Oscars:

Many have heard a snippet of what happened at the Oscars this year, in particular, the Will Smith/Chris Rock incident. While this situation is definitely newsworthy, there are many other moments of the Oscars, which did not make the front page. 

This year’s Oscar hosts were the trio of Regina Hall, Amy Schumer, and Wanda Sykes. This is the first time since 2011 that more than one person was hosting. Beyoncé opened this year’s Oscars, with a performance of the song “Be Alive” from the nominated movie King Richard. She wowed the viewers by wearing a long green dress and singing on a tennis court. 

A memorable performance was done by the cast of Encanto; they all sang a rendition of the number one song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” yet, in the end, they brought out Megan Thee Stallion, who added her own verse to the end. Several cast members emerged themselves into the audience, spiking the already high energy in the crowd. 

Throughout the night, several gained an Oscar to their name. Some of these include, Jane Champion winning best director for The Power of the Dog, Will Smith winning Best Actor, for King Richard. and Jessica Chastain winning Best Actress for The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

The Grammy for best-animated feature film went to the Disney movie Encanto, other contenders for this Grammy included, Flee, Luca, The Mitchells VS. The Machines and Raya and The Last Dragon. 

The movie CODA ended up taking home the Oscars for Best Picture, best-supporting actor, and best-adapted screenplay. Other movies nominated for the Best Picture category were Belfast, Don’t Look Up, Drive My Car, Dune, King Richard, Licorice Pizza, Nightmare Alley, The Power Of The Dog and West Side Story.

The movie Dune took home the most wins of the night with six, including best cinematography and sound.

All the hard work put into movie production deserves to be recognized. From best writing to best visual effects, if you are involved in the film industry there is a category just waiting for your work and your name. If you enjoy seeing this recognition take place, the Oscars is the perfect award show for you. 

Grammys:

Last Sunday, the Grammys made their return for the 2022 season. Returning as a host for the night was comedian Trevor Noah. These awards were held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Almost as a tribute to their location, Silk Sonic opened the show with a performance of their song 777. Questlove, musician, and songwriter, proceeded to introduce the nominees for Song of the year. 

Some of these included, “Leave the Door Open,” by (Silk Sonic). “Drivers License ” (Olivia Rodrigo) and “Right on Time” (Brandi Carlile).  “Leave the Door Open,” ended up winning the Grammy, the first of many the group would win throughout the evening. 

Following this, Olivia Rodrigo performed her hit song “Drivers License”. On stage, she brought out a Mercedes-Benz convertible to amplify her highly anticipated Grammy debut. Later in the night, Rodrigo and “Drivers License” took home a Grammy for the Best Pop Solo Performance category. Rodrigo also won the Grammy for Best New Artist. Being one of the youngest artists to do so. She additionally won the Grammy for the best pop vocal album for her hit album, “Sour.” 

J Balvin performs next with his hit songs, “Qué Más Pues?” and “In da Getto,” representing the Columbian community. Following him was the global sensation, “BTS.” They took the stage, presenting their number one hit “Butter.” all seven members of the group lit up the room with their radiating energy.  At the beginning of their performance, they used the act of card tricks to gain extra attention from the audience. 

Another notable performance was Lil Nas X.  Rising to fame with his song “Old Town Road” (which he won two Grammys for in 2020) Nas X performed a medley of songs off his recent album “Montero (Call me by your name).” He additionally bought out fellow singer, Jack Harlow, for his hit “Industry Baby.”

Billie Eilish follows Nas X’s performance with her and brother/collaborator Phineas performing “Happier than Ever.” During Ellish’s performance, she stood inside what appeared to be an upside-down house, which was, to quote my dad, “interesting but confusing”. During her performance, Ellish stands out by wearing a shirt to tribute Taylor Hawkins, Foo Fighters drummer, who passed away in late March. 

Breaking up the performances, was the awarding of Grammys. Some noteworthy wins include Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (Kiss me More, Doja Cat ft. SZA), Record of the year, (Leave the Door Open, Silk Sonic), Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album,(Love for Sale, Tony Bennet, and Lady Gaga) and album of the year, (We are, Jon Batiste.) 

8.93 million people tuned in to watch this year’s Grammys. This view count rose just above last year’s all-time low at 8.8 million. Everyone who did decide to view the Grammys last Sunday certainly received a show of artists across all genres, and a plethora of awards won.