From the SAG Awards on TBS to the Kids' Choice Awards on Nickelodeon, TV annually airs 35 awards shows. And that includes four dealing only with country music.
Out of all those, it's the Oscars, Emmys and Grammys (for film, TV and music) that draw the big ratings. Sure, the Tonys have their fans, as do the Golden Globes, but these remain the biggest by far, with the Emmys gaining increasing importance each year as more A-list movie actors take roles on the small screen.
The Emmys began award season Sept. 17, and the 90th Oscars ceremony will top it off March 4. But, now it's time for the Grammys to take center stage. The registered trademark is even "Music's Biggest Night."
The 60th Annual Grammy Awards airs live from 6:30 to 10 p.m. on CBS today. This year, the venue is Madison Square Garden in New York. The awards have originated from Los Angeles' Staples Center for the past 14 years, so the move is a big deal. The Garden last played host to the Grammys in 2003.
Trivia: ABC has aired the Oscars since 1976 and has the rights through 2028. The Grammys have been on CBS since 1973, and the contract runs through 2026. The Emmys, however, have rotated between the Big 4 networks for the past 25 years.
Any die-hard award show devotee knows that one simply does not tune in at the beginning and start watching. One must first warm up outside on the red carpet. CBS has you covered today.
Grammy Red Carpet Live kicks off at 5:30 p.m. to schmooze with the stars. I usually avoid this sycophantic, formulaic self indulgence, but it's sometimes interesting to see the talent off the stage.
Hosts for the hour special are Nancy O'Dell, Kevin Frazier and Keltie Knight from Entertainment Tonight. They'll begin by going behind the scenes at Madison Square Garden "to see the coolest fashion trends, get the inside scoop and talk to music's biggest stars."
The main event will feature host James Cordon, who performed the duties so well last year, CBS invited him back.
Cordon, a well-known music lover, has enticed the biggest music stars to join him in his "Carpool Karaoke" segment on CBS' The Late Late Show. And by biggest I mean artists such as Justin Bieber, Adele, Madonna, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga and Carrie Underwood. Even Michelle Obama did a segment that eventually included Missy Elliott.
Some of those folks will be in the audience or on the stage tonight.
Sure to be one of the most memorable moments will be when Brothers Osborne (T.J. Osborne and John Osborne), Eric Church and Maren Morris perform in honor of the victims lost to gun violence and terrorism at various music events over the past year.
The musicians were part of the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1 when 58 died and hundreds were wounded at the hands of a gunman firing from a nearby hotel.
Another one for the highlight reel will be when Miley Cyrus joins five-time Grammy winner Elton John on stage.
Three and a half hours is a long time to kill and many others will be performing. They include Alessia Cara, Cardi B, Childish Gambino, Daddy Yankee, Luis Fonsi, Kendrick Lamar, Kesha, Khalid, Lady Gaga, Little Big Town, Logic, Patti LuPone, Bruno Mars, Pink (billed as P!nk), Ben Platt, Sam Smith, SZA and U2.
If you have no idea who Daddy Yankee is, here's your chance to find out. Cara, SZA and Khalid are up for best new artist.
The Irish rock band U2, of course, are legendary rock gods. Trivia: Bono's real name is Paul David Hewson.
Nominations? This year's nominees were selected from more than 22,000 submissions across 30 fields and 84 categories and were voted on by members of The Recording Academy. Members include recording artists, songwriters, producers, mixers and engineers.
Jay-Z, already holder of 21 Grammys, leads all nominations with eight. Kendrick Lamar has seven, followed by Bruno Mars with six, and Childish Gambino, Khalid and SZA with five.
Trivia: SZA (pronounced SIZZ-zuh) is the stage name of alternative R&B singer Solana Imani Rowe. SZA stands for "Savior Zig-Zag Allah." Now you know.
• Farewell, Portlandia. The IFC's hip and cool, wacky and odd Portlandia, starring Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, began its eighth and final season last week. Catch it at 9 p.m. today. There will be 10 episodes before the laughter fades away.
The Los Angeles Times reports the stars have already moved on to other projects. Armisen is teaming with Maya Rudolph for a comedy series on Amazon; Brownstein is working on developing a series for Hulu based on her memoir, Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:
mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Style on 01/28/2018