Lady GaGa Queen Of Brit Awards 2010

Lady Gaga Pays Tribute To Alexander McQueen At Brit Awards

She performs 'Dance in the Dark' and 'Telephone' as a tribute to late friend and fashion icon.

Lady Gaga might have won all three Brit Awards she was nominated for Tuesday (February 16), but it was her avant-garde tribute and performance to late friend and British fashion icon Alexander McQueen that stole the show. The star took to the stage in all white and sat at her piano before kicking off her performance with an acoustic version of her song "Telephone." "This is for Alexander McQueen," she told the crowd. The stage was decked out in white, and perched on a pedestal was a statue of what seemed to be Gaga wearing a piano skirt and the now-famous McQueen lobster-claw heels she wore in her "Bad Romance" video. She then got up from her piano as the disco groove of "Dance in the Dark" boomed throughout the room. In her lace bodysuit and over-the-top bouffant wig, she took to a giant keytar and dazzled the crowd with a techno rendition of the track. She then listed off names of fallen icons like Sylvia Plath and Judy Garland. The pop star arrived to the show dressed in a white dress and the same wig she wore onstage later that night. According to reports, Gaga retooled her whole performance to pay tribute to McQueen at the show. She later tweeted, "Tonight's performance is inspired by our friend. Mask by Phillip Treacy, Sculpture by Nick Knight, Music by Lady Gaga. We miss you." Last week, after news broke about McQueen's death, she tweeted a photo of the two of them as a tribute to her late friend. MTVNews.com

Less Taylor Swift, More Lady Gaga: Why the Brit Awards Are Better Than the Grammys

By Rohin Guha

Tonight marks the cultural antidote to the Grammys: The Brit Awards. You may ask yourself, "Why should I care about a music awards telecast that takes place in a country I've only ever heard of in wives' tales?" In this case, it matters a great deal because, unlike our car-crash of a telecast, the UK's answer to the Grammys promises to be everything the Grammys have failed to be year after year: Relevant. Basically, everyone involved with the Grammys, from producer to peon, should watch and take lots of notes. Mostly, the Brit Awards seem less guided by spectacle and tabloid headlines (note: not entirely devoid of)--relegating someone like Taylor Swift, who only rose to prominence because of spectacle, not discernible talent, to the International Breakthrough Act category. More telling is this: Swift is nominated alongside Lady Gaga. Gaga, unlike Swift, has become iconic on both sides of the Atlantic. As far as the UK goes, Swift may still be “that bird who was upstaged by Kanye sometime ago.” Or possibly “a younger Shania Twain.” This is reflected in the International Female Solo Artist, where she’s absent. Where Gaga is nominated next to superstars like Norah Jones, Rihanna, and Shakira and emerging stars like Ladyhawke alike. It’s further reflected in the fact that of the two, the only one performing is Gaga. But where the Grammys err in favor of appealing to blue-hairs and possibly the Bible FUPA, the Brits--at least this year--are looking to stir the sympathies of more discerning music fans. Performers like Florence + the Machine, La Roux, Animal Collective, Bat for Lashes appeal to indie sensibilities, while picks like Cheryl Cole, Leona Lewis, and Robbie Williams appeal to mainstream tastes. There’s a balance there that, while not perfect, at least makes sense out of the breadth of music made available to consumers in the past year. To contrast, the Grammys try hard to achieve the opposite effect: Rewarding talent purely on sales while maybe, just maybe, batting an eyelash at niche performers who were big news over a year ago. That balance is most well-demonstrated by Lily Allen’s nomination and her performance tonight. What works especially well with this pool of nominees is a sense of history. Where the Grammys operate arbitrarily, cherry-picking talent from history in order to create a narrative that conveniently forgoes their campier moments (like that whole Milli Vanilli incident), the Brits--maybe perhaps too contrivingly--tips a nod back to its history with a category like the Most Memorable Brits Performance of the Past 30 Years. It’s a category where performers like the Spice Girls, Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson, Eurythmics, and The Who are directly in competition with newer performers like Kanye West, Girls Aloud, the Scissor Sisters, and Kylie Minogue. But the way in which the Brits is most like staring into a wonderful parallel universe? How Leona Lewis expects to be snubbed tonight. Speaking of snubs, here’s a Memorable Brit Performance of the Past 30 Years that sadly went unnoticed. blackbookmag.com

