The Grammy Awards show, dubbed music’s greatest night, has been known both as a way for talented artists to be recognized, as well as a means for them to showcase their talent. While performances have always been an integral part of the show, it’s questionable whether this theatrical aspect is being taken too far.

Sunday night’s Grammy’s saw a variety of spectacles including Lady Gaga being thrown into an inferno, Pink hanging from the ceiling and a Michael Jackson memorial featuring 3D images. However, one thing seemed to be missing from the popular awards show — the music.

What used to be a tribute to some of music’s greatest artists has turned into a visual eyesore. While musicians are considered to be performers, a focus on the performance detracts from the music, which should ultimately be the show’s primary focus.

However, artists shouldn’t be blamed for trying to conform to an ever-changing industry. If you wish to succeed in such a competitive market, an artist has to able to do more than just sing well. Most audiences favour “triple threat” artists — people who can act, dance and sing.

Whether the reception of these triple threats is positive or negative, the performances are much more memorable than those artists who choose to only sing on stage. Unfortunately, the result of this is over-hyped pop stars getting all the glory at award shows while actually talented and unique musicians are overlooked.

The Grammy’s are perhaps forced to encourage the use of theatrics in order to gain more viewers. The awards show has an unfortunate history of being on the dry side, so it makes sense they want artists to push the limits to increase ratings. Furthermore, if ridiculous performances are what people want more than serious displays of musical talent, why should the Grammy’s go against the grain and risk losing viewers?

Nonetheless, if the Grammy’s are looking to advertise themselves as an awards show, then they should be able to deliver. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to cut the performances a bit to give more attention to the lower profile nominees. Although the general public might be a bit less entertained, an emphasis on the awards might help restore the integrity of the Grammy’s, whereas it is currently just a spectacle of famous people disguised as an awards show.

Ultimately, while Saturday’s Grammy’s proved to be a disappointment, the award show is not solely to blame. It’s the media’s job to reflect society, not change it, and in the end the Grammy’s are simply a business looking to attract more customers.

While award shows in general work more to entertain than to honour, there is no one to blame other than the viewers.