Back in November, the Recording Academy announced nominees for the 2022 Grammy Awards. And while this reveal didn’t seem terribly important to most metalheads — overall, metal fans find the Grammys to be nothing more than a chance to watch a 20+ year veteran get recognized while their favorite deceased musicians are left off of the In Memoriam reel — it certainly gives some artists a chance to shine in a big arena. However, it has now been revealed that this year’s Grammys will be postponed due to rising numbers of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.
Yesterday, Billboard speculated that the 64th Grammy Awards, which were scheduled to go down on January 31st at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, will probably be moved to a later date, with one source close to the event saying it was “looking likely.” Now, Variety has confirmed the postponement, to a date to be determined.
This would be the second year in a row that the show was rescheduled due to concern over COVID, with last year’s ceremony getting postponed from January to March of 2021. The show was also moved from the Staples Center (what the Crypto.com Arena was once known as before cartoon monkeys and jigsaw pieces replaced money) to the Los Angeles Convention Center, which would be less crowded.
While this probably doesn’t have the average reader of The Pit putting their hand to their forehead in despair, it certainly shows how serious the rise of Omicron is, and how long a game COVID will actually be for everyone in the entertainment industry.
Meanwhile, here are your nominees for this year’s Best Metal Performance award:
- Deftones, “Genesis”
- Dream Theater, “The Alien”
- Gojira, “Amazonia”
- Mastodon, “Pushing the Tides”
- Rob Zombie, “The Triumph of King Freak (A Crypt of Preservation and Superstition)”
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Words by Chris Krovatin
