LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 02: (L-R) Josh Gilbert, Zev Rose, Courtney LaPlante and Josh Gilbert of Spiritbox attend the 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards on February 02, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Spiritbox, who are nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, are slated to perform at the Grammys Premiere Ceremony on Sunday, February 1st. The celebrated modern metal act is up for their third consecutive nomination in the same category. Last year Gojira took home the award for Best Metal Performance for their viral Olympic Ceremony rendition of “Mea Culpa.” At this year’s awards, Spiritbox are up against Dream Theater, Ghost, Sleep Token, and Turnstile in the Best Metal Performance category.
The Recording Academy hasn’t earned itself the best reputation within the heavy music scene, mainly for their often outdated nominee choices in the genre. However, the Recording Academy has certainly made some noteworthy progress in recent years, and with their decision to feature Spiritbox at the Premiere Ceremony it’s another step in the right direction.
It’s A Big Deal That The Grammys Are Showcasing Spiritbox
The Grammy Awards have rarely showcased metal or heavy music in a live setting throughout the last several decades. Spiritbox now join the rankings of Metallica and AC/DC who’ve also been given the rare opportunity to perform live at the Award Ceremony. Although Spiritbox aren’t performing during the main broadcast but instead during the Premiere Ceremony which takes place prior to the main awards show, it’s still a massive feat for a band as heavy as Spiritbox to be given such a massive spotlight – the band will likely be performing their heavy anthem “Soft Spine” which their nominated for this year. Moreover, it’s a great move by the Recording Academy to finally give the heavy music genre some long overdue attention, especially in a live performance context.
Spiritbox will be joining fellow nominees Darren Criss and Helen J Shen, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, and Zara Larsson who will also be performing at the Premiere Ceremony held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Audiences can watch the Premiere Ceremony live broadcast via the Recording Academy’s Youtube channel, which kicks off at 3:30pm EST.
For those unaware, the Premiere Ceremony is where the majority of the Grammy Awards are awarded. Metal and hard-rock are among a plethora of other categories that aren’t shown during main award show which streams hours later – the 2026 Grammys Awards main broadcast is airing at 8pm EST and being held at the Crypto.com Center.