The word backstage

If anyone at the Grammys had a right to speak about the Janet Jackson flap, it was Yoko Ono, who joined Olivia Harrison (George’s widow) on stage accepting the President’s Award marking the 40th anniversary of the Beatles’ appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” After all, more than 35 years ago, Ono and John Lennon caused quite a flap themselves, appearing naked on the cover of their “Two Virgins” album.

“That’s true,” said Ono, laughing, backstage with son Sean Lennon. “We were attacked too, very much.”

Of the furor over Jackson’s Super Bowl exposure, she said, “Of course it’s going to upset some people. She’s prepared for it. She’s a strong lady.”

And Ono said of the changes in times and attitudes since she and the Beatles challenged conventions and mores: “Sometimes it goes very conservative, sometimes controversial, like breathing in and out. All is in flux. The most important thing is to keep a very positive attitude and not get frightened or upset.”

Christina Aguilera, wearing a dress that was just shy of needing the five-minute delay to prevent another controversy, dismissed the matter.

“I think it really needs to be put to bed,” she said. “There are a lot more important things going on musically and politically. Music itself is an expression, so what are we to say is too raunchy or what is not? It’s a state of mind, whatever you feel it should be.”

On stage accepting an award, Justin Timberlake talked about the controversy with enough solemnity to cover a real tragedy. “Listen, I know it’s been a rough week on everybody,” he said. “What occurred was completely unintentional and regrettable and I apologize if I offended you guys. This is officially the greatest moment of my life.”

Naturally, it continued to be one of the primary backstage topics, with opinions expressed by a wide range of artists. Some of the most intriguing comments:

* Dave Matthews: “There have been [breasts] since before there was entertainment. I am surprised that it is shocking ... seeing something that we might see on National Geographic Explorer -- then it’s OK. And then, that such a big stink could be made over such a little [breast]. It doesn’t seem like it deserves so much attention. Everything that it has overshadowed, it shouldn’t have.”

* Aerosmith’s Joe Perry: “People vote with their dollars; they buy what they want, so obviously, they enjoyed a lot of raunch this week.”

* Randy Travis: “We do what we do because we love it, but you do have to consider that the thing you do, or that the thing you say, is being seen by a lot of people and -- whether you want to acknowledge it or want to admit it -- that is an influence, especially with the younger people.”

* The Neptunes’ Pharrell Williams: “I know that what happened at the Super Bowl was a bit much, but I actually know those two people and they’ve done great things for people around the world. Yeah, they got 200,000 complaints at CBS, but they wouldn’t have gotten those complaints if they didn’t have it plastered on the news 24 hours a day.”

* And then there was P. Diddy, who actually was part of the Super Bowl halftime show: “It was disgusting the way they went after her. I have three sons; I was very happy they got to see at least one of Janet Jackson’s breasts. We talked about it afterward and they’re going to be OK. I think there’s bigger things going on than to go after lynching Janet like that.”

* Neil Portnow, chairman of the Recording Academy, stressing that the night was about all the great music made in the last year, said: “To focus on these issues belittles what we were doing tonight.”

Correspondent Dean Kuipers contributed to this story.