It’s official. The 2022 Grammy Awards have been postponed indefinitely due to COVID-19 and the uncertainty surrounding the Omicron variant.
"After careful consideration and analysis with city and state officials, health and safety experts, the artist community and our many partners, the Recording Academy and CBS have postponed the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards Show," reads a statement from the Grammy website.
"The health and safety of those in our music community, the live audience, and the hundreds of people who work tirelessly to produce our show remains our top priority."
The 2022 show was set to take place on Jan. 31 before a full audience at its traditional venue, the Crypto.com Arena (formerly known as the Staples Center) in downtown Los Angeles. The move was announced shortly after the Sundance Film Festival cancelled its in-person programming which was set to begin on Jan. 20.
Similarly, last year’s telecast was pushed from Jan. 31 to March 14 and was scaled down in terms of presentation and the number of attendees.
The 2022 Grammy nominee list is led by Jon Batiste with 11 nods, followed by Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R. with eight apiece. Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo followed with seven nominations each. The show will be hosted for a second consecutive year by “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah.
"We look forward to celebrating Music's Biggest Night on a future date, which will be announced soon," the academy statement said.
