Grammy Awards Postponed From January To March Due To Coronavirus Concerns
The Grammy Awards will be postponed from its planned January 31 air date to March 14 due to concerns over the spread of coronavirus. The annual event honors the best in the music industry and will be held at the later date at the same venue, the Staples Center. There will be a modified ceremony to reflect social distancing due to the pandemic. The Daily Show‘s Trevor Noah will remain the host of the event.
In a statement on the Grammy Awards official site, Harvey Mason Jr., Chair and Interim President/CEO of the Recording Academy; Jack Sussman, Executive Vice President, Specials for CBS; and Ben Winston, Grammy Awards Executive Producer, Fulwell 73 Productions wrote the following regarding the switch.
“After thoughtful conversations with health experts, our host, and artists scheduled to appear, we are rescheduling the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards to be broadcast Sunday, March 14, 2021. The deteriorating COVID situation in Los Angeles, with hospital services being overwhelmed, ICUs having reached capacity, and new guidance from state and local governments have all led us to conclude that postponing our show was the right thing to do. Nothing is more important than the health and safety of those in our music community and the hundreds of people who work tirelessly on producing the show,” they explained.
They concluded their statement by thanking all of the talented artists, staff, vendors, and this year’s nominees for their understanding, patience, and willingness to work with them as they navigated these unprecedented times.
Los Angeles, where the awards will eventually take place, has struggled amid the pandemic, reported Deadline. There have been 840,611 positive cases to date, according to the L.A. County Department of Public Health and more than 1,000 new deaths in less than a week. Nearly 8,000 people are currently hospitalized, reported the outlet.
In a story posted by The Inquisitr in November when the nominations were initially announced, it was revealed that Beyoncé received nine nods in eight categories, including Song of the Year for “Black Parade.”
Artists that were nominated alongside the performer in the same category include Samuel Gloade and Rodrick Moore for “The Box,” Post Malone for “Circles,” Dua Lipa for “Don’t Start Now,” Dernst Emile II, H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas for “I Can’t Breathe,” Taylor Swift for “Cardigan” and Julia Michaels and JP Saxe for “If the World Was Ending.”
Other key nominees include Taylor Swift, who was recognized six times by the academy for her compilation of tunes titled Folklore. Harry Styles got three nods for Best Pop Vocal Album, Best Pop Solo Performance for “Watermelon Sugar,” and Best Music Video for “Adore You.”
