Christina Aguilera opened the show with her sensational voice and about as many outfit changes as songs… She began with a few lines from Beautiful and then transitioned into an amped-up performance of Keeps Getting Better, where she was accompanied by her dancers. In my opinion, this is what the music video really should have looked like. She also took a stroll with her hits Genie In A Bottle, let the vocals rip on Dirty and brought it home with Aint No Other Man.

NKOTB – is it time to sit down yet? Jordan’s singing was sooooooooo off most of the time and they looked about as uncoordinated as bad as they sound

Pink’s performance of her second single Sober was a highlight for me. It’s definitely one of the best songs on her album, and this performance was totally rocked out. Not to mention she looks amazing. Pink sure knows how to kick in the emotion when it’s time.

I’m now officially checkin for Taylor Swift. She did a great job, and I think I'm gonna review her CD

Miley Cyrus' performance of Fly On The Wall had great energy and the song is kinda catchy. Is she this decade’s Britney Spears?

Jonas Brothers - blaaaaaahhhhhh…

Ne-yo… white shoes tho? Feelin the horn arrangement and the dance routines were amazing but uh… I think he forgot that he was actually supposed to SING the words. If you’re going to dance that hard and forget to deliver the lyrics, join the rest of the “cool kids” that lip sync their live shows!

Leona Lewis took the stage with her perfect vocals and she looked great!! She is one of few artists I dare to say sings better live than on her album! Another highlight of the night for me.

Beyonce showed up gloveless for a performance of Sasha's current smash Single Ladies. Of course she looked amazing and had great energy, but that vanilla honey on the right was killing it. So I guess that answers my previous question: even without the glove, she still gives the love...

Fashionably, Rihanna rocked! She tried some new things with her vocals, to prove that she can actually sing, contrary to what a lot of folks seem to think. I really hope Rehab is the last single from this album.

I’m gonna try not to say anything bad about Kanye West. His performance of Heartless was cool, nothing amazing, but his vocals were quite off in a lot of places. Which brings me to my next point…What’s he gonna do when he goes on tour?? Oh and Kanye… from now on just take your award, say thank you, sit down and shut up. Thank you and you’re welcome… (Hey, I said I'd TRY!)

Sara McLachlan and Pink singing ‘Angel’ – That is one of the most beautiful songs ever written, and this duet was amazing. Really took me back to Pink’s Can’t Take Me Home album, her R&B flavored debut.

Alicia Keys performed Superwoman with some help from Queen Latifah and Kathleen Bennett (presumably a professional opera singer). Good look with bringin out the Queen and diversifying her performance, but I think the opera may have been a bit much. I see what she was trying to do and I appreciate it, but it was a bit much all at once.

-Mack-

We live in an era where artists aren’t so limited to genres anymore. Everyone’s crossing over, branching into different areas to widen their fan base. And why not? I mean, if Big Boi can do ballet, then anything’s possible, right? (I’m not kidding…)

Sound-Savvy wants to put you on to some music that you might not listen to on a regular basis, or if you did, you might not admit it…LOL. It’s okay, we’ve all got our guilty pleasures, and we just like to share ours with you. So here’s the first in our set of TIYMLI articles. After all, they’re your ears - satisfy them. Happy listening…

Artist: Drake
Song: Replacement Girl ft. Trey Songz
Album: Comeback Season
Video Link

10 points for ‘keepin’ it real’. Rebound chicks stand up! Degrassi alum Drake has no qualms about it: He ain’t lookin’ at you, he’s lookin past you, whoever you are. Any takers?

Artist: Janelle Monae
Song: Violet Stars Happy Hunting
Album: Metropolis Suite I of IV -"The Chase"
Video Link

She’s as pretty as a flower plucked straight outta funk wonderland. Imagine Andre 3000 jacked up to the 10^th power and reincarnated as a female and you’d just be getting warm. In fact, you’ll probably recognize her from Big Boi’s ‘Morris Brown’ video, or from her song ‘Lettin’ Go’ which appeared on the Purple Ribbon Allstars’ Got Purp? Volume 2 compilation disc. Let her put it to you simply: she’s “an alien from outer space…”

Artist: The Jonas Brothers
Song: When You Look Me in The Eyes
Album: The Jonas Brothers
Video Link

10 years ago it was ‘Hanson’ (I dare you to front like you don’t remember "MMMBop!"). Now it’s the Jonas Brothers. They’ve been on tour with kid sensation Hanna Montana, but these youngins got a bit of pop-soul on this sentimental little love song. Cheesy…yes!

Artist: Duffy
Song: Mercy
Album: Rockferry
Video Link

She’s being hailed as the next Amy Winehouse. Yes, her sound is comparable, and if she hopes to avoid that inevitable comparison, she might wanna write a different hook instead of ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah’, which mirrors Winehouse’s ‘No, no, no’ on Rehab. Still, she’s got an old school sound delivered by a great set of pipes. Addiction sold separately…

All the songs listed here can be found on the Sound-Savvy Myspace Page playlist. If you’ve got a song that you think should be a TIYMLI feature, feel free to hit us up.