My Night at the Grammy Awards

Wow, what a night! I am still riding high from my night at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. It was quite an experience and one that I will not soon forget.

This year, the televised awards show was held at the Staples Center. You may be asking, "How did you manage to get this amazing opportunity?" Well, my wife encouraged me to sign up to be a Seat Filler. A Seat Filler's job at an event like this is to fill any open seat in an area that will most likely be on camera. The producers of the show want to make sure that every seat is filled when attendees have gone to get refreshments or for a bathroom break. So, I signed up and did not think much of it. I did not think I would get picked. I was shocked to find out later that they received over 16,000 applications for either the red carpet or for the show inside the arena. I was even more shocked to find out a few days later that I had been picked to be a seat filler inside at the show!

Many of you who know me know that I am a HUGE music fan. My interest and passion for music comes out in different ways...playing Rock Band/Guitar Hero with my kids, singing on the worship team at church, helping lead a student worship band, producing a music podcast (www.summerhillgang.com), encouraging my kids to learn different instruments...I really appreciate and like listening to a wide variety of music styles and genres. Now, I have watched the Grammy Awards nearly every year since I was a kid, so to be able to attend this year's show was such an amazing opportunity.

My afternoon started with a drive from San Diego to Los Angeles. I was decked out in black pants with a long-sleeve sea foam colored shirt, a black tie with grey stripes and a black suit jacket (thanks Billy Jack!). We were given a window for our arrival time, between 1:00 and 2:30 PM. Having done the Seat Filler gig for The Biggest Loser Finale, I knew that it was not important to get there right at 1:00, and that we would be standing around for several hours. I arrived by 1:45 and stood in a 30 minute line to check in. I was given a wrist band and then had to stand in another line in a parking garage. After standing in line for a little over an hour, we finally moved to the Staples Center.

I imagine it is quite odd walking the streets of L.A. and seeing a single-file line of people in fancy outfits heading down the sidewalk. We were getting some curious glances as we made our trek of a few blocks. But, who knows, they probably see even weirder stuff than that, right?

We made it to an entrance at the arena and then had to stand outside for nearly another hour. Fortunately, we were able to go inside in small groups for a restroom break. The excitement inside the building was palpable as attendees milled about and anticipated the beginning of the show. We had heard that the opening number would be a tribute to Aretha Franklin. After the bathroom break, we had to go back outside and wait. By 4:15, we finally moved inside to a holding area and the show was due to start at 5:00. Another 30 minutes passed by and I could feel the crowd start to get antsy. I was beginning to think that I would not make it inside for the opening act. With 5 minutes to go, a group of about 50 of us were rushed into the lobby area and to the stairs that led down to the floor area of the arena. The place was packed all the way to the rafters and our "handlers" were rushing us down to the floor. Thirty seconds to show time and I still had not found a seat! Suddenly we were being yelled at to keep moving and head to a seating area at the back of the room. This holding area had about 10 rows of about 20-25 seats each and was situated directly behind a raised platform about 25 feet in the air where several cameras were set up. I quickly grabbed a seat in the middle of this section and was disappointed to find that I could not see the stage at all.

My view consisted of an HD flat screen TV and some larger screens up by the stage. We were all mesmerized by being there and I was especially focused on the TV and hearing the big voices doing the opening number. Yolanda Adams, Martina McBride, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Hudson and Florence Welch belted out the tribute to Aretha and they ALL have amazing voices that filled the arena. Things started settling down a bit, but I started noticing that groups of people were being taken to the front of the floor area at every commercial break. I kept thinking, "How do I get in that group?" After about 45 minutes of this, I started trying to move to the edges of the seating area, but every time I did I was asked to move back into the middle so other people could sit. Hmmm...this did not seem quite fair, so I started jockeying for position. I didn't throw elbows or anything, but after sitting for nearly 90 minutes where I could not see the stage, I figured I better make a move or this night would be a bust!

At about 6:20, I finally made it into a group heading toward the front. An open seat was available in the second floor section, probably 35-40 rows back...not exactly the superstar area, but at least I could see the stage! While sitting here, I was able to catch performances by Mumford & Sons, The Avett Brothers and Bob Dylan. At the next commercial break, I had to move as the person sitting there returned. They tell you that if you get bumped from a seat, you can look around for another seat and take it, but there was nothing in the area, so I had to head back to the holding area.

