Grammys Awards Show Moves To March

The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards show is being postponed to March 14 as the host city Los Angeles is  being hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The live show announcing the winners was previously scheduled for Jan. 31. 

“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,” Grammy and CBS leadership said in a joint statement. “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.

“We want to thank all of the talented artists, the staff, our vendors and especially this year’s nominees for their understanding, patience and willingness to work with us as we navigate these unprecedented times.”

Los Angeles County has reported 13,512 new COVID-19 cases and 840,611 total cases as of Jan. 5 , with the number of hospitalizations having greatly increased since November. The Los Angeles County of Public Health reported that 7,898 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Jan. 5, 21% of which are in the ICU. There have been 11,071 COVID-19 deaths in Los Angeles since the start of the pandemic, with more than 1,000 deaths in the last week. 

According to the New York Times, emergency workers have been told to ration oxygen and, in some cases, not to transport cardiac arrest patients whose survival is unlikely.

In terms of the Grammys, Beyoncé led this year’s pack of nominees with nine nominations, including record of the year and song of the year for “Black Parade.” Artists notably absent from the nominee list this year include The Weeknd and Luke Combs.

This year’s Grammy Awards show will be the first since the organization was beset with scandal last January after former CEO Deborah Dugan brought forward allegations of sexual misconduct, the operation of a “boy’s club” and possible ringing of nominations and winners. 

Last year was also the final turn for Ken Ehrlich, who produced the show since 1981.

The philanthropic arm of the Grammys, MusiCares, has been supporting many music industry workers who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Musicares established the COVID-19 Relief Fund in mid-March and most recently launched the “Help For The Holidays” aid program, which offered $250 of essential goods e-cards to 4,000 applicants.