Recording Academy to Pay Tribute to New Orleans

The 48th Annual Grammy Awards, Music’s biggest night, will be televised live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles on CBS tomorrow night. The latest addition to the long list of performers and presenters is an an all-star tribute to New Orleans. This special segment will include artists from various musical genres, including New Orleans’ own local legends Allen Toussaint, Dr. John and “Soul Queen of New Orleans” Irma Thomas; rockers Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen, and U2’s The Edge; and soul singer Sam Moore.

These outstanding artists are added to the list of previously announced performers, which include Mariah Carey, John Legend and Kanye West — all with eight nominations each. Also performing are Paul McCartney; Kelly Clarkson, Coldplay; Faith Hill and Keith Urban just to name a few. About the all-star New Orlean’s tribute; Neil Portnow, President of The Recording Academy said,

Our Academy represents thousands of music people across the country, many of whom were directly affected by the New Orleans tragedy. Music’s Biggest Night wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t take this unique opportunity to pay homage to a region with such rich musical history and culture. New Orleans, we’ll always be there for you.

It was also announced today that the hosts of the Grammy Pre-telecast ceremony are Steve Vai and Giselle Fernandez. Presenters for the Pre-Telecast include nominees Jars Of Clay, Shirley Caesar, Nnenna Freelon, Delbert McClinton; and John Santana. Michael Bublé and Anoushka Shankar will be featured in a performance during the Pre-Telecast as well.

[ADBLOCKHERE]The 48th Annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast in HDTV and 5.1 surround sound on the CBS Television Network at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). The show also will be supported on radio via Westwood One worldwide, and covered online at grammy.yahoo.com .