Lady Gaga and Metallica hit the 2017 Grammys stage together on Sunday — and did not hold back.
She went full Metallica, clad in leather shorts and performing the band’s hit “Moth Into the Flame.” As she sang, side by side with Metallica’s James Hetfield, pyrotechnics flared up behind her. And at one point, she pulled a classic metal move — jumping into the crowd for a stage dive.
Technical difficulties did strike, as Hetfield’s microphone appeared to go dead. No matter for Gaga, however. She stormed right up to Hetfield and shared with him her working mic, making for an even more explosive performance.
It’s not too surprising to see Gaga delve completely into the rock persona, however. She showed similar vibes in her “Perfect Illusion” music video (though without one of rock’s biggest bands). Before they took the stage, Laverne Cox introduced them and praised Gaga’s efforts for LGBTQ rights.
Gaga performed coming off of her high-flying Super Bowl halftime performance that Variety’s critic called “competent but disconnected.”
At last year’s Grammys, Gaga performed a memorable and moving tribute to the late David Bowie. The pop star is a six-time Grammy winner, most recently in 2015 for her Tony Bennett collaboration “Cheek to Cheek.” Metallica has won nine Grammys since 1990. The band’s James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich are nominated this year in the best rock song category for “Hardwired.”
One week ago on Sunday night, Gaga followed up her performance a la Beyonce in 2016 by launching a world tour announcement to promote her latest album “Joanne.” Tickets for the first leg of the tour go on sale Feb. 13, with tickets for the second stretch available starting a week later.
In addition to Gaga and Metallica, the 2017 Grammys also saw performances from Adele, Bruno Mars, Lukas Graham, and many others.
The 59th Annual Grammy Awards — hosted by James Corden — were filmed at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and broadcast live on CBS Feb. 12.
