beiber. She wasn't overly sexual, like Brit, and she didn't stand at the mike like Kesha but it was somewhere between both those performances. Two words: Entertaining and Talented

Rhianna - Amazing rendition of a blues number, Love on the Brain by an incredible talent. Loved everything about this performance! I'm a big blues fan but her vocal interpretation was incredible and reminded me of Whitney Houston Two words: Absolutely Spellbinding


Madonna - I have been a big fan of Madge in the past but last night she looked frozen, terrified, stiff, overly suited up, and wooden. Probably she was scared of ruining a Prince song seeing she's not known for vocal perfection but rather as a performing artist. Thus, her performance could've leaned a bit towards the Britney camp with more movement, showmanship and less starched tuxedo and hairspray. Two words: Disappointing and Stiff

Pink - Along with Cirque style trapeze work, Pink did an amazing job of Just Like Fire, proving that you don't have to show a lot of skin and dance provocatively to be artistic. Two words: Daring and Artistic

The Weekend - He did not perform but was up for a ton of awards, mostly for his song I Can't Feel My Face, which I sang along to in the car all last summer. His hair is his brand. He spoke well even though he gushed about how well he knew Prince but said he'd never met him. I was happy to see that Bieber and Adele won some awards as well but The Weekend was the big winner last night, apparently. Two words: Hair, Catchiness

Notes: Taylor Swift was absent, Wiz Kalifah was eloquent, Celine Dion was choked up and Joe Jonas is in DNCE!

Kim Hornsby is an Amazon Bestselling Author, having shared the top five list with Stephen King and Dean Koontz in Psychic Suspense. Find her books and bio on Amazon,

Lip Syncing at The Billboard Awards

Lip Syncing or not lip syncing? That is the question. Some did and some didn’t exactly at America’s Billboard Awards at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas last night. And Kid Rock called them on it when he took the stage to say that everyone was singing to pre-recorded music. As much as I don’t appreciate the Kid’s music, he was right. The first person I saw who I suspected was lip syncing was Selena Gomez. Her whispery voice and Egyptian dance moves made for a lovely performance but I suspected with all that dancing, no one’s voice can be that evenly projected. As a singer, I know this stuff. Trust me.

Chris Brown did not lip sync and that performance is a perfect example of my last point. He was winded, off key, missed words and danced like there was no tomorrow. That man’s temper might be questionable (and I thought a Ninja fight scene in his choreographed number was an unusual choice) but he sure can dance. And I have to think that Chris Brown is in tip top shape. Still his singing suffered because of the dancing and that is as it should be during a live performance. No one can jump around like that and sing exactly like the recorded version. No one.

 

Justin Bieber sang along to his track, adding two vocals to the performance. The sound glitch in his second performance with Will i Am, allowed us to hear his recorded version and his almost flawless live performance. A few times he came into the phrase late and that was the clue, when we clearly heard his softer recorded track. That, and the fact that someone made a major boo boo, mixed the sound wrong and we, at home, could hear his live voice clearly above everything else. I was amazed that the kid could sing as well as he did and dance like that. Kudos to J.B.

Taylor Swift, on the other hand, (who did a darling performance of Twenty-Two), sang almost flawlessly which was highly suspicious seeing that she can barely sing live when she’s standing still. T.S. is famous for singing way off key in T.V. live performances and that could have something to do with her monitor or ear piece or excitement, but she never sings well on an awards show. So to hear the almost perfect version of Twenty Two, was extremely suspect, even though when she finished her mile run to the stage through the bowels of the MGM Grand, she was breathing hard and we could hear her panting in her head mic.

Christina Aguilera sang live. Of this I’m sure. Because she can.

Not J Lo, whose vocals are never the main focus in her performance anyhow, especially when she’s wearing red, BIG BIRD sleeves, but it’s my humble opinion that she sang along to her own vocal track too. Too bad her right boot came loose but she continued on like the trooper she is.

 In this day and age when women performers are upping the ante to include full- on dancing/stage shows, Madonna-style, is it ridiculous to ask them to sing live as well? Who could do it? Madonna can’t. Even she lip syncs at her shows sometimes (or maybe all the time). But have you ever seen a Madonna show? OMG. Last night she received an honorary award in her underwear and was as pretentious and charming as only MDNA can be.

It appears, after last night, the Milli Vanilli faux pas is becoming the norm now. I’d love to hear the discussion between artist and producers about how everyone is doing it. ”Don’t get left behind singing your heart out, off-key, when you can be singing along to your own perfect voice!”  The Perry’s, I’m pretty sure delivered a pure unadulterated vocal performance, so did the gal at her guitar singing about Mary’s, Kacy something. Now her voice was full of nerves, flaws and problems but the gal sang live. Well done Newcomer!

Last night the performances at the Billboard Awards were absolutely amazing. Stunning. Full of lights, effects, dancers, acrobats, confetti, balloons dropping from the roof and pyrotechnics. But what about the live singing? Is that a thing of the past if the artist decides to do choreography? Do we have to choose as an audience what’s acceptable and allowable now? And the big question which must’ve been tossed around at pre-productions meetings for the Billboard awards show is: Is it lip syncing if you sing along to your own track? You decide.

Over and Out

Kim Hornsby is the author of Amazon Bestselling Suspense Novels

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