2012 Grammys Performance Recap: Nicki Minaj, Chris Brown, Rihanna

(Chris Brown performs at the 2012 Grammy Awards)

There were a few memorable performances at Sunday night's Grammy Awards , which included sets from Chris Brown, Rihanna & Nicki Minaj. Chris Brown made his official return to the awards show with an LED lit backdrop, while Rihanna threw her own dance party & sang a brief duet with Coldplay. Nicki Minaj's performance for "Roman Holiday" was definitely of the more fascinating displays of the night. The Young Money rapper went allout, with a very theatrical set that left fans with plenty to say. Check out a recap of the performances after the jump

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Chris Brown : When the stage litup, Brown stood atop a collectionof colorful blocks that sometimes resembled the 1980s arcade game "Q-Bert." The electric-tuned, Underdogs-produced singlefilled Staples Middle, as Brown, who was wearing a white & grey varsity jacket, white pants & sparkling sneaks, kick-stepped up & down multiple levels of the high-rising stage prop. As the beat built, theblocks went from red to blue to yellow & green with building intensity before Brown switched gears & went in to the more familiar dance single "Beautiful People" from last year's F.A.M.E. LP.The pop star got a bit daring, leaping across the structure while his backup dancers, who wore oversize winged ponchos, did likewise in a high-flying process. In the finish, there were no innuendos or screen cuts to Breezy's ex-flame Rihanna. Brown basically done his number, stood triumphantly & saluted the crowd before taking a bow.

(Nicki Minaj performs at the 2012 Grammy Awards)

Rihanna : Rihanna's performance kicked off like a scene straight out of the thematically dark video for the track, with the Barbadian pop star leaning against a wall looking troubled under dark lighting with only a piano playing alongside her as shesang the track like a torch ballad.Looking pretty � and giving offa Tina Turner vibe � Rihanna rocked the blond locks he introduced recently, wearing a tight, belly-baring ensemble. The laser lights, LED screens and synths kicked up soon , though, and Rihanna welcomed dancers to the stage and lit in to a high-energy performance of the dance smash that kept with the feel of the song, devolving in to a full-on rave, with the pop star front and middle. Like plenty of other performers and presentersat the show, Rihanna took a moment to honor the late Whitney Houston, demanding the audience, "Make some noise for Whitney!"

Soon, the tempo backed down and the dancers departed, leaving Rihanna onstage with justChris Martin strumming an acoustic guitar. The pair then started in to the televised debut of their Mylo Xyloto collaboration "Princess of China."

(Rihanna, Coldplay perform at the 2012 Grammy Awards)

Nicki Minaj : In the show's final act the animated rap star � who lost out to Bon Iver for "Best New Artist" � channeled her infamous fine-tune ego Roman Zolanski onstage, leading the audience through a rap exorcism of sorts. At point, he even levitated, while speaking in tongues and leaping around against a fiery backdrop. Minaj marched out sporting a brown ball gown and long, bleached-blond locks, and performed a skit before launching in to her new single, "Roman Holiday," from her upcoming sophomore album, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded . In a pre-taped skit, Minaj was surrounded by stained glass and other religious imagery, eerily putting on lipstick, singing "I Feel ." He then climbed a wall to have an exchange with the weird Pope-like figure, a man who is actual identity remains unknown. After being strapped toa leather lab table onstage, he rapped backed by a goth-looking church choir that sang a hauntingversion of "Come All Ye Faithful." At the crescendo, he was lifted by an invisible rope in to the Grammy sky. Shooting flames helped to complete the fiery, head-scratching number.