Kanye West’s compelling pump-fake was arguably the most exciting moment of the Grammys last night. Mimicking the stunt he pulled back in 2009 when he confidently graced the stage and interrupted Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech, the rapper shocked everyone, including Jay Z. This time the victim was Beck, the legendary alternative rock singer-songwriter who has been around since the mid 80s. To everyone’s surprise – including Beck’s – he took home the award for Album of the Year, beating Beyonce’s Beyonce, and giving Kanye another perfect opportunity.
Beck, being the amazing sport that he is, took the diss with extreme pleasure. “I was just so excited he was coming up,” he told US Weekly during the Universal Music Group after-party. “[West] deserves to be onstage as much as anybody. How many great records has he put out in the last five years, right?” The alt-rock icon also confirmed he wasn’t offended by the rapper’s post-Grammy comments: “I thought she was going to win. Come on, she’s Beyonce! . . . You can’t please everybody, man. I still love [West] and think he’s genius. I aspire to do what he does.”
This time around the stunt was playful. The audience was full of giggles and playful admiration towards the rapper. Beck accepted his award with humility and grace. The end of the awards show received the anticipated Kanye, however; revealing a side of him very reminiscent to 2009 with his wife Kim, the rapper told us how he really felt. “If they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us,” the rapper said. “Flawless Beyoncé video, and Beck needs to respect artistry, and he should have given his award to Beyoncé.”
Whatever the verdict is, The Grammys succeeded at providing a show that fired up the opinions of everyone last night. And gave us a replay of both 2009 Kanye and Taylor Swift and 2013 Kendrick and Macklemore moments.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
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