About the Grammy's...
I started writing this last Monday… it got a little delayed… life…
On a flight back home from LA. The last twenty-four hours were exhausting. For as long as I can remember the Grammy’s have been my favorite awards show –it’s music’s biggest night. When I was kid I was convinced that one day I would host the Grammy’s… shit, maybe I’m still convinced of that. The summer after I graduated high school my friend and I had tickets to see a concert every other week. My obsession with seeing music live developed early on. Last week I bought tickets to see Lady Gaga in San Francisco, because I won’t be able to see her in Chicago. I have no idea who is going with me, but I bought two tickets assuming I could con someone into going. Not seeing her wasn’t an option. Her last album was pure art. I listened to it, and I related to it. That’s why music is so important to me, because it tells stories –and, if it finds you at the just right moment, it becomes the soundtrack to your story.
Friday afternoon I was at work, and trying to wind down and figure out how I was going to make it through my busy weekend. My calendar is full, and I literally committed to being somewhere every second of every day. Where is my down time? It doesn’t exist. I was messaging Amanda earlier in the day when she mentioned, ‘I might have a ticket to the Grammy’s.’ I encouraged her to go. There’s a chance you’ll never have that offer again. This might be a once in a lifetime experience. A short while later she messaged me in a panic, ‘Wait, I have a plus one… do you want to come?’ I hesitated for all of two seconds, ‘YES, of course.’ We left Sunday Morning on a 7am flight to LAX. We landed at 9am, and went straight to the hotel. We had just enough time to grab lunch, and for Amanda to get her hair and make-up done before having to head to the Staples Center. We had tickets to walk the red carpet, but it was chaos trying to find the entrance. There were people everywhere, and security checkpoints to go through. We ended up entering to the gates immediately next to the red carpet.
Our seats were in the upper levels, and still, everyone was dressed formal. I found that odd. I don’t know why. Once the show starts all the vendors shut down. There is no food or alcohol served, which I also found odd. I mean, they’re musicians… I just assumed we would walk in to servers handing us glasses of champagne and open bars sponsored by vendors. Not a chance. To be in that arena with music’s biggest names, with the people that in 2016 inspired me, or in some way comforted me, or gave me the material I needed to have solo dance parties when no one was looking –it was pretty amazing. We had tickets to the after party next door in the convention center. The first question everyone asks, ‘Did you meet anyone famous?’ Nah, it was all producers, label people, marketing people, etc. The drinks were free, the food was good and the space was pretty cool.
All in all it was a quick, but fun, 48-hour trip. Many have asked if I would want to go back. I don’t know if I would. It was exhausting, and that’s the reason this is just getting posted now. I did start this on the plane ride home, and then I got distracted… flipping through the movie selections. Nothing good. Trying to figure out if the well dressed man across the aisle was gay… he had to be… he ordered red wine, was dressed well, and watching ‘This is Us.’ Finally, I just fell asleep for a while. Anyway, it was an amazing experience, and I’m so lucky to have been able to attend. Maybe I’ll hold on to that dream though, and continue to believe that one day I’ll host the Grammys… don’t worry Amanda, you can be my plus one…