*NSYNC unwisely performed This I Promise You at the Grammys
From rollingstone.com: Not every artist who began the night with odds seemingly in their favor received consolation prizes, however. Triple nominee Madonna, who opened the show with a performance of "Music" replete with a glittering Cadillac, scores of dancers and a cameo by Lil' Bow Wow, went home empty-handed, as did *NSYNC, Britney Spears, the Backstreet Boys, Christina Aguilera, Erykah Badu and Don Henley. Sisqo, tapped by many as a shoo-in for Best New Artist on the strength of his inescapable "Thong Song," lost out to country/soul crooner Shelby Lynne, who racked up considerable critical acclaim last year for her album I Am Shelby Lynne. "Thirteen years and six albums to get here," the Alabama-born singer-songwriter said from the podium. "I stand here and represent nothing but music." She looked more defiant than elated, like a woman who would break Sisqo in two if he asked to see her thong.

Apart from Eminem's appearance with Elton John, the evening's most memorable performance was the bizarro combo of Moby, Jill Scott and the Blue Man Group for Moby's "Natural Blues." The song lost in the Best Dance Recording category to the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out," but the eclectic performance won a standing ovation from the audience. Less successful were *NSYNC, who unwisely bypassed their upbeat side in order to slog through a terminally slow "This I Promise You." Christina Aguilera went for broke by patterning her energetic Spanish-language performance on Ricky Martin's star-making turn two years ago, complete with a horn section, dancers and flashy pyrotechnics, but regrettably lacking a comparably memorable song. She subsequently lost her bid for Best Latin Pop Album to Columbian singer Shakira.