After 15 years, the GRAMMY® Awards are at long last returning to New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Media & Entertainment Commissioner Julie Menin announced today along with Recording Academy President Neil Portnow, MSG Chairman James Dolan, and CBS Chairman and CEO Leslie Moonves. The prestigious music awards show will celebrate its 60th anniversary on January 28, 2018, and air on CBS.
“It is incredibly exciting that ‘Music’s Biggest Night’ will return to the world’s greatest city,” said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. “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. We welcome the GRAMMY® Awards back to New York City with open arms and we look forward to continuing to partner with the music industry that supports access and empowerment in the arts.”
The Grammys … generate an estimated $200 million boost to our City’s economy. As the birthplace of salsa in East Harlem…
“After a year of negotiations, it is extremely gratifying to announce that the Grammys are coming back to New York to celebrate their 60th anniversary,” said NYC Media and Entertainment Commissioner Julie Menin. “The Grammys are not only ‘Music’s Biggest Night,’ they generate an estimated $200 million boost to our City’s economy. As the birthplace of salsa in East Harlem, hip hop in the Bronx and punk rock in the East Village, it’s a fitting return to the City that gets the whole world dancing.”
The GRAMMY® Awards were last in New York in 2003. Since then the awards show has remained ensconced in the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Relocating the GRAMMY® Awards to New York involved bridging a significant cost differential which the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment achieved by facilitating contributions from host committee members, in-kind advertising, sponsors and cost savings from labor.
I am thrilled that the GRAMMY® Awards are returning to…a city that has a long-history of housing some of the most creative and talented artists in the world … this will build on the Council’s work to spur tourism, fuel economic growth and create more good-paying jobs in the entertainment industry…
“I am thrilled that the GRAMMY® Awards are returning to New York, a city that has a long-history of housing some of the most creative and talented artists in the world,” said Harlem Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. Music empowers communities—and beyond enriching our arts, this will build on the Council’s work to spur tourism, fuel economic growth and create more good-paying jobs in the entertainment industry. I applaud Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner Menin for making this a reality for countless New Yorkers and look forward to seeing the positive impact of Music’s Biggest Night in our City.”
“New York City is a global capital for music and the performing arts and the incubator for some of the greatest musicians and musical styles the world has ever seen, so the Grammys belong here,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “I’m excited that music’s biggest night will happen here once again.”
I am very pleased that The Grammy Awards have returned to an Empire State of Mind … Whether you’re an Uptown Girl or Broadway Baby… the $200 million in expected economic benefit — is music to the ears.
“I am very pleased that The GRAMMY® Awards have returned to an Empire State of Mind and are coming back to New York, New York after fifteen years away,” said Council Member Dan Garodnick. “Whether you’re an Uptown Girl or Broadway Baby, you can’t deny that today’s announcement — and the $200 million in expected economic benefit — is music to the ears.”
“I’m very pleased that NYC will host the Grammys in 2018,” said Assembly Member O’Donnell, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Arts and Tourism. “Arts and cultural events, such as the Grammys, are an essential economic multiplier for our city’s economy, supporting our local businesses and the people that work for them. As the arts capital of the world, I look forward to welcoming the Grammys to our great city.”
Assembly Member Joe Lentol said: “This is fantastic news because New York’s music industry has been the most creative in the nation. New York and our artists deserve the spotlight. I am so proud to see New York take center stage again. I commend the Mayor and his staff for their hard work bringing the Grammys back home!”
“New York City knows how to do world-class events on a world stage better than anyone, and the Grammys are a perfect match. We look forward to welcoming this incredible show back to New York City,” said Fred Dixon, NYC & Company’s President and CEO.
“It is very exciting that ‘Music’s Biggest Night’ will be hosted by the country’s most iconic city from historic Madison Square Garden, and broadcast on America’s most watched network,” said Leslie Moonves, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, CBS Corporation. “We greatly appreciate all the efforts of Mayor de Blasio, Jim Dolan and Neil Portnow to make this moment happen, and help us create an event that promises to be one of the biggest television broadcasts of this or any other year.”
