When audacious rap group Pac Div took over the stage in a campaign for mayor of the Woodies, they probably didn't expect to lose in a landslide to the band they, champagne glasses in hand, announced as winners of Best Video. In Matt and Kim's acceptance speech, Schifino declared to the audience that their victory was made possible "by anyone who'd ever seen [them] live - which includes all of you!"
Not only were they officially praised through the bestowal of the Best Video Woodie for their nudist demonstration "Lessons Learned," but they were adored by everyone who watched them rip up the stage to open the show.
Kim's insane backing beats and positively contagious smile combined with Matt's choppy trill and disarming adorableness echoed perfectly in its venue. Not to mention, the night of musical orgy very literally began with their stripping backup singers.
The entire atmosphere of the awards show - basically the best college party … ever - was the epitome of why Asher Roth loves college: "I hope everybody takes the opportunity to kind of spend some time with themselves and wild out - step outside their comfort zone - and college is really a perfect time for that. So you know, that's really the honest answer of why I love college," he said in a conference call.
Throughout the night (and apparently, at a "crazy party last night") the king of college coolly partook in the debauchery that was the Woodies. In presenting the Performing Woodie, Roth even launched himself full-force into the crowd.
So, when the final and presumably most important award of the night was given to the Kings of Leon - who weren't even present - it was a huge upset for all of the attendees (including the famous ones).
In fact, many of the night's honored guests strolled down the red carpet clad in fuzzy sweaters and colossal beards. Instead of elegant bubbly from a bottle, the drink of choice came in Solo cup and was poured from a tap by an argyle-clad 20-something.
But the casual, down-to-party air of 3OH!3 in particular was unrivaled. The duo, Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte, led kegstands throughout the night and made a mockery of Lady Gaga as they marched, high-heeled and bare-legged, up to the podium to present the award for the Left Field Woodie. In their introduction, Foreman proclaimed that "left field" meant going as far as "to dress up with a f---ing bird's nest on your face."
3OH!3 promised fans a good time even before the show opened. In the Woodie Awards conference call, Motte said that he likes performing for college audiences because he thinks "… College shows just have a penchant for just having a good time and having fun and going crazy and, you know, maybe being drunk."
The duo definitely topped the list of presenters, but there was certainly room for some "class" in glam girls Mary Louise Parker, Zooey Deschanel, Leighton Meester and (spoiler alert!) Cyndi Lauper.
Death Cab served as an example in hindsight of how the collegiate audience can transform a musical act. In a conference call prior to the Woodies, guitarist Chris Walla discussed the band's growth in response to a question from The Lamron: "Your music just changes as you grow up just like so many other things did … I think that we're just going to keep doing what we've always done, which is just trying to make records that we like and that we would listen to if we were buying them."
The up-and-coming bands that joined Death Cab on stage, specifically indie club-thumping scenesters Passion Pit and Matt and Kim, will likely enjoy a career boost from the college music scene and the Woodie Awards. It will, of course, be seen whether they ride that wave all the way to the mainstream.
Regardless of the acts' statuses, each one to take the stage - including more well-established groups such as Clipse (specially featuring Cam'ron and Rick Ross) and The Dead Weather (led by White Stripes vet Jack White) - gave a quality performance. This was evidenced by the reactions of their peers, who, despite their partitioning from the general audience, didn't hesitate to let loose and rock out.
The moment that surprise announcer Will.I.Am took the stage, a new atmosphere engulfed the Roseland Ballroom.
The superstar and activist was there to present the winner of the Good Woodie - an award given to someone who has, in his words, "gone above and beyond" what is expected of them as an artist.
Among the nominees were big names like Wyclef Jean and Alicia Keys, but Jamie Tworkowski - not even an artist himself - took home the recognition as founder of the organization "To Write Love on Her Arms."