The 10 greatest Grammy performances
Since its formation in 1959, the Grammys Awards has been the pinnacle of the musical calendar in the eyes of artists. The event also allows musicians the chance to impress a global audience of millions, taking advantage of their moment in the spotlight in the process.
Of course, some still see themselves as too rock ‘n’ roll for the awards ceremony. Iggy Pop, for example, recently said during a recent interview with Classic Rock magazine. “The Grammys kept wanting to talk to me on the phone and I kept telling my manager: ‘I don’t want to talk to them. I hate those people. They want me to be an exhibit in their museum or something.'”
Pop added: “Then when I finally spoke to the lady from the Grammys a couple of months later she said: ‘We’re giving you the Lifetime Achievement. Without you, there’s no Lil Nas X and there’s no Billie Eilish’. According to her, ‘You’re a direct link to the artists that are at the top of our awards list this year’. So that’s what one person had to say, and I’ll take that for what it’s worth.”
So, it might not be for everyone, but despite Iggy’s opinion on the ceremony, it has, at the very least, thrown up some stellar shows. The ten performances below are examples of artists using the Grammys as a platform to express their greatness and cement their legacy. Ultimately, they confirm that while awards might be arbitrary, celebrating great music is not.
The 10 best Grammy performances:
Prince (1985)
It’s weird to think of a time when Prince still needed to prove himself. 1985 wasn’t even an underdog period for The Purple One: his 1984 album Purple Rain was set to take home two awards at the ceremony (he won a third for writing Chaka Khan’s ‘I Feel For You’). But Prince was still in the mood to make sure everyone in the audience knew that he was the biggest deal in pop music.
The song choice was obvious: ‘Baby I’m a Star’. As the Revolution cranked out the uptempo track, Prince carved out his unique place as a highly entertaining performer and even set aside some time to give the spotlight to Shelia E. The funniest part is that Prince was reportedly unenthused about rehashing his Purple Rain material, already planning his follow-up, Around the World in a Day.
Bob Dylan (1998)
Bob Dylan’s performance at the 1998 Grammy Awards was a big deal. Dylan was a notoriously camera-shy individual, especially by the late 1990s. He was set to close the ceremony, and as part of the performance, a number of extras were hired to fill out the stage during the grand finale.
Among those extras was Michael Portnoy, a performance artist who had his own plans for the night. While Dylan sang ‘Love Sick’, Portnoy removed his shirt to reveal the words “Soy Bomb” written on his chest. Dylan hardly seemed to notice, but plenty of viewers did. It was one of Dylan’s most memorable stage moments, mostly because it was one of the few times Dylan got upstaged. And in typical Dylan fashion, he didn’t give a damn.
Foo Fighters (2008)
The Foo Fighters decided to do something special for the 2008 Grammy Awards. It was the 50th-anniversary celebration, after all, so why not? Instead of just busting out another song, Dave Grohl helmed a highly experimental performance that included a classical musician picked to perform with the band through social media.
Advertised as the “My Grammy Moment”, the stunt could have easily gone awry. Instead, the Foos laid down a pummeling version of ‘The Pretender’ featuring the chosen musician Ann Marie Calhoun integrating herself perfectly with the band. In a moment that seemed destined to fail, the Foos pulled out a stunning and highly memorable performance.
Metallica (1989)
Metallica were not unknowns in 1989. In fact, they were the closest thing that metal music had to a mainstream band. None of their thrash metal peers had the same recognition as James Hetfield and company, but even though they were the most well-known metal band in America, they were still a bit outside the normal performers who would take the Grammys stage.
There were no compromises either: Metallica insisted on playing their most recent single, the hard-hitting anti-war thrash-fest ‘One’. Even though they shaved a bit off the end of the song, Metallica still brought the full force of heavy metal music to a stage that didn’t exactly know what to make of it. The following year, ‘One’ would win the Grammy for Best Metal Performance.
