Latin Grammys ‘Betrayed’ by Miami

Less than two weeks after pulling the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony out of Miami, Grammy chief C. Michael Greene said Thursday he feels betrayed by some civic leaders of that south Florida city, and gave the show little chance of returning there in the current political climate.

“There would have to be a seismic shift in the political leadership of the city of Miami ... for us to be able to go back,” Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, told The Times in an interview Thursday.

Greene caused a political uproar earlier this month when he decided to abandon plans to hold the second annual Latin Grammy Awards show in Miami, a city that lobbied hard to become the venue for the nationally televised Latin music showcase. The last-minute decision, Greene said at the time, was prompted by fears that protests by anti-Castro demonstrators would pose a threat to the guests and artists arriving for the show at Miami’s AmericanAirlines Arena.

The show was hastily moved back to Los Angeles, where it debuted last year at Staples Center. It’s now scheduled for the Forum in Inglewood, still on Sept. 11.

Greene, who also heads the fledgling Latin Recording Academy, also downplayed suggestions that this year’s TV show would be starless, because most of this year’s top nominees are unknown to U.S. audiences. He hinted that prominent artists, such as Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera, would appear as presenters, or in some other role. Singer-actress Jennifer Lopez is already a confirmed presenter on the program, which is to be telecast by CBS.

Greene said Thursday that he feels “heavy-hearted” about the move from Miami, which he still considers the premier Latino city in the United States. He had hoped the Latin Grammy show would benefit from what he called the synergy of the city’s multicultural Latino communities.

“I do feel betrayed, in that everybody knew what we were trying to do there,” said Greene, who has come under fire for the move, even by former allies such as Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas. “We weren’t there to cram a Cuban national performance in the face of the people of Miami. We were there trying to celebrate a coming of age of tolerance.”

Greene denied reports that he had won the support of Miami’s prominent Cuban Americans by privately promising them that no Cuban-based artists would perform on the show. But Thursday, Greene acknowledged for the first time that the nominated Cuban artists were not likely to perform on the program this year in either location.

Greene said he told Miami officials that Cuban performers would be included in the lineup only if there was “a compelling reason” to feature them. As of Thursday, none of the seven nominated acts from Cuba, including pianist Chucho Valdes and singer Issac Delgado, had been selected to perform.

The change of venue, however, appears to have cleared the way for Valdes to at least attend the event, along with a contingent of Cuban record label and talent representatives. Before the move from Miami, Valdes’ U.S. agent agent had said the Grammy-winning artist had declined to attend because he was preparing to record a classical album later this month. This week, Valdes told a Cuban cultural Webzine, La Jiribilla, that he will attend and that Cuban artists have a right to be there “without fear.”

Some music industry observers had expressed concerns that there were no big-name stars among this year’s crop of Latin Grammy nominees, compared with last year when Martin and Carlos Santana performed at the inaugural awards show.

Skeptics wondered how the prime-time telecast could appeal to a mainstream U.S. audience with talented but unknown artists such as Colombia’s Juanes, who garnered seven nominations, the most of any nominee, and is scheduled to perform. Other Latino artists scheduled to perform include crooner Luis Miguel and Mexican ranchera stars Vicente Fernandez and his son Alejandro.

Greene, sounding at ease during a 30-minute phone interview, said superstars such as Martin or Santana could serve as “cultural concierges” on the show, introducing their lesser-known colleagues, such as Brazil’s Caetano Veloso, to U.S. audiences and other Latinos.

“We’ll be just as star-studded this year as we were last year,” Greene said.

Singer Marc Anthony, who had to cancel his appearance on last year’s show because of last-minute health concerns involving his then-pregnant wife, will reportedly make up for his absence by opening the show this time around. Anthony, who is not nominated this year, may do a Spanish version of his new single, “Tragedy,” or open with a salsa number, said his publicist, Jennifer Nieman.

Greene said Anthony’s appearance had not been officially announced. He hinted that the show might also feature an unusual salsa act from Scotland. The group Salsa Celtica plays Caribbean music with bagpipes and other traditional Scottish instruments.

Jack Sussman, CBS’s senior vice president for specials, also dismissed concerns about weak ratings for the Latin Grammy telecast. Last year, the show drew 7.5 million viewers nationwide, compared with 8.9 million for the Tony Awards and 16.6 million for the Country Music Awards, which are also on CBS.

“We did not win the night with [total] households, but we won the night with men and women 18 to 49,” said Sussman, adding that the network was happy with the demographic. “You’ve got to consider that a success, and that’s why we’re in year two.”

Sussman said the network considered the show an investment, “creating a franchise that could live for many years on the network.” He noted that last year’s Latin Grammy show was “a huge success” with Latino viewers, a growing market coveted by major advertisers.

In Los Angeles, the show was among the top 10 in ratings that week, with more viewers than “Frasier,” “Will & Grace” and “20/20 Downtown.”

Sussman said the controversy in Miami could actually help ratings for the show.

“Any time there’s controversy, it helps the telecast,” Sussman said. “People want to see what’s going to happen, and how you’re going to deliver it.”

Like last year, the show will feature some ads in Spanish, to go along with the multilingual performances and presentations.

“That also hurts ratings,” said Greene. “But the fact is, this show has got to be a window, a cultural introduction, and people have got to get used to new things in ways that radio doesn’t really allow.”

Contrary to published reports in Florida, money was not the motive for pulling out of Miami, according to Greene. He said the show would take a “million-dollar hit” from the move. Still, he underscored the bright side of moving back to the city that serves as headquarters for the recording academy.

“The one thing we know how to do is a Grammy show in Los Angeles,” he said.