“After 15 years, the New York City labor movement is thrilled to have the Grammy Awards back in NYC where they belong,” said Vincent Alvarez, President of the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. “The Awards will provide good, family-sustaining jobs at Madison Square Garden, and the $200 million in economic impact will provide a boost to NYC’s economy. New York City’s workers are the most skilled and professional in the world, and I know they will make this and future Grammy Awards the most enjoyable, in a way that only NYC can.”
“The return of the Grammys after all these years is incredibly important to New York City, to Madison Square Garden, all its labor Unions, including Local One, who proudly provides services for all entertainment at Madison Square Garden,” said James J. Claffey, Jr., president of Local One I.A.T.S.E. “Today’s announcement just would not have happened without the remarkable efforts of Commissioner Julie Menin, as well as the efforts Jim Dolan and Joel Fisher of Madison Square Garden.”
“New York City is home to the most talented musicians and most diverse musical environment in the world, and many of the musicians that are heard, celebrated and honored every year at the GRAMMY’s live in our communities and work on our stages, in our recording studios and at our world-renowned venues,” said Tino Gagliardi, President, Local 802 American Federation of Musicians. “The GRAMMY’s are among the music industry’s most iconic events, and Mayor Bill de Blasio and MOME Commissioner Julie Menin deserve great credit for working to bring the recording industry’s greatest celebration back home to the cultural capital of the world.”
It is the birthplace and incubator of so many of music’s most popular genres – from salsa music in East Harlem to disco in midtown, from punk rock in the East Village to hip hop in the Bronx.
As the music capital of the world, New York City is a fitting choice to host the 60th Anniversary of the GRAMMY awards. It is the birthplace and incubator of so many of music’s most popular genres – from salsa music in East Harlem to disco in midtown, from punk rock in the East Village to hip hop in the Bronx. The city continues to be at the forefront of music innovation with 72 digital music companies – more than San Francisco and Los Angeles combined.
It is an opportune time for the GRAMMY® Awards to return to New York City. The Mayor’s Office of Media Entertainment recently released a first of its kind study demonstrating the music industry’s critical role in the New York City economy. The report, prepared by the Boston Consulting Group, found that the City’s $21 billion music economy is the most robust and diverse musical ecosystem in the world. The City’s top music venues sold 5.4 million tickets in 2015 – more than Los Angeles, Chicago, and Nashville combined. According to the study, music-related jobs and wages in New York City are growing at an annual rate of 4 and 7 percent – outpacing the City’s overall job growth.
As the home of the 2018 GRAMMY® Awards, New York will be the host not just of the Grammy Awards itself but of a week’s worth of events leading up to the telecast. This will include annual celebrations like the MusiCares Person of the Year Tribute and Clive Davis Pre-GRAMMY® Gala as well as a series of music-related public events leading up to the awards. Proceeds generated from these events will add to the $400 to $500 million in annual revenue spent by tourists on the City’s music-related events. To commemorate the Grammys 2018 return, the City together with the Recording Academy, commissioned “Welcome to New York City of Music,” a promotional video directed by Spike Lee which will also be released today.
The effort to secure the GRAMMY® Awards was made possible through the support of a host committee chaired by Commissioner Julie Menin and co-chaired by Lynn McMahon, Managing Director of Media & Entertainment for North America for Accenture. That committee includes: Adidas, Rudin Management Company, Local One IATSE, the Partnership for New York City, Downtown Music Publishing/NY is Music, NYC & Co. and Town Residential.
The City also thanks the following additional entities and individuals who assisted in this effort: Jonathan Tisch, Citigroup, Glassnote Entertainment Group, New York City Football Club, Spotify, Blackstone Entertainment, Billboard Magazine and New York City Central Labor Council.
Photo credit: Dipset at the Grammy’s via vibe.
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