I Believe In A Thing Called Love
An amber moon is rising full over Biscayne Bay. Heat lightning streaks the horizon. Over my shoulder, the diaphanous curtains shift in the warm breeze. And I yawn.
MTV News’ Pre-Show By The Shore and MTV’s Video Music Awards were, without fail, the largest effort in which I’ve participated. It was like going to war. Thousands of people made it happen. And while producing an on air/online fashion spread for a couple of teen heartthrobs, ushering millionaire music moguls down a red carpet, and making a few hours worth of noise on television ain’t rocket science (or, fortunately, war), it was pretty major. And pretty cool.
Bottom line is, I spent most of this Video Music Awards Weekend in the basement staring at a computer. Yes, I did see the Haitian workers actually roll out the red carpet and tack it down. And yes, I walked that very red carpet. I toured the arena, previewed the unbelievably ambitious and beautiful staging, got goosebumps at Stevie Wonder’s rehearsal, and dined on craft services until I could eat no more. I joked with Kurt and John, kissed Suejin (in a gentlemanly manner), patted Gideon on the back, and hip-hop hugged Sway. And I heard the dish: Usher’s dating Alicia Keys, P. Diddy said “Oh no you didn’t!” to a PA who dared touch his shoulder, and Paris was caught picking her nose.
But I didn’t party in South Beach, let alone make it outside a square mile radius of my hotel. I didn’t see the pre-show. And I didn’t see the Big Show. All I saw was a whole bunch of people working their asses off into the wee hours night after night after night for one reason.
We. Love. Music.
Whatever anyone says about the 900 pound gorilla that is MTV, that’s what it boils down to. We love music. And we believe in its power to move, and entertain, and motivate.
Deep? Not really. Simple? Not by a long shot. A good thing? Well, I think so anyway.
The Wonder Of Birds
I took a rare road trip from my basement hovel below the Video Music Awards in the American Airlines Arena and was dually rewarded.
Much of my time in Miami, nay, all of it, has been spent in the one square mile between the Marriott Biscayne and the AAA, and most of it’s been spent in the white-washed newsroom staring at a computer. But I ventured out around noon today and waltzed unfettered through the cavernous, riotous backstage of the Video Music Awards. Upstairs on the press level, in the arena’s nerve center, my colleague, young Jonathan Goldner was setting up shop to digitize video from the show and update the massive tickers on the side of the building.
En route, I paused when I heard beautiful singing coming from the rehearsal stage. So few (MTV) artists actually sing anymore, so it was a real pleasure. It didn’t take me long to identify the voice as Alicia Keys’. I looked down just in time to see her, Lenny Kravitz and — gasp! — Stevie Wonder rehearse ‘Higher Ground.’
Now, I’ve seen a few things in my day. I interviewed my hero, Michael Stipe. I’ve interviewed Celine Dion, Meat Loaf, Aimee Mann, Linda Grey (Linda Grey!), David Gray (ha!), and on and on and on. And I’ve seen tons of great performances up close and personal. But THIS gave me goose bumps. THIS was Stevie Wonder. And THAT man can sing.
For a second there, before my day began spinning out of control, before the blur that was The MTV Video Music Awards, well, that was pretty cool. I was pretty psyched to be me. And pretty grateful to be here, and be able to hear a voice like that even once.
