The Grammy Awards, which are set for Sunday, have been in flux since early January when the L.A. area wildfires broke out. Anthony Mason gives a behind-the-scenes preview of one of music's biggest nights.

Los Angeles

More than a thousand structures have been destroyed and lives lost as wildfires sweep across parts of Los Angeles.

LA Wildfires

The Grammy Awards is set to proceed despite challenges posed by wildfires in Los Angeles. Grammy's executive producer Ben Winston led a behind-the-scenes tour, showcasing the extensive planning and preparation for one of the music industry's biggest nights. With nearly 20 performances planned, co-executive producer Raj Kapoor hints at exciting surprises in store.

The production team faced disruptions as wildfires affected their operations. Winston, among others, was evacuated from their homes but remained committed to ensuring that the show goes on safely, following consultations with governmental and emergency services. Over 6,500 people rely on the show's production for employment, emphasizing the importance of proceeding with the event. The team has aimed to highlight the resilience and vibrancy of Los Angeles throughout the Grammy Awards, underscoring a mission to celebrate the city amidst ongoing challenges.

Hamilton, a seasoned director with experience across major events like the Oscars and Super Bowl halftime shows, continues to navigate the complexities of live television with a focus on maintaining a calm and efficient control room environment. The Grammy Awards remains a challenging but rewarding production, with its ability to adapt and persist through adversity being a testament to its importance and the dedication of its production team.



Behind-the-scenes look at Grammy Awards show

It's actually a very similar set to last year. Ben Winston is overseeing the Grammy's epic production for the fifth time this year. Luckily, I'm hiding in the truck, so I don't have to deal with any complaints. I'm just in the truck and no one knows where the truck is. But he took us there, out off the floor at Crypto.com Arena, through the back corridors and into the control room, where Hamish Hamilton will direct the show. It's almost like mission control where you can make decisions, you can watch every camera and you can just make decisions in the calm of it. Hamish, is he calm? Or is he throwing things in the show? I mean, it's calm until he arrives. I'll have all the audience cameras here, so I'll suddenly see a reaction and I'll be like, camera four, Hamish! Billy Eilish is smiling, go four! Hamilton is the only person to have directed the Oscars, Emmys, Grammy's and a Super Bowl halftime show. Honestly, hands down, the Grammy's is the hardest. Because the expectation is so high. You had Tums on your desk the other day, we noticed. I always get indigested, yeah. This show makes me sick, it does, it makes me sick. The Grammy's will have nearly 20 performances this year, says co-executive producer, Raj Kapoor. Some of the numbers are absolutely gigantic. Some of them have more than 100 people in one number. At last year's Grammy's, Kapoor pulled off surprise appearances by Tracy Chapman and Celine Dion. So how do you top that? I think everybody will have to tune in Sunday to see. But we definitely have more tricks up our sleeve. Like, I feel like we need some sort of continuity and some sort of vibe. I agree, it'd be a mess otherwise. This week, Kapoor, Winston and the production team were still tweaking the show at their offices in Studio City. We're about 12 minutes heavy. That worries me a little bit. The show's been in flux since early January, when the wildfires broke out. This was the view from Winston's office. Many in the production team were forced to evacuate their homes, including Winston himself. But then I took like three cases here and all my stuff, dumped it, and then we just sort of had a meeting about what we should do about the show. You know, should it go on, should it not go on? How do we change the show if it does go on? In your mind, how did that argument go? I was under no doubt that if it was safe to do so, we should do the show. In the discussions we had with the government or services, everybody gave it its blessing. There was the argument that you would be using resources that were needed for the fires, maybe. Yeah, it's a bad argument, because the truth of it is what we do is we get our own resources for a show like this. When here's the thing that people forget, 6,500 people take a wage in some way from this show happening. All those people who I saw online going, oh, the show shouldn't happen, the show shouldn't happen, well, tell that to the 6,500 people, some of whom have lost their houses. The last thing they need to do is lose their wages. This year's show will celebrate the city. At the moment, I just want to get great, colorful, vibrant L.A., city back on its feet. That's what we're going for. How do you shift the tone in a moment like this and make sure you get it right? Yeah, well, listen, I don't know if we'll get it right. We'll only find out on Sunday. But I think this will be one of the most important Grammys we do, no question of it. It's never easy. The first one I ever did was in COVID with no audience. The second one was COVID in Vegas. The third one was kind of normal. The fourth one was writer's strikes. I mean, it's never straightforward. But I think that's what makes live television interesting. I think it's why we keep coming back to it. At this point, a normal show might bore you. No, I think it'd be fine.

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LA Wildfires