Welcome to the latest TGJ Roundtable!
Over the years, That Grape Juice has established a distinguished voice that – whether loved or loathed – sparks discussion, debate, and on occasion drama!
Though comprised of seasoned writers who share a similar outlook on Urban Pop culture, the idiosyncrasies of the TGJ team members often lend for quite heated debates “behind the scenes” about the hottest topics.
Now, we give you a front row seat to the show. In a format similar to ‘The View’ or ‘The Real’, TGJ editors – Sam, David, Rashad, and Joe – get real in a very candid way.
Today’s roundtable topic asks each anchor their thoughts on the…
2018 AMAs
Sam
Heading into the AMAs, I anticipated to be slayed on the merit of the names lined up to perform. Especially as so many other ceremonies this year really lacked representation balance – whether that be genre, gender, or the tier of talent tapped.
As for what was delivered? The AMAs didn’t meet the benchmark I hoped for holistically – but it did provide a number major moments, most notably from Ciara and Cardi B.
With CiCi, she brought a ‘Dose’ of dynamite that cannot be denied. From the first beat, it was clear she had a dual goal of blazing the stage and reminding the masses of her live gravitas. Suffice to say, her mission was more than accomplished. Missy Elliott was a great touch too.
In some regards, it reminded how criminal it almost is she hasn’t been tapped to perform on platforms of this scale (again) sooner. After last night though, we imagine that’ll be changing. For, she showed and proved that she really was a ‘Level Up’ from pretty much everyone else who performed.
Speaking of upping the ante, Cardi is truly coming into her own as a performer and it makes her overall proposition all the more exciting. She’s showing spark, character, and precision; she also crucially looked like she was enjoying herself, which made me enjoy her offering all the more.
Elsewhere, the usually scorching J.Lo was somewhat lukewarm (the song ‘Limitless’ was not the tea or biscuits). And while it was great seeing Mariah Carey back in the award show mix, I’m gonna need her to bring a lil more. The staging and dancing was a welcome change from her usual, but the reality is that she once again stood still like a vase that folk were afraid to tip over. Also, I’m not convinced any of the songs she’s released from her project thus far lend themselves to huge spectacles anyway. Perhaps something she ought to consider before accelerating full speed.
Camila Cabello, Dua Lipa, Post Malone and co really amounted to one long toilet break. Taylor Swift too.
Thankfully, the Aretha Franklin tribute redeemed in the show’s closing moments. Gladys Knight, CeCe Winans, and Ledisi especially.
All in all, the AMAs saw the seasoned acts bring the most pepper and spice to an otherwise basic tasting show.
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David
How awesome was last night?
If I’m going to be completely honest, the AMAs has always sat beneath the Grammys, BET Awards, and VMAs on my top four list of awards ceremonies. But, after last night, that changed.
To begin with, the evening’s organisers deserve a huge round of applause for the time they allotted for their Aretha Franklin tribute. In the past tributes to deceased icons have felt “thrown together” and disingenuous on other awards shows making their undeniably heartfelt celebration of Aretha’s work a poignant moment.
Top performance of the night for me? That has to go to Cardi B. Unlike a large number of her peers, Cardi has proved that she has enough respect for her songs to arm them with the kind of theatrical live performances music lovers are only used to seeing on stages graced by Pop acts. Hip Hop, though the dominant genre in today’s market, seems to have lost its affinity with awe inspiring creative directors and visuals so seeing Cardi deliver as well as she did was definitely a breath of fresh air.
Another highlight was Ciara. After years of being denied access to major awards show stages the entertainer was finally given the opportunity to remind the world of the power, skill and talent the industry has sometimes been keen to overlook. Put simply, she nailed. Do you agree?
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Rashad
Taylor Swift’s performance was surprisingly engaging and didn’t feature as much of her usual Tinman-tributing dance moves. Granted, those vocals may have sounded like she was intermittently having a nervous breakdown, but the overall spectacle – including her choreography improvements – was noteworthy. Post Malone and Ty Dolla $ign‘s performance was so lackluster it literally looked like they put it together minutes before they walked on stage.
Jennifer Lopez – usually an awards’ show highlight for me – rendered an interesting showing. It was not bad by any means, but her emphasis on “singing” lately and lip-syncing long dramatic notes in her live performances is actually more comical than anything.
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Joe
Ciara, Ciara, Ciara… was there anything as spectacular as CiCi’s showing during yesterday’s festivities? “Not really” is my answer!
This is how you level up, literally. Her performance was the moment ‘Level Up’ transitioned from a viral “moment” to an overall one. The audience seemed to enjoy it as much as I did too. If there is any justice in the music world, then what the entertainer delivered on Tuesday evening should be the beginning of a thriving new chapter in her career.
Cardi B gave it her all for her performance of #1 smash ‘I Like It.’ Though initially not the most able performer, she killed it yesterday. It wasn’t perfect but she committed to the cause in earnest, and her fantastic personality was definitely able to shine through.
After finally expressing her political views a day prior, Taylor Swift took to the stage to give a rousing rendition of the conveniently titled ‘I Did Something Bad.’ Glad to see this song getting the single treatment as it is to me the best on her ‘Reputation’ LP. Also, she has improved leaps and bounds when it comes to commending the stage. Bravo, T. Swizzle!
I enjoyed Ella Mai‘s had a cute little moment with her rendition of summer bop ‘Boo’d Up’ too.
Sadly, nor Mariah Carey or Jennifer Lopez’ showings were memorable enough to match just how gorgeous they were on the red carpet.
The winners list wasn’t anything surprising, echoing a lot of what the charts have been saying for most of the year. Still congrats are in order for Camila Cabello and yet again the unstoppable Cardi B.
All in all it was a decent ceremony. Congrats to all!
