The late-breaking announcement of the white rose movement shook up the debate preceding the Grammys. Supporters will wear flowers to protest harassment and inequality in the music business,

Halsey, Fergie and Kelly Clarkson are among the stars signed on to support it. But Kesha’s performance of “Praying” might be the actual protest of the night.

The singer, who saw her career stalled for years after going public with allegations of abuse against her mentor, superstar producer Dr. Luke, returned in 2017 with a No. 1 album in “Rainbow.”

Hundreds of music industry stars and professionals have signed a letter released by music business advocates Voices of Entertainment pledging to wear white roses to tonight's awards in support of "workplaces free of sexual harassment."

Inspired by the sea of black at this year’s Golden Globes, the #whiterose initiative is meant to add “a heightened awareness of accountability that our sisters started on January 1st and continued through the Golden Globes and onward,” according to the letter. 

Musicians including Pink, Cyndi Lauper, Slick Rick, Lil Uzi Vert, Zayn Malik, Meghan Trainor, Fat Joe, Fergie, Remy Ma, India.Arie, Carly Rae Jepson, Khalid, Kelly Clarkson, Halsey, Dua Lipa, and Rita Ora signed the official letter of support.

Those who may have assumed that Recording Academy members would be tired of “La La Land” at this point were wrong: the film, about living the Hollywood dream, earned two early Grammy Awards at Sunday’s ceremony.

In the category for score/soundtrack for visual media, the score’s composer, Justin Hurwitz, won out over the composers for “Dunkirk,” “Game of Thrones, Season 7,” “Hidden Figures” and “Arrival.”

Additionally, “La La Land” compilation producers Hurwitz and Marius de Vries won the compilation soundtrack award over fellow contenders “Baby Driver,” “Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2,” “Hidden Figures: The Album” and “Moana: The Songs.” 

Calls to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline went up between 30% and 50% after Logic released his hit song “1-800-273-8255.”

His Grammy performance will give the song – and the lifeline – its biggest stage yet. The tune was an unlikely hit, notching No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and getting Logic a No. 1 album in “Everybody.”

Logic will perform it at the Grammys with collaborators Alessia Cara and Khalid, but just as important, the acts will be flanked by suicide attempt survivors and friends and relatives of suicide victims. In a time when musicians (and Americans generally) are struggling with an epidemic of addiction and depression, this performance will be living proof that there’s a way out. 

Among numerous vital pop music figures the Grammy Awards originally overlooked was the Velvet Underground, the proto-punk New York quartet of which it’s been said its debut album sold only a few thousand copies, but everyone who bought one started a band of his or her own.

Grammys certainly weren’t on the mind of singer, guitarist and songwriter Lou Reed, according to his biographer, veteran Rolling Stone writer Anthony DeCurtis, a Grammy winner for his liner notes for the 1988 Eric Clapton box set “Crossroads.”

“He certainly never mentioned the Grammys to me, and the subject would have elicited eye-rolling on his part, I'm sure,” DeCurtis told The Times earlier this week. “He had grown used to feeling mistreated by the music industry and even seemed to relish the outsider status that conferred on him.”

Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar, who’s nominated for seven Grammys for work from his album “Damn,” saw that album’s “Humble” snag the trophy for music video, besting nominees by Beck, Jay Z, Jain and Logic feat. Alessia Cara and Khalid.

The “Humble” video was directed by the Little Homies & Dave Meyers, and produced by Jason Baum, Dave Free, Jamie Rabineau, Nathan K. Scherrer & Anthony Tiffith.

Watch “Humble” above and read more about what Lamar says about rap in 2018.

The rising rapper Cardi B had perhaps the biggest breakout year of anyone in 2017, thanks to an inescapable hit “Bodak Yellow” and a saucy social media presence.  

Her performance at the ceremony will be a capstone in a short career. With just three proper singles released (on top of a few mixtapes and guest appearances), she had a short hop from reality star to Grammy performer.

How will a Grammy turn vault her into the next phase of hip-hop stardom?

The 60th Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony kicked off at Madison Square Garden in New York, and for the first time since David Letterman’s departure from “The Late Show,” Paul Shaffer reconvened the World’s Most Dangerous Band.

The hard-working outfit worked with the bandleader and Letterman for decades, and for the daytime installment of the awards ceremony, it’s providing the score for Shaffer’s hosting. He’s handing out 75 trophies over the next few hours. 

To open, Shaffer celebrated his city’s role in shaping the sound of American music: “From hip-hop to disco, punk rock to salsa, the whole world tunes in to the rhythms of New York City.” 

Both men have sold millions of albums. Both have headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. And both made former President Obama's list of his favorite songs from 2017 — an especially meaningful achievement, perhaps, for two African American artists eager to share their political views (not to mention their scorn for the guy who now holds Obama's old job).

So in a year when hip-hop might finally rule the Grammy Awards, it makes sense that Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar would be the rap kings closest to victory come Sunday night.

With eight nominations, Jay-Z, the assured veteran, leads the field of contenders for music's most prestigious prize, followed closely by Lamar, the upstart phenom, who has seven.

How to kick off a salute to Jay-Z on the eve of the Grammy Awards?

With a performance by Barry Manilow, of course.