2019 Grammy Awards: Performances Ranked

Hey guys! The 61^st Annual Grammy Awards aired a few weeks ago. I did write a reactions and thoughts post regarding the awards that were given during the show like the day after it aired. Be sure to check that post out if you haven't already for whatever reason. But after discussing the awards, it's now time for me to discuss the performances. I believe this is the second time I'm doing it this way, but I will be ranking all of the performances from worst to best, that way the negativity can pushed out of the way first and the post will slowly get more positive. So let's just get right into it and I hope you guys enjoy.

18. Cardi B – Money
This performance was a bathroom break honestly and it bored me to death. I've never liked this song because I think Cardi B is capable and she definitely has potential. The song is just bland and the performance was not interesting at all. She looked insane in whatever it is she was wearing and she did not sound good. This was just a bad song choice for her and I think she would've put on a good performance if she did I Like It even though I don't like the song. At least there would be some energy.

Grade: 0.5/10

17. Janelle Monáe – Make Me Feel / Django Jane / Pynk
Cardi B's performance was the only one that I straight up disliked. This one was mostly just a snoozefest for me personally. I know critics love Janelle's music, but it just does nothing for me honestly. I didn't like any of the songs performed and I did not like her voice either. She did put on a good performance though, so I give her that. It was nice to watch, but the songs were bad. So overall, not very interesting. That's just my opinion though.

Grade: 3.5/10

16. Travis Scott/James Blake/Philip Bailey – Stop Trying To Be God / No Bystanders
I did not particularly care for this one either. James Blake sounded okay. But either Travis Scott was lip-syncing or he learned how to make his voice sound autotuned. It got interesting about halfway through when he went into the cage and had all these people come on the stage and act like animals. Do I think that was a smart move? Not really, but it caught my attention at the very least. That aside, there was nothing special about this performance at all and that's kind of how it goes with all rap performance unless it's Kendrick Lamar.

Grade: 4/10

15. Jennifer Lopez/Smokey Robinson/Ne-Yo/Alicia Keys – Motown Tribute
Why did we have Jennifer Lopez of all people do a tribute to Motown? She sounded fine most of the time, but I feel like they could've picked a much better artist instead. The performance overall was okay, but I was kind of zoning out at different moments because none of it really kept my attention. Maybe it's because this was late in the show and I was getting tired, but I just wasn't wowed or amazed by this at all.

Grade: 5/10

14. Camila Cabello/Young Thug/Ricky Martin/J Balvin/Arturo Sandoval – Havana / Pégate / Mi Gente
This was the big opener of the show and it kind of fell flat if I'm being totally honest. I'm glad she did Havana and not one of her bad songs and I did like the whole Latin vibe it had going. But Camila sounded bad right from the first note. Her vocals were not very good and it further proves my point that she's just not a good singer. Young Thug sounded bad. Ricky Martin kind of helped the performance because he did sound really good. But then J Balvin tanked it with his beyond mediocre vocals. There were some interesting dances that were fun to watch, but other than that, this should've been much better than it was.

Grade: 5/10

13. H.E.R. – Hard Place
Here we have a performance from Album of the Year nominee H.E.R. and it was fine to say the very least. It was nothing too exciting the first time, but rewatching it allowed me to realize that she is indeed very talented. I didn't really care for the song that much, but it was kind of interesting. I didn't really like her voice first time around, but now I know it is technically good. I feel like I had higher expectations at first. But for an R&B singer, she has a nice voice. I also really like the guitar and I thought it sounded great. Overall, not amazing, but enjoyable for what it is.

Grade: 7/10

12. Diana Ross – The Best Years Of My Life / Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)
I assume those who grew up with Diana Ross have stronger feelings about this performance than I do. I don't know much from her, so I don't particularly care that much for her, although I recognize that she is very talented. She has a great voice. I don't think this performance showed that as much as it could've. But it was a fine performance and I imagine those who grew up listening to her enjoyed it more than I did. This was kind of a zone-out performance for me, but it was technically good.

