By Della Hasselle
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Kanye West and Justin Bieber were just a sampling of the powerhouse performers that had New Yorkers screaming and tweeting in 2010.
All-star lineups, surprise shows, and altogether botched performances made the past year one that Manhattan music fans won't forget easily — and to help jog your memory as the year draws to a close, DNAinfo has assembled a list of this year's 10 most memorable.
Recently, a lineup including Jessica Simpson, Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men and Sheryl Crow thrilled a packed audience at the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting Ceremony.
Thousands of New Yorkers and visitors filled the surrounding streets to watch these artists as well as performers Josh Groban, Susan Boyle and Annie Lennox sing Christmas classics "Blue Christmas," "I'll Be Home For Christmas" and "Let It Snow."
"It made us feel very Christmas-y," said visitor Sue Gregory, 35, whose only complaint was the size of the crowd.
Audiences got into the holiday spirit at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade — with one main point of contention. New Yorkers were less than impressed with Kanye West — and his outlandish outfit — when he stood to perform on the Big Apple float.
Kanye raised eyebrows with a bizarre mash up of a black sports sweatband around his head, black sunglasses, and a long black coat with a fur collar. He shed the coat for his big finish, revealing a low-necked gold lamé shirt, gold chains and a sleeveless fur vest atop a black leather shirt, pants and boots.
One Twitter user compared the outfit to "a bejeweled cross between Mr. T and Richard Simmons" another called it "Disco Rambo" and a third said Kanye looked like the flamboyant piano legend, Liberace.
Speaking of surprises, New Yorkers went crazy over this year's surprise performances, the latest of which was a Times Square Rihanna concert in November.
"It was packed — high adrenaline, high energy, high octane right in the middle of Times Square," Top-Notch Productions owner Jill Keogh said about the show, where fans chanted Rihanna's name.
More surprises included a Lady Gaga performance in October, a Black Eyed Peas performance in March, and the old-school rap act Naughty By Nature in July.
And, of course, who could forget Edison Pena, the Chilean Miner who celebrated his new found freedom by singing a tribute to Elvis on the David Letterman Show?
Other shows that rocked New Yorkers were August's sold out Arcade Fire performance in Madison Square Garden and Justin Bieber's Summer Concert Series performance in June, which also included Usher, Ludacris, Miley Cyrus and Boyz II Men.
"[B]est night of my life at the justin bieber concert at msg.. my friends and i cried the whole time. true fanzzz," Twitter user Pmarsh95 wrote after the show.
Not all shows were so successful, however. One of the year's most memorable flops was the preview performance of "Spider-Man," the $65-million production that was stopped five times because of technical difficulties the first time it was shown to the public. It was stopped again last week after an actor plunged more than 30 feet during a performance, prompting new safety procedures.
And some of the most memorable performances of all were the ones that didn't happen. Disappointed "Whip It" fans had to cancel Halloween plans at Hammerstein Ballroom when DEVO guitarist Bob Mothersbaugh sliced his thumb.
Lastly, it will be a long time before fans forget the mosh pit that cancelled Canadian rapper Drake's South Street Seaport performance in June, when more than 20,000 fans crowded into the area, doubling organizers' expectations.
"People were throwing bottles back up at people on the balcony," Mark Sisko, 18, told the Post. "I was expecting a show and got nothing."
