GRAMMY® Live Returns To Give Music Fans Three Days Of Multiplatform GRAMMY Coverage and Behind-the-Scenes Access

SAN FRANCISCO and SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Recording Academy^® and CBS will launch GRAMMY^® Live, bringing music fans around the globe three days of unprecedented, multiplatform access to all the VIP and backstage events leading up to and throughout THE 55TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS^®. GRAMMY Live will begin Friday, Feb. 8, at 2:00 PM, PT, at GRAMMY.com, CBS.com and on the GRAMMY Live mobile apps for iOS and Android™, and will continue through the live telecast on Sunday, Feb. 10 (8:00 – 11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

The GRAMMY Live experience brings fans a complete backstage pass to Music's Biggest Night^®, with three days full of exclusive live streaming video, behind-the-scenes GRAMMY cams, photos, social feeds, official news reports, blogs and personalized updates from mobile GRAMMY hosts Tai Beauchamp, Andrew Burnette and veteran music journalist John Norris.

On Sunday, Feb. 10, GRAMMY Live is the only place to view the Pre-Telecast Ceremony in its entirety, including live performances and the presentation of approximately 70 GRAMMY categories. GRAMMY Live will also complement the live telecast of THE 55TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS with a multi-screen experience offering backstage interviews, red-carpet coverage, pressroom question-and-answer sessions, historical GRAMMY moments and a live feed of GRAMMY winners' portrait sessions.

"Fans are more passionate than ever about being part of an engaged music conversation," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer for The Recording Academy.  "GRAMMY Live provides access to exclusive GRAMMY Week content, and allows fans to connect with each other as well as follow their favorite artists."

"Our aim is to deliver a digital experience worthy of Music's Biggest Night^® and bring music fans more of what they want," said Marc DeBevoise, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Entertainment, News and Sports for CBS Interactive. "Judging by the 13 million social comments and 1 million unique viewers that tuned in to GRAMMY Live online and on mobile devices last year, fans want a second-screen experience that brings them closer to their favorite musical acts and gives them an opportunity to truly take part in GRAMMY events."

GRAMMY Live will also give fans access to exclusive GRAMMY Week events including the MusiCares^® Person of the Year gala honoring Bruce Springsteen and hosted by Jon Stewart, the Special Merit Awards Ceremony & Nominees Reception, the Pre-GRAMMY Gala and the official GRAMMY Celebration afterparty. In addition, GRAMMY Live will feature exclusive interviews with various artists from the GRAMMY telecast rehearsals, backstage "thank you" cams and an exclusive performance from CBS.com's "GRAMMY Live: The Gig of a Lifetime" contest winners, Birmingham, Ala.-based rockers Within Reason.

GRAMMY Live content is available across GRAMMY.com (www.grammy.com/live), CBS.com (www.cbs.com/GRAMMYLive) and the GRAMMY Live mobile apps for the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch and Android devices. The GRAMMY Live mobile apps will also offer interactive features including Backstage Trivia; "Guess the GRAMMYs" polls, allowing fans to cast their vote for who they think will GRAMMY voters will choose across 20 categories; live-streaming GRAMMY Radio; and more. The apps also integrate social media coverage of the event and fans can join the conversation by following or replying to tweets from the official GRAMMY Twitter account (@TheGRAMMYs), along with Twitter accounts for many of this year's nominees. The free app, sponsored by Target and Microsoft, is available for download in the App Store. Android*-powered device users can download the app from the Android Market™.

GRAMMY Live Technology Partners

AEG Digital Media (www.aegdigitalmedia.com) has returned for the fourth consecutive year to live stream the entire three days of GRAMMY Live. Using its feature-rich, multi-camera angle Tremolo Player, complemented by Mass Relevance's (www.massrelevance.com) social curation visualizer, which filters, moderates and publishes interactive social content into the GRAMMY Live experience, online spectators will become participants as they watch their favorite artists at GRAMMY week events.

GRAMMY Live will once again leverage Akamai's (www.akamai.com) global distribution HD network for live streaming and video on demand to power extensive live and on-demand streaming.

The Recording Academy has also partnered with the most progressive online companies and leveraged the best of both open-source and proprietary technologies to deliver a cohesive, exciting and more enriching user experience for GRAMMY.com and GRAMMY.org, including Acquia (www.acquia.com), Drupal (www.drupal.com), Lullabot (www.lullabot.com) and Ooyala (www.ooyala.com).

About The Recording Academy

Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, songwriters, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards — the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music — The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture. For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, follow @TheGRAMMYs on Twitter, like "The GRAMMYs" on Facebook, and join The GRAMMYs' social communities on Foursquare, GetGlue, Google +, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, and YouTube.      

About CBS Interactive

CBS Interactive, a division of CBS Corporation, is the premier online content network for information and entertainment.  With more than 280 million people visiting its properties each month, CBS Interactive is a top Web property globally. Its portfolio of leading brands, which include CNET, CBS.com, CBSNews.com, CBSSports.com, GameSpot, TV.com and Last.fm, span popular categories like technology, entertainment, sports, news and gaming.

Follow CBS Interactive on Twitter: twitter.com/cbsi and on Facebook.

*Android app is available in Google Play as "The GRAMMYs." Live streaming available for Android version 4.0.3 or higher.   

SOURCE CBS Interactive