Grade: 7/10

11. St. Vincent/Dua Lipa – Masseduction / One Kiss
For some reason, this performance was better when I watched it live. Rewatching it on YouTube made the flaws more noticeable. But I'm not deducting any points because of that because I did enjoy it the first time around. St. Vincent's vocals were not that great during this performance, but I know she's a great singer. Dua Lipa sounded pretty good and she had much better stage presence this time as opposed to that one award show last year where she sang New Rules. The guitar sounded great and I thought it was an interesting mash up of songs. I definitely got some strong lesbian vibes at certain points in the performance, which definitely made it interesting. So I give them credit for keeping my attention. Overall, it was pretty enjoyable even if the vocals weren't the best.

Grade: 7.5/10

10. Brandi Carlile – The Joke
The one nominee for Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year that had me scratching my head wondering who she was gave us a performance at the Grammys, which I'm happy about as it allowed me to learn a little bit more about who she is and her style. After watching this performance, I now understand why she received as many nominations as she did in the big categories. I believe The Joke is a very good song and this performance how talented she is as a musician, singer, and songwriter. I found her voice slightly irritating in the chorus, but that's probably her style and I understand that. It's objectively good and I found the performance quite interesting. I wouldn't have been upset if The Joke won Song of the Year as it was more worthy of it than songs like God's Plan and Boo'd Up.

Grade: 8/10

9. Alicia Keys – Medley
The show is not complete without the host giving us a performance of her own. Using two pianos, Alicia Keys gave us a beautiful medley of a bunch of hits that she wishes she wrote. I always knew she was a great singer and she definitely showed that in this performance. This is why I love piano ballads because there's not much I love more in music than hearing just a piano and the singer because it highlights the singer's voice so well and I consider the piano the most beautiful instrument in existence. That's just my opinion. But anyway, I liked some of her song choices and she even made some of the questionable ones like Lucid Dreams sound good. Her transitions were really good and I love how she closed it out with Empire State Of Mind because I think that is a fantastic song mostly because Alicia is just such a perfect fit for it. Overall, I thought this was really good.

Grade: 8.5/10

8. Chloe x Halle – Where Is The Love
I did not know who these girls were aside from the fact that they were nominated for Best New Artist. So this was my first time hearing their voices and I see why they were nominated. I was certainly not expecting what I got out of this performance. They are incredibly talented singers and I thought they sounded amazing the whole time. They have such unique voices that blend together so nicely. So vocally, this performance was near perfect. Other than that, I found it slightly underwhelming, although I'm assuming their vocals were supposed to be the main focus. Still, it didn't really feel fully complete to me. But their voices are stellar.

Grade: 8.5/10

7. Dan + Shay – Tequila
You guys already know how I feel about this song. It's such a nice song that I've loved since first listen. This is not the first time I've seen them perform it live, so it wasn't exactly that fresh. But they did a really nice job with it. The piano sounded nice and the vocals were really good. So yeah. I don't really have much else to say about it. It was great.

Grade: 9/10

6. Dolly Parton/Kacey Musgraves/Katy Perry/Miley Cyrus/Maren Morris/Little Big Town – Tribute To Dolly Parton
I'm not entirely familiar with a lot of Dolly Parton's music, but I did know a few of the songs that were performed in this tribute. But I thought it was a really enjoyable performance because Dolly Parton is a great singer and it was nice hearing a bunch of different voices throughout. Kacey Musgraves and Maren Morris have really nice voices that sounded very good with the songs they performed. I wasn't surprised to see Miley sing Jolene as I've seen her sing that before with Dolly Parton. I love the song and I think Miley has a great voice for it. Little Big Town were really good. Katy Perry being included was kind of questionable as she was the only non-country artist included. She did sound good, but I feel like she was a little unnecessary. Also this performance was long clocking in at ten and a half minutes. But like I said, it was nice hearing different voices in and out. So while the performance was long, it had my attention the whole time. I also liked how everyone came together for 9 To 5 at the end. Overall, this was a great performance and definitely one of the highlights of the night.

Grade: 9.5/10

5. Fantasia/Andra Day/Yolanda Adams – (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman
Aretha Franklin was definitely one of the biggest losses within the past year. So these women performed (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman as a tribute and I thought it was great. These ladies have very soulful voices that sounded great all throughout this performance. I got chills at various moments. I don't think I've ever heard this song performed this well by other artists. From a vocal standpoint, this was sensational and it was very enjoyable performance to watch. These women just have such amazing voices.

