For yet another year, I foolishly believed that the Grammys might be more than just a shammy awards night were the real winners don’t get awards. I guess you could diagnose me as naively brainwashed or completely insane for believing that the deserving bands would walk away with their share of golden gramophones. Yes, some did, but some were flat robbed.
Yes, Radiohead should’ve won Album of the Year (not Coldplay). And, ironically, Lil’ Wayne got praised by the same industry that attacks the very same mixtape industry that allowed him to eventually rise to the top in 2008. And Carrie Underwood needs to thank her lead guitarist for showing her up and how to rock.
And we can all agree that Jennifer Hudson deserves a break. Her performances in the last two weeks have been some of the most emotional back to back performances I’ve seen in a long time by the artist who’s performed under such high-profile spotlights. I hope she can take a break for awhile. She deserves it.
Aside from the Coldplay high-jacking and watching Katey Perry make a fool of herself (even more) by descending down in a giant banana and getting cherry-chapstick-smooched by other girls, thanks to Twitter, this year’s Grammys had a stealth entertainment element that I didn’t expect.
Lately I’ve been experimenting with ways to use Twitter to explore live concert culture and last night I stumbled into a live real-time experiment with people and other live music fans I’ve never even met before.
As you’ll see below, I tweeted with a variety of other twitterers ranging from social media experts to music blog gurus. And I have to say that as the final credits rolled and the rules for the Grammy voting system (which really sucks) flashed on the screen, I had a serious buzz about the way I interacted with the other Tweeting viewers.
It was funny, enlightening, unrestricted, free-form, challenging and most of all, it was such a refreshing feeling to communicate with other live music fans in a way that you don’t get to do at a live concert.
It was a great way to experience a live concert other than reviewing it or just going as a fan. It felt different in so many other ways that I will flesh out in future posts and explain as they come to me.
But for now, here’s my rockpothesis about using Twitter for other live concerts.
I would never want to take away from an artist’s performance, but there has to be way to make this part of the usual concert experience on a regular basis. Last night, there was a written (okay typed) word connection that you don’t usually get at a live concert.
Last night, emotions and thoughts were quickly expressed and sent out to others to instantly react to. And those reactions shaped the performances we all were watching, experiencing and processing in different ways. Usually a concert is a singular and linear experience that isn’t direct internally form outside source. Well, last night, my brain was stimulated not only by the show’s highpoints but by the instantous and emotionally revealing tweets from those watching from home just like me. And that rarely happens at live concerts because you’re guarded and don’t have a method to express like we did last night.
Twitter brought the guards down, fast and pleasurably furious.
The connection I had last night was so interactive that it felt more like a community than just an audience member or a passive at-home viewer. And most of all it allowed me to do something I always want to go at live concerts: wander around in people’s heads to see how their experiencing the live show. And most of all, learn from them.
So…can Twitter or other social media like it, be a more integral part of the live concert experience?
…How can social media make the live concert experience more meaningful and more of a community event and less of a bunch of unified strangers coming together in a public venue?
Take a quick stroll through some of my Tweetting experience @ responses last night and tell me what you think (especially if you were among the group.
@copyblogger yeah, I wish Gwyneth picked the Grammy winners, too! about 22 hours ago from web
@chrisbrogan I guess you’ve really made it when you can look like a hobo and still be successful. .see also rick rubin about 22 hours ago from web
hey, I’m still seeing the Grammys in B&W! can anyone help me! about 21 hours ago from web
@pitchforkmedia hey, do you know if Thom Yorke played in his highschool marching band? about 21 hours ago from web
They should’ve done the whole show in vintage B&W….that was so forward thinking! about 21 hours ago from web
at least the commercials were good? about 21 hours ago from web
Wait, I thought MIA was suppose to give birth during the show. Wait! I thought Radiohead was suppose to win. wait! ah, what’s the use about 21 hours ago from web
not surprised, but did they leave out Ron Asheton from the dearly departed list? about 21 hours ago from web
neil diamond just touched Cold Play! about 21 hours ago from web
i guess the recording industry is okay with and ready to embrace Lil’ Wayne’s mixtape marketing ways. funny how that works. about 21 hours ago from web
oh, yeah…BTW here’s Stevie Wonder to wrap things up…so he can, uh, add to his list of most Grammy performances. or something..thx 4 wtchg about 21 hours ago from web
thanks everyone for the at home entertainment. way better than the show itself. about 21 hours ago from web
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