MTV VMAs 2020 to take place in New York in August amid virus pandemic

After canceling several award ceremonies and public events, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has given a green signal to MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) 2020 to be held at a physical venue. Even though coronavirus pandemic is far from over, the awards ceremony is set to take place at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, New York.

An MTV spokesperson confirmed the big news to The Associated Press on Monday and revealed that the awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, August 30. However, all the safety guidelines must be followed during the event.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made the announcement during his Monday briefing and confirmed the occurrence of the ceremony at a physical venue. "The event will follow all safety guidance, including limited or no audience," he explained.

This will be the first awards ceremony to be held at a venue after months of lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak. According to a press release, the in-person event will feature "performances from various iconic locations" in all five boroughs — Brooklyn, The Bronx, Staten Island, Queens and Manhattan. Alongside this, the show will honour "the spirit and resilience of New York."

Meanwhile, since the virus remains a constant threat, the show will practice all the safety guidelines including "extensive social distancing procedures, meaningful capacity limitations and the virtualization of components where possible," as per the statement.

According to Deadline, MTV confirmed that "the health and safety of artists, fans, industry, staff, and partners is of the utmost importance." Meanwhile, producers of the show, Barclays management, and local authorities are working closely to create an event with best practices.

"We're elated to bring the 2020 VMAs back to NYC, the cultural mecca of the world where music and entertainment are woven into the DNA," Bruce Gillmer, President of Music, Music Talent, Programming & Events for ViacomCBS Media Networks, said in the statement.

New York City remains one of the worst-hit places by COVID-19 pandemic. It became a hotspot for the infection in the nation quickly in the early weeks of the outbreak. So far, there have been more than 417, 000 confirmed cases in the city and more than 30,000 deaths. Nevertheless, the city is now seeing a dip in the daily number of cases and deaths.