The Grammys Are Doing a Tribute to Prince and George Michael, Let's Pray They Don't Mess It Up

By Julianne Escobedo Shepherd | February 8, 2017 | 7:10pm

Entertainment

The Grammys are airing this weekend and, unsurprisingly, they will air a tribute to both Prince and George Michael, two of the biggest names among the slew of musicians who died in 2016. Recording Academy CEO Neil Portnow, aka the scold who interrupts the Grammys to deliver the same boring lecture on piracy every year, told Rolling Stone that his organization is “is humbled to pay homage to their tremendous legacies.”

The performers involved in the tributes have not been announced. Look, I don’t mean to come at you all cynical and shit, but I’m nervous! George Michael is one thing—I’m not really trying to hear, say, Katy Perry cover “Faith,” but if it happens it won’t be totally damaging to the soul. Prince, on the other hand, is tough man to homage! Presumably Beyoncé will be involved, particularly as she spent much of last year’s Formation Tour covering “Purple Rain” in homage, but beyond that is anybody’s guess. That said, to be effective it must be at least as spectacular as the Prince tribute staged at the BET Awards last June, though the only way I can imagine that being at all possible is if the original Revolution gets back together and they announce that Prince and Vanity (RIP) had a child or something.