The Grammys paid tribute on Sunday night to those who were killed and kidnapped at the Nova music festival during the massacre carried out by Hamas on October 7, with Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. eulogizing them.
“Every one of us, no matter where we’re from, is united by the shared experience of music. It brings us together like nothing else can, and that’s why music must always be our safe space. When that’s violated, it strikes at the very core of who we are,” said Mason, while being accompanied by a string quartet consisting of musicians of Israeli, Palestinian, and Arab descent.
“We felt that at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris. We felt that at the Manchester Arena in England. We felt that at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas. And, on October 7, we felt that again, when we heard the tragic news from the Supernova Music Festival for Love, that over 360 music fans lost their lives and another 40 were kidnapped," he said.
"That day and all the tragic days that have followed have been awful for the world to bear as we mourn the loss of all innocent lives,” Mason said, without mentioning Israel or Israelis by name.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. acknowledges the lives lost at the Nova music festival and promotes unity with Israeli/Palestinian/Arab musicians on the #Grammys stage. pic.twitter.com/tZjSI1DiUX
— Elizabeth Wagmeister (@EWagmeister) February 5, 2024
“We live in a world divided by so much, and maybe music can’t solve everything, but let us all agree that music must remain the common ground upon which we all stand, together in peace and harmony," the Recording Academy head said. "Every song that we’re honoring or hearing tonight moved someone, no matter where they were from, what they believed, it connected us to others who were moved in the same way. Take this string quartet: As individuals they sound really good, but together they achieve something beautiful they could never do apart.”
“These musicians of Israeli, Palestinian and Arab descent are here, playing together," Mason said. "Now is the time for us, for humanity, to play together, to come together.”
AJC welcomes tribute at Grammys
The hostage family movement did not publicly make a push for displays of support at the Grammys, but American Jewish Committee CEO Ted Deutch did, urging the Recording Academy to call attention to the Nova victims. He thanked the academy for Mason’s tribute in a statement.
“While our hearts continue to ache for those who were lost, we take comfort in tonight’s stirring tribute,” Deutch said. “Music can be a great source of healing.”
Singer Montana Tucker’s dress featured a large yellow ribbon at its center, in a nod to the more than 100 Israelis who are still being held hostage in Gaza since Oct. 7. Tucker, who is Jewish, visited Israel in December, one of a number of influencers to do so, and organized a flash mob there with a survivor of the Nova festival.
Former Eurythmics vocalist Annie Lennox called for a ceasefire during a Grammys tribute to Sinead O’Connor, who died last year.
“Artists for ceasefire! Peace in the world!” Lennox shouted during her performance. The Scottish performer of “Sweet Dreams” was one of hundreds of artists to petition President Joe Biden in favor of an immediate ceasefire in December.