Another 45 minutes went by before I finally got into another group heading up front. This time, we went all the way up to the stage and I was put in a seat in the third row. My heart was really beating fast now! I swear I was sitting next to Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, but this cat looked so young, it couldn't possibly have been him. Anyway, I was sitting there wide-eyed and hoping that I would get to stay when the lady sitting there returned for her seat. Darn! I was only there for two minutes! My dream of sitting next to Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman was not going to be fulfilled as I had to head back towards the holding area. On the way back I was pointed to a seat about 15 rows back on the floor, stage right. This was a great seat and I was sitting next to the diminutive (and very nice) Paul Williams. I didn't get the courage up to say anything to him (mostly because I wasn't really sure that it was him), but it was fun hearing how enthusiastic he was for different performers. It was obvious that I was sitting in his wife's seat and I think he even texted her to see where the heck she was! It was quite fun to be in this seat for the next part of the show as I was able to see Rihanna with Adam Levine on piano, Eminem and Dr. Dre perform. I am not usually one for rap these days, but I have to say that this was quite a fierce and engaging performance. I was able to stay in this seat long enough to see Esperanza Spalding shock the entire building by winning Best New Artist. Nobody expected it because she is a jazz bass musician and she beat out the likes of Justin Bieber. The next commercial break came and Paul's wife showed up with their drinks. I politely got up and headed to the back once again. The timing was bad because the very next performance was by Mick Jagger, who was performing for the first time on the Grammy stage. I had to sit in the back for that one, but the place was electric when he was performing.

As the evening wore on, it was interesting to see when people were starting to leave. At 7:30 there was still an hour left in the show and some of the big awards were coming up, but I could tell that more seats were opening up. After Jagger's performance, I was able to move back one row behind where I sat next to Paul Williams. It was a nice vantage point as I was able to witness Paul being introduced to Bruno Mars. I don't know if Bruno even knew who he was, but I could tell that Paul really appreciated Bruno's work and was telling him so.

At this point, I was sitting next to other Seat Fillers and I was able to stay in this spot (about 15 rows back and stage right) for the rest of the show. I was able to see a lovely performance by Barbra Streisand, a hot performance by Rihanna, a 5th award go to Lady Antebellum, and an energetic performance by Arcade Fire, followed by their surprise win for Album of the Year.

Some other thoughts:

• Loud cheers for Christina Aguilera when she was introduced for the opening. Considering how she has been ripped in the media for the Superbowl fiasco, this was nice to see.
  
• Awesome that Train won for best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group...I love "Hey Soul Sister" even if it has been overplayed. It is a fantastic song with a very catchy melody!
  
• Bruno Mars, B.o.B. and Janelle Monáe really brought the house down with their performances.
  
• Why does everyone like to bag on Justin Bieber? Is it jealousy? The kid is extremely talented and it is a lot of fun to watch him perform live.
  
• I enjoyed the performance by Muse, but the people running around pretending to be revolutionaries were freaking me out. I thought their antics were real at first!
  
• Bob Dylan did not sound good at all...
  
• I wish I had been in a better seat for Cee Lo Green's performance with Gwyneth Paltrow. That dude was crazy in his outfit and his set was pretty elaborate with some of Jim Henson's Muppets as his band.
  
• I was so excited for Lady Antebellum and their 5 Grammy wins! They are one of my favorite groups. It did not come over this way on TV, but I felt like I was one of 20 people that actually clapped for them when they won.
  
• Rihanna is strikingly beautiful in person. I mean, she looks great on TV, but I was really taken aback when she came on stage.
  
• Everyone that was left in the building was completely shocked when Arcade Fire won Best Album. I think everyone was expecting Eminem to take it home this year. Again, very little clapping in the building, which showed how shocked everyone was...
  
• Stars that I walked by or was sitting near: Bruno Mars, B.o.B., Adam Lambert, Janelle Monáe, Train, The Roots, Diddy, Paramore and Katy Perry.
  

Overall, it was a great experience to be in the building for the show and I had an awesome time! Thanks to my friends Billy Jack and Stew for letting me try on their suit jackets for the occasion. I can't wait to put my name in again for the lottery next year...