Melissa Kacar

In a year that made us all feel more distant than ever, music continuously brought us together in such a powerful way. This year's Grammy Award ceremony was a beautiful celebration of the music that kept us connected and got us through 2020. This show was structured very different than the way it usually is in order to comply with social distancing and COVID guidelines, but this new format worked out really well and was one of the best award ceremonies I have ever seen. The music was the sole focus of the entire show, with few on-air award presentations, but instead with dozens of incredible musicians performing back-to-back throughout the night. Often award shows can feel very long and drawn out, but this year's ceremony was so entertaining all the way through. The audience was seated outdoors and was very limited, only the nominees in the upcoming category were present, and most of the performances were either pre-recorded or done inside with five circular stages that rotated...

Los Angeles has been the number one place I have wanted to visit for years and I was so happy I finally got to go to celebrate my 18th birthday and high school graduation. It was so surreal to actually be in Los Angeles and see all of these iconic places I have only ever seen pictures of before. It felt like I've been there before without ever actually being there, a feeling I have never had before when going to a new place. The trip was nothing less of amazing and I loved every second of it. Newark, NJ → Los Angeles, CA It felt so unreal to be landing at LAX after a 6 hour flight across the country. I couldn't believe all of my dreams were coming true in that moment. Once we got the bags and the rental car, it was already pretty late at night. the first thing we decided to do was go to the iconic West Coast fast-food chain, In-N-Out Burger. With it being our first time on the West Coast, it was basically a no-brainer that we had to try In-N-Out first! I ordered the ...

Music's biggest night was filled with unforgettable performances and served as a celebration of some of the best art released in the past year. The competition was very tight this year, every category had several nominees that were equally deserving of the night's biggest honors. This past year was so great in terms of new music releases, it has been so much fun to be a fan of all of these artists. There was a very diverse range of artists celebrated, which was so great to see.  The entire show was dedicated to fundraising for the communities in Los Angeles that have been affected by the devastating wildfires last month, which is such an important cause to bring attention to. Los Angeles is home to such a vibrant artistic community, a city that is intertwined with the history of so much of the best art and music of our time. Many small businesses were highlighted throughout the show as well as tributes to the victims of the fires, the firefighters and first responders that put...