What To Expect From Bey's Grammys Performance

The Grammys are this Sunday, and Beyoncé is, of course, going to steal the show. The President and CEO of The Recording Academy (which is, for the record, the organization that puts on the Grammys) Neil Portnow teased Beyonce's upcoming Grammy performance, saying that it's going to be "so dramatically different than anything you've seen her do in a long time." Consider me intrigued!

Portnow goes on to say that the Grammys themselves will be pretty unexpected:

"We keep trying to top ourselves and sort of go away from something we did last year but really it all starts with the music…It's real performances, it's live, it's in the moment it's spontaneous…We've got another slate this year that is just off the hook, killer, great combinations of some unexpected things so I think everybody will be very pleased."

Being crazy and unexpected seems to be the new normal for awards shows these days, with the VMAs in the lead. And Beyoncé herself has done a lot of different stuff recently, having released a new album and a whole bunch of music videos in 2013 (WITH NO WARNING WHATSOEVER) and gone on a giant tour with Jay Z in 2014.

So, what can we expect from Bey's magical upcoming performance? If we're expecting "different" than before, it's safe to say it probably won't be super sexual, since she's recently released those sexy 50 Shades of Grey song remixes and the "Partition" video. It can't involve giant animal creatures or confused sharks, since Katy Perry just did that for her Super Bowl performance. Last year at the Grammys, Bey performed "Drunk in Love" in a performance that shocked some parents.

That said, from Portnow's hints, it seems likely that her performance will be less about shock value, more about...something else.

Personally, what I'm picturing is a sort of intimate piano ballad, which one wouldn't expect to hear at the Grammys — however, this actually seems very likely. Portnow has emphasized that he's really trying to put the musical talent at the center of the show.

Here's what else we know about Bey's 2015 Grammy's performance: she'll be performing with John Legend and Common in a Selma tribute. Beyoncé will introduce them with the gospel song "Take My Hand Precious Lord" before joining in their performance of the excellent and moving "Glory," which they recorded for the movie Selma. It goes without saying that "Take My Hand Precious Lord" and "Glory" are very different songs than "Drunk In Love." Could a more classic, no-frills performance be what Portnow is referring to? Could it get political, in light of recent current events?

Or will Beyoncé be performing her own music in another number?

I'm hoping that a more classic performance, one that highlights Beyoncé's amazing vocal abilities, is what we have in store for us. But, it seems we won't find out for sure until the Grammys air on Sunday night.