Madonna to Present at Grammy Awards, Plus Who Else Is Attending and Skipping Music’s Biggest Night

Shirley Halperin and Jem Aswad
·4 min read
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At a time when nothing feels normal anymore, the first “normal” Grammy Week in three years is shaping up to be even more action-packed than the pre-Covid years. Starting Wednesday, nearly every day and night is jam-packed with parties, showcases, brunches, lunches and happy hours like it was 2019 all over again.

Amid all the hubbub, we’re still awaiting the full lineup of performers for the Feb. 5 show at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com arena, which the Grammys have been announcing unusually late in the game this year — and literally during a game, as was the case when Harry Styles was revealed as a performer in a commercial that aired during the fourth quarter of the Chiefs-Bengals AFC final on Sunday night.

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Below is a rundown of the artists we know are performing (18 performance slots are planned), ones we know are not, ones who are attending but probably not performing — and ones we hear just might be… All of which is to say, subject to change and updates.

Who’s Performing: Already announced are Harry Styles, Bad Bunny, Mary J. Blige, Brandi Carlile, Luke Combs, Steve Lacy, Lizzo and Sam Smith with Kim Petras. Variety also hears that DJ Khaled will take the stage, possibly with Jay-Z — “GOD DID,” their collaboration with Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, John Legend and Fridayy, is up for three awards including song of the year.

Also expected are several all-star tributes: Kacey Musgraves will pay homage to the late Loretta Lynn with “Coal Miner’s Daughter”; Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt will honor Christine McVie with “Songbird”; and Maverick City Music and Quavo will perform “Without You” in memory of Takeoff.

Fifty years of hip-hop will get its own tribute curated by Questlove. LL Cool J will introduce the segment, perform and give a dedication to hip-hop, while the Roots provide music and Black Thought narrates. Confirmed performers include Big Boi, Busta Rhymes with Spliff Star, De La Soul, DJ Drama, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Missy Elliott, Future, GloRilla, Grandmaster Flash, Grandmaster Mele Mel & Scorpio/Ethiopian King, Ice-T, Lil Baby, Lil Wayne, The Lox, Method Man, Nelly, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, Rahiem, Rakim, RUN-DMC, Salt-N-Pepa and Spinderella, Scarface, Swizz Beatz and Too $hort.

As for the big three — let’s just say it: Adele, Beyonce and Taylor — the status is still uncertain. Adele has Las Vegas residency concerts on the two nights before the Grammys, which makes a performance at the big show possible (she could rehearse as late as Thursday) but less likely. She did, however, seemingly confirm her attendance at a recent Vegas date.

Beyonce performed an elaborate set at the grand opening of the Atlantis the Royal hotel in Dubai earlier this month — for a reported $24 million — so she’s certainly rehearsed. And her Wednesday announcement of a world tour bodes well for an appearance.

Swift, Variety hears, will not perform.

Who’s Attending: Madonna will present at the ceremony, multiple sources tell Variety. The Queen of Pop recently revealed “The Celebration Tour,” which will hit 35 cities this summer and promises four decades of mega-hits. Representatives for Madonna and the Recording Academy did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.

All the best new artist nominees — Anitta, Omar Apollo, DOMi & JD Beck, Samara Joy, Latto, Måneskin, Muni Long, Tobe Nwigwe, Molly Tuttle and Wet Leg — are expected to be in attendance but so far none have been offered a performing slot. Doja Cat, up for six nominations, will also walk the red carpet and sit inside, but she’s not expected to perform. Same with Future, who’s up for best rap album among multiple other nods. Zach Bryan, up for best country solo performance, will be in attendance but not booked to perform.

Who’s Skipping: Lady Gaga, up for two awards for “Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick” is not expected to attend as she is currently filming; Finneas, nominated for best song written for visual media, is on tour in Australia; Drake is up for several collaborations in 2022, including with Future and Jack Harlow, but his attendance at these ceremonies is rarely confirmed ahead of showtime.

The 65th annual Grammy Awards are produced by Fulwell 73 Productions for the Recording Academy. Raj Kapoor serves as showrunner and executive producer, alongside Ben Winston and Jesse Collins as executive producers. Phil Heyes joins for the first time as director, Eric Cook as co-executive producer with Tabitha Dumo, Tiana Gandelman, Patrick Menton, and David Wild as producers.

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