Aretha Franklin (1998)
Perhaps the most astonishing Grammy performance of all time is also one of the most impressive. Opera legend Luciano Pavarotti was set to be given the Grammy Legend Award at the 1998 ceremony. However, just before his scheduled performance of ‘Nessun Dorma’, Pavarotti informed the broadcast staff that he was too ill to sing.
In steps Aretha Franklin, a legendary singer with no opera training whatsoever. Nevertheless, Franklin had delivered a performance of ‘Nessun Dorma’ a few days prior at the MusiCares Person of the Year ceremony. Without any soundcheck or practice, Franklin stepped up and proved why she’s one of, if not the single greatest vocalist of all time.
Kendrick Lamar (2016)
2015 was Kendrick Lamar’s coming out party to a mainstream audience thanks to the success of To Pimp A Butterfly, and the Grammys acted as King Kenny’s coronation. However, Kendrick didn’t use the moment to make it about himself, and instead, chose to make a powerful political message on the biggest stage.
Lamar walked onto a prison-themed set, wrapped in chains, before bursting into a rendition of ‘The Blacker the Berry’. He also performed ‘Alright’, which included a new verse which paid tribute to the late Trayvon Martin, who was killed by George Zimmerman in 2012. On the updated version of the track, Lamar rapped: “On February 26th I lost my life, too”.
Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Steven Van Zandt And Dave Grohl (2003)
Following the sad death of The Clash singer Joe Strummer in 2002, the Grammys paid tribute as Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Steven Van Zandt and Dave Grohl collided to cover ‘London Calling’. Occasionally, these star-studded tributes can fall flat. However, this was a perfect salute to the late Strummer.
The Clash frontman was a tremendous fan of Springsteen, and according to an interview in Hot Press, the surviving members of the band were “really touched” by the performance. After finding out this information, Bruce responded: “That’s great! I ran into Joe in a bar in LA in 1990. What a guy. We were from very different backgrounds but singing I think from the same hymn-sheet. That Mescaleros record with ‘Coma Girl’ on it, Streetcore, was so amazing. Like Johnny Cash, he went out on a high. I really miss having Joe around.”
Radiohead (2009)
Inviting Radiohead to perform at the Grammys seems like an unlikely marriage, especially considering that the ceremony embodies the establishment. However, in 2009, they repaid the Grammys’ faith in the band when they stole the show and performed ’15 Step’ with the assistance of the University of Southern California’s marching band, which added verve to proceedings.
On the same night, the band won ‘Best Alternative Album’ for In Rainbows, and the performance was the icing on the cake for Radiohead’s victorious evening. Before they took to the stage, Paul McCartney talked about his excitement of seeing them play with USC’s marching band, and they duly eclipsed his sky-high expectations.
Amy Winehouse (2008)
In 2008, the Grammys was Amy Winehouse’s night. During the evening, she won five awards, including ‘Album Of The Year’ for Back To Black and ‘Song Of The Year’ for ‘Rehab’. At the time, all the talk surrounding the singer revolved around her personal life, and the ceremony was a timely reminder of her immense talent.
As well as winning the evening’s most sought-after prizes, Winehouse graced the stage for a performance of ‘You Know I’m No Good’ and ‘Rehab’, which will live long in Grammys history. Sadly, this also marked the last time she’d play at the awards ceremony as she tragically passed away in 2011.
Billie Eilish (2022)
2020 was the night of Billie Eilish as the young singer won the award for ‘Best New Artist’, ‘Record of the Year’, ‘Album of the Year’, and ‘Song of the Year’. However, Eilish’s best performance at the ceremony was in 2022 when she provided a spine-chilling rendition of ‘Happier Than Ever’ with her brother, Finneas.
The cinematic showing brought the music video for ‘Happier Than Ever’ to life, which blew the audience away in the theatre, as well as the millions watching at home. For the performance, she wore a tee that featured a photograph of the late Foo Fighters drummer, Taylor Hawkins, which was a touching tribute.
