By Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN
File photo. Returning Grammy's host Trevor Noah Photo: AFP / Valerie Macon
A few weeks ago, as prep on the Grammy Awards was getting underway, tragedy hit Los Angeles.
The heart of music industry was ravaged by fires, burning down the homes of thousands of people who remain displaced across Southern California.
Just two days before the fires, Hollywood was in celebration mode, kicking off award season in Beverly Hills at the Golden Globes. But with fires spreading unfathomable destruction, calls to cancel the Grammys, SAG Awards and Oscars came quickly.
But for Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. and the executive producer of the Grammy Awards Ben Winston, there was no other option. The show would go on.
"We know we've got the biggest stars in the whole world that are sitting there, and we bring real awareness to what's happened. We do some really serious fundraising for the causes that need it so much right now. We pay tribute to our first responders. We showcase LA businesses. Surely that is worth doing rather than not doing," Winston, who calls LA home, told CNN in an interview this week.
"Some of our community, from the music community, have lost their homes. They've lost their instruments," added Mason Jr. "I know one guy that lost his entire studio. All his collections, all his instruments, and this is how they make a living. So, if we were to postpone the show, we wouldn't be able to raise the money that we need to support those people."
Speaking with CNN at the Crypto.com arena in the center of the city, amid a brief break in construction of the stage for Sunday's event, Mason Jr. and Winston acknowledged that they have a difficult task in striking the right tone at the ceremony.
"Grammys and this platform is cool, but it's not the most important thing in the world," said Mason Jr. "Some people have lost their lives here."
With returning host Trevor Noah, the duo feels they have the right emcee to guide a show that aims to celebrate music and a population of people working to recover.
"Before this happened, I probably knew the name of four of my neighbors. I reckon I now know about 23 of them. There is a sense of community right now in Los Angeles that I personally haven't seen before, where people are helping each other," Winston said. "There is a real different sense of what's happening here, and I think we can reflect that on the show."
A home is engulfed in flames during the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles County, California. Photo: JOSH EDELSON / AFP
Mason Jr. points out that music has the power to heal and bring people together. The broadcast, he said, will include components of showcasing first responders and raising money for those in need.
"We're definitely going to honor music, celebrate excellence in the year," Mason Jr. said. "There'll be incredible performances, but there's also going to be a layer of emotion and heart and storytelling about the heroes."
Already, the Recording Academy and its charitable arm, MusiCares, have distributed more than $4 million in emergency aid to individuals within the music industry who have been affected by the wildfires.
By continuing on with the Grammys, Winston pointed out that the show is also keeping people employed at a critical time.
After continuous production shutdowns from the pandemic, the Hollywood strikes and the fires, many in the industry have had a difficult five years. According to Winston, 6,500 people from a range of trades work on the Grammys telecast.
Winston and Mason Jr. promise that the Grammys will still be the Grammys. In other words, the format is not shifting to a full telethon, but there will be moments of recognition like a special performance by Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga, the Recording Academy announced on Friday.
Top Grammy nominees this year include Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Charli xcx, Sabrina Carpenter and Kendrick Lamar, ensuring that the show will be stacked with starpower.
All eyes will be on Beyoncé, who comes in with the most nominations of the night and has already made history as the most nominated artist in Grammy history. But the superstar has yet to win album of the year. With 11 nominations from her genre-bending album, "Cowboy Carter," will this be the year?
"I'm going to give you a hot take," Mason Jr. said with a tinge of sarcasm. "I feel like she's got a one in eight chance of winning that thing. I'm serious!"
- CNN
