The second annual Latin Grammy Awards, which were moved from Miami to Los Angeles over security concerns and then canceled last Tuesday after terror attacks in New York and Washington, will be not be rescheduled, it was announced Friday.
Michael Greene, head of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, said the decision to scrap the show came after “careful consideration and days of deliberations” with producers, venue operators, security specialists and others.
“It is simply impossible to reschedule a live, international show of this magnitude,” Greene said in a statement. “We are all emotionally devastated by recent events.”
Greene said that the academy was “disappointed” for this year’s nominees and would make an announcement on how the winners would get their awards.
The Latin Grammys show had been dogged by its own political controversy for weeks after organizers abruptly yanking the awards ceremony out of Miami last month amid fears that anti-Castro demonstrations protesting the presence of Cuban artists might get out of hand.
As an apparent security precaution against anti-Castro protesters, the show’s organizers had planned to have no red carpet receptions for the stars.
Scheduled performers at the event, expected to draw thousands to the Forum, included guitarist Carlos Santana and Jose Angel Hevia, a Galician flutist and bagpiper, with a star-studded lineup of presenters including film actor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Latin jazz musician Arturo Sandoval.
Stars like Marc Anthony and heartthrob Ricky Martin, who helped spark the huge crossover explosion for Latin music, were also featured among the nominees and presenters at last year’s awards, which were seen by 7.5 million U.S. viewers.
