See Kelsea Ballerini, Lukas Graham’s Melancholy Mashup at Grammys
Country performer Kelsea Ballerini and Danish band Lukas Graham came together on the Grammy stage, performing a downcast mashup of their respective hits “Peter Pan” and “7 Years.”
Both songs deal with growing up, though looking from different angles: Ballerini’s embittered “Peter Pan” chides a former lover who refuses to mature, while “7 Years” features singer Lukas Forchhammer’s affecting observations about the rapid passage of time. For their Grammy performance, Ballerini joined Lukas Graham on a smaller circular stage set up in the audience. Beginning with a line from “7 Years” and quickly jumping into “Peter Pan,” the performers switched back and forth between their hits for the duration of the performance, with several melodic lines intersecting and overlapping in true mashup fashion.
Ballerini was making her first appearance at the Grammy Awards, having scored an all-genre nomination alongside fellow country performer Maren Morris in the Best New Artist Category – Chance the Rapper took that honor early in the show. Ballerini’s 2015 debut album The First Time has so far produced three chart-topping singles in “Love Me Like You Mean It,” “Dibs” and “Peter Man,” making her the first woman since 1992 to produce three consecutive Number Ones on a debut album.
Lukas Graham earned a pair of all-genre Grammy nominations, with “7 Years” vying for both the Song and Record of the Year honor. Additionally, “7 Years” was nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. The band’s self-titled second album (commonly known as the Blue Album to distinguish it from their self-titled debut) was released in 2015, and the reflective “7 Years” catapulted them to international success. Post Grammys, the band will resume touring in Europe and promotion of their current single “You’re Not There.”