Adele Trivia Quiz

Answer: Album of the Year

"Album of the Year" was awarded for her second album, '21', as was the "Best Pop Vocal Album".

In addition, 'Rolling in the Deep' skilfully netted her "Record of the Year", "Song of the Year" and "Best Short Form Music Video" awards.
Her final award was given for 'Someone Like You', which gave her the "Best Pop Solo Performance" award.

About Grammys themselves (mainly because I was interested in what they were actually for myself - this may not be new to all of you!)...
The Grammy is named after the trophy which is a small gramophone fixed on a black, engraved trapezoid. It was first awarded in 1959: The music industry didn't have an equivalent to the Oscars (Film) or Emmys (TV) at the time, so the Grammy award helped to musicians to be able to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The shorthand/brief version of the voting procedure is as follows: National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) screens recording entries from individuals and recording artists to determine eligibility and genre. The Academy encourages members to make their nominations and final votes in areas of expertise: limiting the amount of categories they can vote in.

Final fun fact: Adele's six Grammy awards were said to weigh about as much as 4 gallons of water, or a young emperor penguin. Keeping them all in her arms must have been tough!

Answer: Her age at time of recording

Adele has stated that her age was a large part of how she dealt with things, and her songs reflected her feelings at the time, hence her naming the albums after her age. She had also felt that, within the two years between '19' and '21', she had grown somewhat, which she hoped to show in '21', and that the titles weren't trying to be clever, but, instead, honest.

A BBC article quotes Adele as stating: "The whole reason I called my first album 19 was about cataloguing what happened to me then and who I was then."

"Like a photo album you see the progression and changes in a person throughout the years."

Both '19' and '21' achieved much commercial success: '21' achieved number one in the end of year UK and Australian Albums Chart, plus the US Billboard 200 and other countries. '19' was also successful, although not to the same extent: it hit number one in the Dutch and UK end-year charts however.

Answer: Set Fire to the Rain

The lyrics suggest a break-up whereby Adele found it difficult to get over a man she thought cared for her and didn't, and still keeps in her thoughts through remaining in touch. Setting fire to the rain is said by Adele to be a way of liberating oneself from that pain: although, it is noted that setting fire to the rain is contradictory and can't be done - so, perhaps, the task of getting over this ex-boyfriend was more difficult than it seemed.

'Set Fire to the Rain' hit number one in several countries' weekly charts, including the US Billboard 100 and the Netherlands, but, interestingly, not in the UK where Adele was based at the time, where it only hit number eleven.

Answer: Heart of Glass

The story goes that, at the age of 14, her dad's best friend, a dance producer, asked her to record the song 'Heart of Glass' - which she accepted. The whole process of recording and holding the microphone was said to be what got Adele really into the idea of pursuing music recording as a career, despite her family being relatively un-musical.

To further her dream, Adele attended the Brit School for performing arts - of which music artists Amy Winehouse, Katie Melua and Jessie J have also been students. Following graduation, she released a three-song demo which her friend placed on the social networking website MySpace. This got her attention from fans of the site, and eventually, recording company XL Recordings offered her a deal in 2006. At the time, she hardly believed their offer was genuine since she'd only heard of Virgin Records beforehand! This signing was what really began to kickstart her success as a commercial artist.

Answer: Chasing Pavements

"Should I give up or should I just keep chasing pavements
Even if it leads nowhere?
Or would it be a waste even if I knew my place
Should I leave it there?
Should I give up or should I just keep chasing pavements
Even if it leads nowhere?"

'Chasing Pavements' was inspired by an angry break-up after learning her boyfriend at the time had cheated on her. She felt she was chasing an empty pavement - and recorded the song almost right there and then, singing into her phone as she walked home! A spontaneous success indeed.

The song was certified Platinum in the U.S., and hit single figures in the charts of Norway, UK Singles, Italy, Ireland and Denmark.

Answer: Hiding My Heart

The rest of the verse goes as follows:

"But like everything I've ever known
You disappear one day
So I spend my whole life hiding my heart away"

'Hiding My Heart' was a limited-edition bonus track for the UK and Bulgaria '21' album which might depict a whirlwind romance that only left sadness in its wake. What is perhaps less well-known is that the song was actually a cover originally featuring in folk rock singer Brandi Carlile's album 'The Story' in 2007 as a hidden track.

Answer: A fickle heart

"I know I have a fickle heart and a bitterness,
And a wandering eye, and heaviness in my head"
"But don't you remember?
Don't you remember?
The reason you loved me before,
Baby, please remember me once more"

'Don't You Remember' was released in 2011 as part of Adele's album '21', and shifts the album from anger to reflection and sadness. The song is about the pain of a loss of love that once was. Adele, within the song, accepts she has flaws, but thought that she was still loved despite them, and wants that love back.

The song was produced by Rick Rubin, renowned for popularising hip hop music and for being the co-president of Columbia Records, who approached the recording with a free approach, tasking his musicians to almost 'improvise', playing their instruments based on Adele's powerful voice alone. He also helped produce 4 other songs with Adele, showing how interested he was in her as an artist.

Answer: Breathe

"So I won't let you close enough to hurt me, no
I won't ask you, you to just desert me
I can't give you, what you think you give me
It's time to say goodbye to turning tables
Turning tables"

'Turning Tables' was written with songwriter Ryan Tedder, who saw the concept of Adele 'turning tables' with her ex-boyfriend and grew the song from there. The song has ambiguous meaning; there is the hint at physical or emotional abuse, or perhaps just that they argued frequently.

In addition to being on album '21', 'Turning Tables' was released as a single, although it only gained prominence in the charts of Belgium and Italy, hitting single figures within both of them (but not quite number one).
Finally, 'Turning Tables' was the first of Adele's songs to feature on pop-culture music show 'Glee', sung by Gwyneth Paltrow.

Answer: Rolling in the Deep

"Baby, I have no story to be told
But I've heard one on you
And I'm gonna make your head burn
Think of me in the depths of your despair
Make a home down there
As mine sure won't be shared"

'Rolling in the Deep' is a somewhat more aggressive song with a bluesy feel, using hard drum beats to eccentuate its impact. It has been covered by several artists including Linkin Park and Nicole Sherzinger, and was the first single from the album '21' to be released. In fact, the album was going quite slowly until her relationship ended, facilitating an explosion of emotions which were channelled into her songs, including 'Rolling in the Deep'.

It was the best selling U.S. single of 2011, and also won three Grammy awards in 2012. It hit number one in the following charts/countries: US Pop Songs, US Adult Contemporary, US Adult Pop Songs, US Billboard Hot 100, Switzerland, South Korea, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Finland, Canada, Brazil, and Belgium Ultratop 50 Flanders and Belgium Ultratop 40 Wallonia (and, breathe...!)

Answer: Hometown Glory

"Round my hometown
Memories are fresh
Round my hometown
Ooh the people I've met
Are the wonders of my world"

Reportedly, the song was made in response to her mother asking her to leave to go to University, and celebrates memories of her hometown - a relatable concept for many. The song might be less-uptempo than its lyrics might suggest as somewhat of a way of saying "I don't want to leave home". In addition, 'Hometown Glory' was the first single from album '19', and was characterised by its simplicity in production: Adele's soulful voice was simply combined with an oscillating piano tune without added gimmicks.

Adele's actual hometown is the ever-popular London, in England, and despite that her music career has taken her abroad at times, she has retained a soft spot for the city.