One Superstar Is Gone, Another Is Born

I can see I wasn't alone in my thoughts on Grammy Night.  Several other writers and commentators have said the same thing.  As I watched Adele pick up six Grammys, including the big three (Song, Record and Album of the Year) I couldn't help thinking that just as we were mourning the loss of one of the superstars of all-time, Whitney Houston, it seemed as another was being anointed.

Adele became just the sixth artist in Grammy history to win those three top prizes and she tied Beyonce for the female record Grammy haul of six.  Inside the Rock Era on December 31 had Adele with the top two songs for 2011 for good reason.  Her music is refreshing in that it doesn't contain samples, features melodies of value and she isn't pretentious, unlike so many in her generation.  Those are the qualities that are going to make you a lasting superstar.  I also like the fact that she put her career on hold, likely ignoring the advice of music insiders, to have surgery on her vocal chords.  If we've learned anything, it is that artists such as Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston could have said no at several times in their career and didn't.  Adele's decision reminds us that everyone is in charge of their own destiny and no one person should control us.