The Grammy Museum has announced it will put unreleased Q&As and performances with musicians online for the first time to provide fans with fresh entertainment in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Los Angeles museum has hosted more than 900 intimate interviews and performances with artists over the years, and has enforced a strict policy for attendees not to shoot their own video. The live proceedings – usually a sit-down Q&A with an act followed by a performance – are being filmed for posterity, the results of which can only be watched in the museum’s dedicated video viewing facility.
Now, organisers have said that content will be rolled out over the coming months online in recognition that no one will be visiting the museum in downtown LA for the forseeable.
Included in the initial rollout from the archives are nine programmes, featuring: Billie Eilish with her brother Finneas, Greta Van Fleet, Brandi Carlile, Yola, Bob Newhart, Kool and the Gang, X Ambassadors, Larkin Poe and Scarypoolparty.
Many of the above interviews and performances were recorded in the last few months at the 200-seat Clive Davis Theater inside the museum.
According to Variety, only the Q&A portions of the evenings — in-depth conversations that typically last an hour — will be put online.
The museum is in discussion with some artists to provide access to the performance portions as well, though at a later date.
One new program will go online every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, starting with Scarypoolparty today (March 18). Viewers can watch the releases here.
The schedule for the initial nine programmes is as follows:
MARCH
18 – Scarypoolparty
21 – Yola
23 – Bob Newhart
25 – Larkin Poe
28 – X Ambassadors
30 – Brandi Carlile
APRIL
1 – Billie Eilish and Finneas
4 – Greta Van Fleet
6 – Kool and the Gang
Grammy Museum president Michael Sticka said in a statement: “The Grammy Museum’s doors may be closed, but our mission isn’t. It is our privilege to share these never-before-released interviews by beloved artists with you and bring them into your homes. With these programs, we hope that people will find solace and inspiration.”
Additionally, the organisation is making other previously facility exclusive content available online too. Slideshows of photos from past exhibitions will go on the web every Friday, starting on Friday (March 20) with X: 40 Years Of Punk in Los Angeles. The second photo gallery from a previous exhibit, to go up March 27, will be Take Me Out To The Ball Game: Popular Music And The National Pastime.
Educational content, lesson plans and daily playlists will also be added to the website during the closure, with further details to be revealed.
