The 2021 Grammy Awards that was scheduled for January 31 have been postponed due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19, Rolling Stone confirmed from multiple sources.
Although the organizers have not confirmed a new date, sources said they are aiming to hold the presentation sometime in March.
The 2021 Grammys had already planned a limited show for 2021, forgoing an audience completely and only allowing presenters and performers on-site during the show.
Nominated artists would not have been allowed to be on-site either, leading to a situation similar to the 2020 Emmys where nominated artists appeared and accepted awards remotely.
Beyonce is leading in the 2021 Grammy nominations with nine nods, Dua Lipa, Taylor Swift, and Roddy Ricch were behind her with six nominations each.
It is not certain if the original host, Trevor Noah is still set to host this year’s show as representatives Noah and the Recording Academy did not reply to requests for comment at the time of writing this report.
Following Thanksgiving and the holiday season, California as a whole has seen a surge in COVID-19 cases, with a new single-day record of 74,000 new cases on January 4, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The hospital system in Los Angeles County has been stretched so thin that COVID-19 patients are often forced to wait in an ambulance for hours until hospital; beds open up. Also, the Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Agency has directed ambulance crews to ration oxygen and not transfer patients who have virtually no chance of surviving.
