The TV Column

American Music Awards to fill three hours tonight

Singing sensation Bruno Mars, shown at the BET Awards in Los Angeles in June, tops the list with eight nominations in tonight’s American Music Awards to be televised live on ABC.
Singing sensation Bruno Mars, shown at the BET Awards in Los Angeles in June, tops the list with eight nominations in tonight’s American Music Awards to be televised live on ABC.

It has only been a week and a half since we were treated to Entertainer of the Year Garth Brooks lip-syncing at the country music awards ceremony. Fans were shocked and stunned. Well, some of them.

ABC will kill another evening of prime time from 7 to 10 p.m. today with the 2017 American Music Awards. We'll see if any of those artists lip sync.

Of course, Garth had a good reason -- or excuse -- for faking it. He was on tour and in the middle of 12 shows in 10 days. His voice just wasn't up to the live challenge of "Ask Me How I Know" from his latest album Gunslinger.

The trolls out there in the cold, cruel Twitterverse were having none of that hooey from a beloved six-time winner of Entertainer of the Year. Icons and legends find a way to make it work live, even if they have to crank up the bass so you can't make out the words.

Garth explained, "We made a game-time call on whether to sing to a track or lip-sync, and we decided to lip-sync it. My voice just [wasn't] going anywhere, and we wanted to represent country music the best we can."

My observation is that the performances on these star-studded TV award shows are so glitzy, flashy and intended for arenas, that the fine-tuning of the singing really doesn't matter that much. Just as long as it's in the ballpark.

The quiet opening of the 51st Annual CMA Awards was moving. It featured a lovely and somber acoustic rendition of "Amazing Grace" by Eric Church. It seemed appropriate in the wake of recent mass shootings and hurricanes.

But then it segued to Darius Rucker (who went country in 2008), who reached back to his 1994 rock days with Hootie & the Blowfish to belt out a joyously growling version of "Hold My Hand." The country licks were added by the likes of Keith Urban and Lady Antebellum.

Joining them on stage were Garth and spouse Trisha Yearwood, Tim McGraw and spouse Faith Hill. Then came Reba McEntire, Luke Bryan, Thomas Rhett, Kelsea Ballerini, Brooks & Dunn, the members of Little Big Town and others.

Including the back-up chorus and musicians, about 35 folks ended up cramming on the stage and each of them could have been lip-syncing for all I know.

High-tech musical spectacle fills the arenas these days, but TV is a much more intimate medium and it's the quiet moments that really shine.

I still get goose bumps when I recall my very first concert. It was Simon & Garfunkel at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis in 1968. Two guys, two stools, one guitar. It was magic.

These days an act has to have a full back-up band and singers, maybe a few dancers and a laser light show and pyrotechnics, with giant TV screens behind the stage. I prefer when you can actually hear and understand the lyrics.

There probably won't be too many quiet moments in tonight's American Music Awards. Whereas the CMAs honor achievement in country music (which frequently blurs the line between country and pop). The AMAs honor popular musical acts in categories ranging from pop/rock to contemporary inspirational. The winners are determined by fans voting online.

This year's Artist of the Year nominees are Bruno Mars, The Chainsmokers, Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Ed Sheeran. They also lead everybody in nominations. Mars, who dazzled a sold-out Verizon Arena in North Little Rock on Oct. 22, has eight nominations and the rest, along with the Canadian artist who goes by The Weeknd, have five each.

Impress your friends by knowing that The Weeknd's real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye.

Scheduled performers include Diana Ross, Selena Gomez, Christina Aguilera, BTS, Kelly Clarkson and Demi Lovato. Try to spot the lip-synchers in the bunch.

Finale night. It's a triple whammy Masterpiece finale night on AETN.

The Durrells in Corfu starts things off at 7 p.m. today when Hugh poses a life-changing question to Louisa, only to find himself a victim of Vasilia's jealousy.

At 8 p.m., Poldark wraps up Season 3 as Elizabeth turns the tables on George; Demelza and Lt. Armitage reveal their feelings; Poldark makes a vow.

Finally, at 9 p.m. The Collection ends its first season when "a whirlwind of divisive events reaches a climax; Paul fights to hold onto his empire; Billy and Nina contemplate the future."

Football. If all that highfalutin Anglophile drama is too snooty for you, there's always NFL Football on NBC. At 6 p.m. (following NASCAR Racing), Football Night in America recaps all the afternoon action and sets the table for tonight's game.

At 7 p.m., we switch venues for the matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. Expect kickoff around 7:20.

The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:

mstorey@arkansasonline.com

Style on 11/19/2017

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