Grammys Postpone Ceremony to March

Dua Lipa at the 2019 Grammy awards.
Dua Lipa at the 2019 Grammy awards. Photo by Chelsea Lauren/REX/Shutterstock (10095021ah)

Due to coronavirus-related concerns, the Grammy Awards have been postponed to March 14.

“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,” a statement reads.

The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah is scheduled to host the ceremony, which was supposed to take place on January 31. The move isn’t entirely unexpected because for months the Grammys have been dealing with complications with staging the award show that usually has an audience of 18,000-plus people and is self-billed as “Music’s Biggest Night” during the pandemic.

In September Harvey Mason jr., Chair & Interim President/CEO of the Recording Academy, told Variety that the initial plan was to hold the event at Staples Center in Los Angeles with a limited or no audience. In late November he said the show would take place “in and around Downtown Los Angeles,” which opened the possibility that performances would be staged from multiple venues.

Nominations for the Grammys were announced in late November and Beyoncé leads the pack with nine, followed by six for Taylor Swift, Roddy Ricch, and Dua Lipa. Brittany Howard, of Alabama Shakes fame, has five, and Billie Eilish, Megan Thee Stallion, DaBaby, Phoebe Bridgers, Justin Bieber, jazz pianist John Beasley, and classical producer David Frost were nominated with four.