The 60th Grammy Awards will be held at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 28, 2018 at 7:30 p.m. ET, marking the first time the awards ceremony has been in New York City in 15 years.
The 7:30-11 p.m. telecast time is a new time, perhaps adding that extra half hour to allow for runover time like the event has experienced in years past. It will be the 46th consecutive year that CBS has carried the TV broadcast, and the network has a commitment to host it through 2026.
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Madison Square Garden hosted the Grammys the last time the music event was in New York in 2003; it has been held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the past 14 years.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the Grammys are estimated to bring $200 million in economic benefit to the city.
“Playing host to the music industry’s marquee awards show is a unique creative, artistic and economic boon to the rich cultural fabric of our city,” de Blasio said. “We welcome the Grammy Awards back to New York City with open arms and we look forward to continuing to partner with a music industry that supports access and empowerment in the arts.”
Rap and hip-hop artists led the pack of nominations for this year’s Grammys. Jay-Z nabbed eight nominations, including nods for album of the year, record of the year, and song of the year. Kendrick Lamar follows with seven nominations, and Bruno Mars is the third most-nominated artist with six nominations.
Singer and songwriter Kesha, who has gone through a whirlwind of personal and legal battles to release her third studio album Rainbow, picked up her first Grammy nomination, despite that she already has two No. 1 albums under her belt.
Click here to see the full list of all the 2018 Grammy nominations.
Country music also scored big with nominations, with some of Nashville’s biggest stars representing the industry.
Chris Stapleton leads the way with three nominations while Little Big Town, Sam Hunt, Midland, Lady Antebellum and Miranda Lambert all scored two nods each. Acts including Maren Morris, Thomas Rhett, Brothers Osborne, Zac Brown Band, Alison Krauss and Kenny Chesney round out the categories, which include Best Country Solo Performance, Best Country Duo/Group Performance, Best Country Song and Best Country Album.
The nearly four-hour event will be jam-packed with musical performances from the likes of Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Lady Gaga, Pink, Kesha and Childish Gambino.
As a nod to the show’s return to New York after 15 years, the night will feature a Broadway tribute honoring the music of Andrew Lloyd Weber and Leonard Bernstein. During the special number, Broadway legend Patti LuPone will reprise her 1981 performance of “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” and Pitch Perfect star Ben Platt, also known for his role in Dear Evan Hansen, will perform a song from West Side Story.