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Do you agree with our picks? Who was spot on? Let us know your thoughts on the latest TGJ Roundtable and your thoughts on the 2018 AMAs.
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Ciara was the best but Cardi was the general public’s favorite. The women of the view had a whole segment about Cardi, her performance, their reactions and her speech. She’s winning for sure!
CIARA AND CARDI were HOT. MARIAH CAREY AND JENNIFER LOPEZ WERE TRASH. MARIAH STOOD THERE LOOKING NOTHING LIKE THE ICON SHE IS. BIT_CH GET OFF YOUR MEDS AND BLAZE THAT STAGE LIKE YOU DO IN VEGAS. STOP PLAYIN MARIAH….TIME IS SHORT WITH YA LAZY A_ZZ SCARED A zz stop lip SINGING. REAL SINGERS DO NOT LIP SING GIRL. JENNIFER LOPEZ IS 100 YEARS OLD UNDER THAT MAKE-UP LEAVE HER ALONE.
Girl don’t @ me.. Take your meds or get some dïck, whichever will help you stop melting down- PLEASE and THANK YOU!
Notice how Rashad didn’t mention one of the nights highlights(Cardi) but mentioned all the lessor performances as noteworthy???? Shes clearly an angry “I’m standing right here(behind security)” Stan ???
Angry @ what tho, clearly you think calling men different pronouns is cute when trying to insult them cuz they not riding a strippers d*** like everybody else.
Girl she’s angry just like you and the rest of the “I’m standing right here(behind security)” fans. Seething that she slayed and is getting all around praise for it on all platforms and a standing ovation. When Whoopi Goldberg takes time to say her and her cat stans for you- you know you a problem.
Your lm standing right here behind security line is getting tired & old like you b****. Tf you think security is paid millions for. Should’ve pressed charges against her ass for assault & they really would’ve locked her ass up. U h*** just like her personality & her h**/stripper to success story
Oh you’re mad. I’m sorry boo boo. Tell you what… excuse that big ol security guard y’all are hiding behind
Oh you’re mad. I’m sorry boo boo. Tell you what… excuse that big ol security guard y’all are “standing right behind”and let’s chit chat!!! We can have creme’ brûlée and cigarettes at my house *** in my Whitney Houston got2breal voice***… just don’t pull any funny tuff cause you know i’ll Go upside your head, if need be ??♀️
You think everybody that doesn’t praise Cardi is a Nicki fan(stan.) Believe or not some people don’t like neither one of them. Just because you and so many others praise Cardi doesn’t mean she has to be everybody’s cup of tea. Vice versa everybody that don’t like Nicki is not a Cardi stan.
Well @MissRiRi we all know you’re an “I’m standing right here (behind security)” stand and so is Miss King of C****ź, the point I’m making is going over your head. The Journalists are reporting on an event and reviewing it, to purposefully leave out the most talked about performance of the night on all news outlets, by the most popular artist of their category attending only shows pressings of panini proportions. ESPECIALLY since a big chunk of the “I’m standing right here (behind security” girls positive articles are written by miss Rashad FISH! She, and you are pressed.
You’re the one pressed cause you spoke on it before I did. I just spoke on your comment. I do like Nicki and I’m not ashamed to say it. You have the right to like who you like just like I have the right to like who I like. I feel Ciara had the best performance. She’s the modern day Janet when it comes to choreography. I don’t have to like Cardi because she’s the so-called it girl. I don’t have to like her just cause you do, just like you don’t like Nicki but I do. I don’t care how many #1s Cardi has, her music doesn’t appeal to me. As far as Nicki standing behind her bodyguards you care more about that than me. Why would I care if she fought Cardi or not? What would that do for me? Not a damn thing. When it comes to artist my main concern is the art. I really don’t carw abour their personal life. Their art is what gains my interest not their personal life. I know you must be 25 or under, only immature people get caught up in that petty s***.
I expected more from J.Lo and Mariah. Disturbed by those performances.
Cici and Cardi slayed! But I think cici had the best performance.
She definitely did.
i think everyone agrees that ciara & cardi killed it last night
You guys act surprised like Ciara had a good performance. Her performances have never been her issue…..her quality of music has. She just hasn’t evolved as an artist and keeps releasing the same uber-busy sounding/overproduced songs over and over. Which are great for her to perform to, but keep missing the mark with what the general public want. Even with that hot performance she had last night, “Level Up” is still sitting outside the iTunes top 100.
This! The problem is not her talent or ability to entertain/perform but it’s that damn ear for music.
When she gets it right, she gets it right.
Rashad you’re wrong. Jennifer is not lipping those notes, she has been vocally training for the past few years with Stevie Mackie, the same guy that works with powerhouses like Jojo and Kelly Rowland. She has improved a lot and clearly likes showing it
All that may be true…but She lipped sweetie
@ Yan.. I agree with you about her growth vocally. She surprise me last night with her vocals. Her performance didn’t go hand in hand yesterday. I feel song Choice she chose, I would have rather watched her sit pretty and sing standing in something half naked. There was no n*** for her to dance last night.
Need*
The show was boring. Mariah and J-Lo looked gorgeous, Ciara was the most entertaining and Auntie Gladys sounded better at 74 than everyone else all night. Underrated icon
Ciara. That’s all that needs to be said.
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I forgot how awesome Ciara was. I love Cardi B growth but Ciara was flawless with her dance steps, personality, confidence, Janet Jackson’s hair and everything. Ciara and Cardi were the best performers. I’m never surprised at the talent of gospel singers. What did yall expect? Did yall see Aretha’s tribute on Black Girls Rock? Don’t ever underestimate Ledisi, any Winan member, and of course, Gladys.
I bet your fav “vocalist” is Ashanti, girl.. PLEASE take your meds and shut the füčk up çčúüñt!!!!