Grade: 9.5/10

4. Lady Gaga/Mark Ronson – Shallow
One thing's for sure, this was definitely nothing like her and Bradley's performance of this at the Oscars. That performance felt much more like the new Lady Gaga and what the movie was going for. This performance felt like old Lady Gaga from the way she dressed to the way she performed. And both of them were fantastic. I thought her voice sounded amazing here and the guitars sounded great. I loved her energy even if the song is much different from we used to get from Gaga. It's a fantastic song and this was a fantastic performance. I also loved the performance of it at the Oscars because I really felt the chemistry between her and Bradley Cooper. And because of that performance and it winning the Oscar for Best Original Song, it actually has a chance to go to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, which I am all for because I love this song and I'm so glad it got as big as it did. Lady Gaga is definitely one of the best pop artists right now and I consider her iconic.

Grade: 10/10

3. Shawn Mendes/Miley Cyrus – In My Blood
You guys know I adore this song and I was very excited to hear that it would be performed. Shawn Mendes is an undeniably great singer and I love how the performance opened up with him at the piano and then got more energetic as the song continued. Even though I've seen this song performed before, it was still pretty fresh because the addition of Miley Cyrus, who is a fantastic singer. I may not like all of her music, but I do recognize her talent and I think she has an amazing voice. She uses it very well and it just blends very nicely with Shawn's. So yeah. I loved the performance and I absolutely love the song. I thought everything went very well.

Grade: 10/10

2. Post Malone/Red Hot Chili Peppers – Stay / Rockstar / Dark Necessities
I didn't have very high expectations going into this. I thought it was a strange pairing, but I was curious to see how it would turn out. I don't really like Post Malone's music for the most part, but I know he's talented and he has a good voice. I think that good voice showed on Stay. During that part of the performance, I felt like his talent was actually coming through, which is not something I hear from him very often. Then we got Rockstar, which I do consider a good song now despite initially disliking it. I think he sounded pretty good during the song. But it wasn't until the Red Hot Chili Peppers came on that this became one of the best performances of the night. I was a fan of Dark Necessities a couple of years ago when the song was released. I think it's cool how they still performed it and they just brought the energy honestly. I think a rock band like them is something the Grammys needs every year. Anthony Kiedis sounded really good and I loved his energy. The band sounded great and it was one of those performances that I just could not look away from. It was very entertaining and a big highlight of the night in my opinion.

Grade: 10/10

1. Kacey Musgraves – Rainbow
I'm a little ashamed of myself for not giving Kacey Musgraves a chance until recently. If you read my post with my reactions to the awards, you'd know that I was thrilled by her big Album of the Year win because I actually listened to Golden Hour not long before the show and I thought it was a fantastic album and easily the most deserving for Album of the Year. Seriously, it's great. Go listen to it if you haven't already. I'm so glad we got to see her perform because she did a fantastic job. She performed the album's closer and newest single, Rainbow, which I love. It's such a nice song and I thought this performance was beautiful. Kacey Musgraves has such a beautiful voice and I almost think she sounded better live than in the actual song and she sounds great in both. But I love that this song in particular is a piano ballad because it highlights her voice well and it's just such a nice song. The rainbow in the background looked beautiful and she sounded beautiful. Everything about this performance was just amazing in my opinion and I really love this song. She is a great singer and songwriter and I'm so glad she won as many awards as did because she deserved each and every one of them. I'm very glad Rainbow is now a single because it's a beautiful song and this performance was the best of the night in my opinion.

Grade: 11/10



So there you have it! Those are all the Grammy performances ranked based on my thoughts and opinions. I know it took a while to get this done, but I appreciate your guys' patience and I really hope you enjoyed. Overall, I thought the performances were pretty good. Some of them were okay, but there were very few bad ones, so that's something. That along with most of the awards going to the right people made the Grammys a pretty enjoyable watch this year and I'm glad. Hopefully next year will go just as well or even be better. And maybe I'll become a fan of another unknown artist like I did this year with Kacey Musgraves. But overall, it was a great show and I hope you enjoyed these review posts. Thanks for reading!