Okay, I’d be lying to you if I told you that I was a long time fan of country music. That’s not to say that I wasn’t paying attention. As a kid, my father was a truck driver and favored classic rock. He had a vast record collection that included the likes of Hank Williams, Jr., David Allan Coe, and Johnny Cash. While en route to family camping trips, I’d listen to my casstte tapes of Kenny Rogers on my Walkman. In my adult years, I spent some time in the military where I served with people of different backgrounds. This exposed me to many different things, including modern country music.
For years, music has been a passion of mine. I love all kinds of music but I definitely would have my preferences. While I do prefer some styles of music over others, country wasn’t high on my list for years. I’ve always been a fan of the blues, though. This music drives from the soul and is expresses the human experience and it was to my pleasant surprise to hear some modern country artist taking the blues approach to songwriting. This sparked my interest even more. My preferences in country music still tend to sway towards the more party rocking songs (called Outlaw Country – I’m told) but I’ve grown to like other songs as well. I’m grateful to fully expand my musical palette and watching the CMT Awards was as much an education and a fun watch.
Now, keep in mind that this is Country Music Television. This is the music video affiliate of the MTV Networks that also own Nickelodeon, Spike, and the parent channel of the same name. This is the same network known for gala awards that often focus very little around true talent and more about viewer hype. The CMT Awards are a fan-based award on par with other award shows that the Networks present. The presentation of the handful of awards come from industry and pop icons and are interluded with performances from the nominees and acting emcee, Kid Rock.
Kid Rock is among the handful of former rock stars making the country conversion. His performance with other rock transfer, Sheryl Crow was (in my opinion) one of the best of the night. They sang their duet, Collide, harmoniously and passionately. This is how I always envision the classic country duet going back from June and Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton with Kenny Rogers. The competition was stiff for the coveted Belt Buckle Award for Collaborative Video and not even Sheryl Crow’s “panty flash” could render enough votes to beat “Beiber Fever”.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I do think that Justin Beiber is a highly overrated icon that is generously riding on laurels of his affiliation with MTV Networks and his parents are playing the world for chumps all the way to the bank. But I accept his bubble-gum-pop presence for what it is. So when I saw the video for the powerful love ballad done with country superstars (and personal favorite) Rascal Flatts, I couldn’t help but feel odd about a teenage boy singing about love, sex, and infedelity. “That should’ve been me,” he says. Really? Okay. Nonetheless, the fact that the song beat out a classic remake of “Coal Miner’s Daughter” with Loretta Lynn, Miranda Lambert and Sheryl Crow or even the moving live duet between powerhouse Jason Aldean and triumphant Kelly Clarkson song, “Don’t You Wanna Stay” for the Best Collaboration Award shocked me to no extent. The lesson here: never underestimate the power of Beiber Fever. But some advice to the Biebs – this is an awards show. Do yourself a favor, show some class. Pull your pants up and leave the “ghetto-speak” for more “urban” networks. This is country music not a hip-hop show.
Which bring me to the subject of Ludacris and my only question is, “How is this guy relevant to country music?” Again, don’t get me wrong. I know and actually enjoy “Luda” on a musical level. Which says alot since commercialized rap sits about as well with me as a $.99 salsbury steak frozen dinner. Dirt Road Anthem is a great written song but the necessity of Ludacris on it just didn’t feel right. More on that later.
I do want to talk about my favorite performances, though. Long before I fully devulged into country music, I was listening to Rascal Flatts. What can I say other than they create lyrically powerful music. So much, that their song “I Won’t Let You Go” has been declared my new “official” love song. A title that goes to an alternative track that dates back nearly two decades. I’m thoroughly glad that they chose to perform that song rather than continue to ride the “Beiber train”.
Speaking of “train”. Anybody else wonder why whenever the band Train was mentioned, it consisted of just the lead singer, Patrick Monahan? I’m sensing some Gwen Stefani action happening here. I actually really do like the band together but don’t be surprised to see him working on some solo albums in the future. But I digress. I didn’t mean to derail the topic. This is about the CMT Award performances. I just wanted to point that out.
I can boldly say that I thoroughly enjoyed the stunning performances of the Zac Brown Band, who gave me that same feeling I got when listening to my dad’s records long ago. The multi-person setup of the band and folksy/bluesy sound really reminescent of the traditional jam band. Think Grateful Dead without all the acid.
