Recording Academy Postpones 2021 Grammys Awards Due to COVID-19

According to EWN, the 63rd Grammy Awards show has been postponed due to rising COVID-19 infection rates in California. The highly acclaimed recording academy released a statement that the awards will no longer take place at the end of January. This follows after the Los Angeles County was announced as the epicenter for the pandemic in California, according to USA Today. Interim CEO and President of the Recording Academy Harvey Mason Jr. reportedly released a statement this past Tuesday evening stating that they were acting on sound reason.

Read: South Africa's Trevor Noah to Host 2021 Grammys

Mason Jr. and CBS executive Jack Sussman and Grammys executive producer Ben Winston reportedlyreleased a joint statement explaining the reason for the postponement. Below is a segment of the statement as captured by USA Today.

"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."

According to Rolling Stone, the postponement follows a day after SAG-AFTRA, the union representing industry professionals, alerted the Grammys and CBS of the gravity of the coronavirus crisis. Los Angeles has been reported with fatalities at 40 percent with a recorded 25 000 deaths. Consequently, President of SAG-AFTRA, Gabrielle Carteris, reportedly communicated with the organisers that it was unsafe for any in-person production to take place. Following the revelatory announcement by the union, the 63rd Grammys have been rescheduled to take place on Sunday, the 14th of March 2021.

This year's Grammys were set to be held at the famous staples center hosted by South Africa's Trevor Noah of The Daily Show. The award show will, for the first time, have no audience and only the presenters and performers will be on site. The Emmys, Latin Grammys and Oscars have reportedly also had to push back dates for the award shows in line with monitoring the coronavirus pandemic.