Lady Gaga the big winner at the BRITs

BY ANDRE PAINE, REUTERS

Lady Gaga was the big winner at the 2010 BRIT Awards at London's Earls Court with three wins, but British acts JLS and Florence and the Machine snagged important awards on the night. Lady Gaga was the big winner at the 2010 BRIT Awards at London's Earls Court with three wins, but British acts JLS and Florence and the Machine snagged important awards on the night. There were strong performances from Gaga, U.K. rock act Kasabian and the duet between British alt-rock act Florence and the Machine and rapper Dizzee Rascal, while an appearance from Liam Gallagher provided a few welcome moments of controversy. Following her performance of "Telephone" at the piano and the thumping "Dance In The Dark," a tearful Gaga kept returning to the stage to collect awards - for international breakthrough, international female and international album for The Fame (Interscope). Although the performance, for which she wore a lacy leotard and huge pale wig, was perhaps slightly self-indulgent, Gaga was clearly overwhelmed by her success on the night. "I was so excited to win the first two but this one [international album] means even more to me because I worked so hard on this album for so long," she said. "My fans were the first people to believe in me." She also thanked Lee McQueen - the given name of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen who died last week. While Gaga was emotional, comedian Peter Kay was the perfect antidote, although it is actually impossible to translate his comment that Gaga was "New York's answer to Su Pollard" for a U.S. audience. Pollard starred as muddled holiday camp maid Peggy in the British comedy Hi-de-Hi! (see YouTube). Ex-Oasis singer Liam Gallagher collected the award for BRITs Album of 30 Years from Slade's Noddy Holder for What's The Story Morning Glory? He then decided to snub brother Noel Gallagher in the acceptance speech and just thank former members of Oasis who departed several years ago when the band was at its peak - "Bonehead, Guigs and Alan White." He then threw the microphone into the audience. "The best band in the f*cking world - live forever," he said, before stalking off stage. The Spice Girls also won an award for the best performance of the last 30 years, and Mel B and Geri Halliwell collected the award and conspicuously forgot to thank their fellow band mates (they did rectify that later). The Billboard predictions today were pretty much spot-on: British rock act Kasabian won best British group, U.K. boy band JLS got two awards (British breakthrough act and British single for "Beat Again"), rapper Dizzee Rascal won best British male and Jay-Z snagged the international male award. Jay-Z, who claimed the Spice Girls inspired him after collecting the award from Mel B, also provided one of the performances of the night with Alicia Keys on "Empire State Of Mind." Florence and the Machine lost the British female award to Lily Allen, but Florence did win the big award for best British album for Lungs (Island/Universal). The duet with Dizzee - a mash up of her version of "You Got The Love" and his "Dirtee Cash" with harpists, a glitter storm and Florence emerging from a giant mirror ball - was also a standout moment that should have looked fantastic on TV. "I want to thank everyone who bought the album and everyone who liked it," said Florence Welch. "It's been an amazing night. We've had the best time and I hope you have, too." The duet with Dizzee is available to buy on iTunes in the U.K. from Feb. 17 in aid of the BRIT Trust which supports U.K. charities; Prince Harry also recorded a video message for the Trust, which was received without any of the anticipated anti-royalist jeering from the U.K. music industry. Robbie Williams got the outstanding contribution award and closed the show with a medley of hits. The ceremony, organized by U.K. trade body the BPI and sponsored by MasterCard, was broadcast live on ITV1. vancouversun.com

BRIT Awards 2010 Winners:

British Male Solo Artist

Dizzee Rascal

British Female Solo Artist

Lily Allen

British Breakthrough Act

(Winner chosen by Radio 1 listeners)

JLS

British Group

Kasabian

British Album

Florence & the Machine, Lungs (Island/Universal Music)

British Single

(Winner selected by U.K. commercial radio listeners)

JLS "Beat Again" (Epic/Sony Music)

International Male Solo Artist

Jay-Z

International Female Solo Artist

Lady Gaga

International Breakthrough Act

(Winner chosen by MTV viewers)

Lady Gaga

International Album

Lady Gaga, The Fame (Interscope/Universal Music)

BRITs Album of 30 Years

(Winner chosen by Radio 2 & 6 Music listeners)

Oasis, (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (Big Brother)

BRITS Performance of 30 Years

Spice Girls

Critics' Choice

Ellie Goulding

Producer

Paul Epworth

Lady Gaga Dominates 30th BRITs

LONDON (Reuters) - Glam pop artist Lady Gaga dominated the 30th BRITs on Tuesday, winning a trio of awards at the pop music industry's flagship ceremony, the first international act to do so for five years. Gaga, dressed in a ghostly carnival headdress and skimpy lace outfit, picked up awards for International Female Solo Artist, International Breakthrough Act and Best International Album for "The Fame," winning every category in which she was nominated. The singer, on top of the music charts for most of the last 12 months, dedicated an eerie live performance to fashion designer Alexander McQueen, who died last week. "Thank you so much for believing in me," she told her fans. Boy band JLS, who finished second in TV talent show "The X Factor" in 2008, polished off a year of number one singles and a top-selling album with two awards -- best British group and best British single for "Beat Again." Lily Allen was crowned best British female artist and Dizzee Rascal was named best British male, capping his successful transition from rapper to bona fide pop star. Rascal's latest album "Tongue N' Cheek" has yielded three number one singles -- "Dance Wiv Me," "Holiday" and "Bonkers" -- which have had as much to do with house music as rap. It was a big night for hip hop. U.S. rapper Jay-Z won the International Male Solo Artist award and delivered a powerful rendition of his hit "Empire State of Mind" with Alicia Keys. Jay-Z's star has been on the rise since he won over thousands of new fans as the first hip hop act to headline the Glastonbury festival in 2008, traditionally a rock event.

"We proved that hip hop could play anywhere in the world," Jay-Z said. POMP AND CEREMONY The event, which has been criticized for failing to recognize artists beyond the major labels, brings together hordes of record company executives, artists and hangers-on to celebrate the previous year's successes at London's Earls Court. ABCnews.com