Was anyone else as surprised as I was when Jesus took the stage at the Grammys last night? Only the Queen of Soul herself could get away with such a tribute to the King of Glory on a nationally broadcast, mainstream award show.
When Aretha Franklin and B.B. Winans first stepped on stage with a huge cross lit up behind them and a Gospel choir at their sides, I put down my tea and leaned forward with skeptical but hopeful interest. A few minutes later, when the rest of the Gospel artists joined them in an all-out Jesus love-fest, I started laughing, partly because I was imagining the reaction in some quarters and partly because I just find it amazing how God always manages to write straight with crooked lines.
I know, I know. It’s not unheard of to have a Gospel performance at the Grammys, but you have to admit that this went a step beyond what they typically serve up. There was no disguising what this was about. I was fully expecting spontaneous healings to occur out in the all-star audience.
In a show that included some bizarre pairings — Kid Rock and the somewhat-dazed Keely Smith immediately come to mind — I think the Jesus performance has to take the Grammy for the most unexpected moment of the night. The only thing that would have been more unexpected would have been if Amy Winehouse didn’t win and Kanye West didn’t act like the world owed him something.