Another standout performance was Lady Antebellum. I’ve grown to really like their sound, alot. The two vocalists seem to compliment each other well and the haunting piano melodies really tie it all together. The big surprise of the night, though was the direct transition from the ballad “Just a Kiss” to a classic funk groove in the form of the Tom Jones and Prince classic: “Kiss”. Lead vocalist, Hillary Scott even donned a purple tailed jacket in tribute to “the purple one” himself.
But the most powerful and stunning performance came from Sugarland. I can admit, that I was never much of a Sugarland fan up until this point. Seriously, for the most part I found them to be (for lack of better words) a very “fabricated” band. Not much of their music ever really stood out in my mind to be an instant classic. I’ve even turned away tickets to see them locally and given them to others I figured would enjoy them more. But their performance of “Stand Up” at the CMT Awards was nothing short of amazing.
Dedicating the performance to those in America’s heartland and Southern Coast whose homes were ravaged by storms, two of Joplin’s own were waving a white flag with the word LOVE written on it. The letter “O” contained a peace symbol. Shots to the crowd revealed several smaller versions of the flag waving above their heads. Video footage and still shots were displayed on the large LCD screens behind the performers. The message of the song was clear: “Stand Up, Use your voice!” I’m certain that there wasn’t a dry eye in the place and if you didn’t at least well up inside, your capability of human emotion could be in question. This performance is what defines country music. It made a believer in me, that’s for sure.
The long awaited return of Shania Twain didn’t come without a pitfall. One of country music’s signature divas had herself a little stumble on her way to the stage to do a presentation. This will eventually be edited out from the re-broadcasts (shame on you MTV for post-editing a “live” show). If you were on the West Coast, you’ll have to go to YouTube. But being the class act that she is, Shania took it in stride, later to broadcast online a not-so-needed apology from her dressing room.
The final award was given out by an obviously inebriated Kid Rock (don’t hate, it’s a party) trying to play out a scripted “shocker” moment with Taylor Swift as the winner of the Video of the Year Award. Sadly, her live acceptance in front of crowd at a show in Milwaukee, Wisconsin broke up into static. Now, I’m going on the limb here is saying that this girl doesn’t get the respect she deserves. From Kanye dissing her at the MTV Video Music Awards to this, Taylor just can’t get a break. It’s saddening really. She has incredible vocal range and she has a likeable personality. MTV Networks is a world-class broadcaster yet a decent satellite confrence connection for the winner of one of their most sought after awards is limited to what appeared to be just some guy with a cell phone. I surely hope that their sponsor, Verizon wasn’t the provider of the broadcast.
In the end Jason Aldean, who was nominated in several categories but shunted on every one would close out the show. He sang his hit Dirt Road Anthem which included the ill-placed Ludacris spouting that “History has just been made” in the end of the performance. Sorry, Luda but I beg to differ. You’re not the first rap artist to team up with a country music star and you’re not likely going to be the last. In fact, the legendary Rev. Run from Run DMC fame teamed up with Colt Ford on his new album that came out this same year. Either Run or even Colt Ford would have made the cut. Ford also recorded the song with Brantley Gilbert this year and was present at the Awards. Aldean finished the final performance with his boot stomping hit, My Kinda Party. But sadly, the crowd seemed to be just ready for the afterparty as the production credits rolled and cut the performance short.
From a awards show standpoint, this was a decent production. Not great by any means but decent. I was glad to see some of my favorite artists perform live. Some did better than others. Was this a five-star awards ceremony that could stand its own against the Grammy’s or Country Music Awards? No, but it was fun and for the most part enjoyable to watch. My only advice, from a fan’s point of view would be to leave the “live” element in tact. Wardrobe malfunctions and slip ups on the runway make for a good show. With all the “reality” TV your MTV Networks promotes, how about letting something that is actually “real” happen. Also, I really did expect to hear more from upcoming notable artists like Thompson Square, Colt Ford, and The Jane Dear Girls who were also nominated. If you’re going to have them on the performance list, at least let us see the performance not a snippet with the just the main chorus.
Overall, though the CMT Awards was enjoyable to watch. It’s part of my re-integration into country music and provided me with a catalyst to see some of the faces of the names from the CDs that I’ve bought this year. It gave me the oppotunity to see some of them performing live before I take the greater plunge and invest my dollars into a concert. It helped me realize really how much I do enjoy country music.
I’m giving the CMT Awards 2011:
General 3 Star rating – Could’ve been better, but wasn’t all that bad.
Dallas J. Martin 