Inside 2014’s American Music Awards: 20 Questions From Row X
Twenty questions after watching the American Music Awards from row X of the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles:
1. Can Taylor Swift appear on an awards show without getting goofy?
Apparently not. After she opened the show with an over-the-top but entertaining performance of “Blank Space” — complete with floating furniture, burning bushes, and a bunch of backup dancers who looked like they were cast at an “Impersonate Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance” contest — she held the camera with a long, meaningful stare. But once the show went to commercial and she was walking offstage with her fellow performers, Swift flapped her arms like an overexcited chicken, clearly (and charmingly) pleased that she had nailed a complicated routine.
2. What was up with the China-specific content?
During the show’s third hour, the AMAs dedicated two commercial breaks to filming content specifically tailored for broadcast in China — meaning that the in-person audience saw segments that weren’t broadcast in the United States. First was the Chopstick Boys doing a performance of their single “Little Apple,” which was touted as an international hit on par with Psy’s “Gangnam Style.” They recreated elements of its video, including the dancers in striped red pajamas and the bearded mermaids. Then Pitbull gave an award to Jason Zhang (a.k.a. Zhang Jie) for “Best International Artist” — an honor that is nowhere to be found, by the way, on the show’s official list of winners on their website. The L.A. audience seemed perplexed by Zhang’s presence, but he won them over with a speech in English, confessing to being jetlagged, seeming genuinely thrilled, and beautifully singing part of Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World.”
Those two segments prompted a host of other questions: Do the American Music Awards have a deal in China that requires goosing the broadcast with Sinophilic content? Were there any other nominees for “Best International Artist,” or did the show just find the biggest Chinese star who was willing to get on a plane to accept an award? Did Zhang know the award wasn’t being broadcast in the United States, and if so, why did he accept it in English? Was he trying to impress his fans back in China, or the industry crowd in the Nokia Theater?
3. Was the fire marshal on vacation?
During the songs, there were fireworks and lasers, but it seemed like half the performers wanted jets of flame — the bigger the better. At times, the flashes of heat could be felt 25 rows back in the Nokia Theater: people sitting in the front must have felt like well-done steaks.
4. Who got to use the full stage?
Since the show was a cavalcade of hit songs — with a few awards shoehorned in, handed out pretty much exclusively for people who actually showed up — most performers were allotted one-half of the stage (to allow the crew to break down and set up equipment on the other half). But four acts (out of 18) had enough clout to command the entire stage. Taylor Swift for “Blank Space” — well, she’s the top-selling star in the business. Pitbull and Ne-Yo for a “Don’t Stop the Party”-“Fireball”-“Time of Our Lives” medley — sure, Pitbull was the likable if awkward host of the show. Iggy Azalea and Jennifer Lopez with “Booty” — OK, it was the much-hyped show closer. Fergie with “L.A. Love (La La)” — huh? Say what now?
5. What was the AMA announcer’s funniest off-broadcast moment?
Over the PA, the show’s announcer had some flashes of goofiness, telling the audience during commercial breaks “You look fabulous tonight” and (before the performance by Iggy Azalea and Jennifer Lopez) “Lots of booty on the way, here we go.” But nothing was better than his pre-show basso profundo announcement: “This is my natural speaking voice.”
6. Did Jamie Foxx bring his daughter onstage so he wouldn’t have to give Iggy Azalea the award for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album himself?
7. Is there any stranger presence than Lorde in the pop world right now?
Like Björk or Fiona Apple before her, Lorde is popular enough to get invited to lots of awards shows, careerist enough to accept the invitations and intense enough that she finds some way to mess with people’s heads. For a while, not smiling was enough, but Lorde upped the stakes with her performance of “Yellow Flicker Beat,” performing a substantial chunk of it inside a white box that made it impossible for the live audience to see her. Once the box lifted, she thrashed around the stage like she was a teenager dancing alone in her bedroom.