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More Stars To Honor Barbra Streisand

Jeff Beck, LeAnn Rimes, Seal, and BeBe Winans added to performance lineup for GRAMMY Week MusiCares Person of the Year tribute

GRAMMYs/Dec 3, 2014 - 05:06 am

(For a complete list of 53rd GRAMMY Awards nominees, click here.)

Current GRAMMY nominees Jeff Beck and LeAnn Rimes, and GRAMMY winners Seal and BeBe Winans are the latest performers announced for the 2011 MusiCares Person of the Year tribute to Barbra Streisand, to be held during GRAMMY Week on Feb. 11 in Los Angeles. They join previously announced performers Tony Bennett; singer/actress Kristin Chenoweth; GRAMMY-nominated "Glee" cast members Darren Criss, Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison; Herbie Hancock; Diana Krall; Barry Manilow; Donna Summer; Stevie Wonder; and singer Nikki Yanofsky. Streisand, an eight-time GRAMMY-winning artist and current nominee, will close the evening with her own special performance. Additional performers will be announced soon.

Proceeds from the annual Person of the Year tribute, now in its 21st year, provide essential support for MusiCares.

The event, a private charity fundraiser, is attended by industry VIPs and others who help support the work of The Recording Academy-affiliated MusiCares Foundation, which offers programs and services to members of the music community, including emergency financial assistance. The MusiCares MAP Fund provides access to addiction recovery treatment and sober living resources for members of the music community regardless of their financial circumstances, and MusiCares Safe Harbor Rooms offer a support network to those in recovery while they are participating in the production of televised music shows, such as the GRAMMY Awards, and other major music events.

The MusiCares Person of the Year tribute is one of the most prestigious events held during GRAMMY Week. The celebration culminates with the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Feb. 13 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The telecast will be broadcast live on the CBS Television Network at 8 p.m. ET/PT. For information on purchasing tables and tickets to the event, please contact Dana Tomarken at 310.392.3777.

Past MusiCares Person of the Year honorees include Tony Bennett, Bono, Natalie Cole, Phil Collins, David Crosby, Neil Diamond, Gloria Estefan, Aretha Franklin, Don Henley, Billy Joel, Elton John, Quincy Jones, Luciano Pavarotti, Bonnie Raitt, Paul Simon, Sting, James Taylor, Brian Wilson, Stevie Wonder, and Neil Young.
 

Gary Clark, Jr. On 'JPEG RAW': How A Lockdown Jam Session, Bagpipes & Musical Manipulation Led To His Most Eclectic Album Yet
Gary Clark, Jr.

Photo: Mike Miller

interview

Gary Clark, Jr. On 'JPEG RAW': How A Lockdown Jam Session, Bagpipes & Musical Manipulation Led To His Most Eclectic Album Yet

Gary Clark, Jr.'s latest record, 'JPEG RAW,' is an evolution in the GRAMMY-winning singer and guitarist's already eclectic sound. Clark shares the process behind his new record, which features everything from African chants to a duet with Stevie Wonder.

GRAMMYs/Mar 18, 2024 - 01:10 pm

Stevie Wonder once said "you can’t base your life on people’s expectations." It’s something guitarist and singer Gary Clark, Jr. has taken to heart as he’s built his own career. 

"You’ve got to find your own thing," Clark tells GRAMMY.com.

Clark recently duetted with Wonder on "What About The Children," a song on his forthcoming album. Out March 22, JPEG RAW sees Clark continue to evolve with a mixtape-like kaleidoscope of sounds.

Over the years, Clark has ventured into rock, R&B, hip-hop blues, soul, and country. JPEG RAW is the next step in Clark's eclectic sound and sensibility, the result of a free-flowing jam session held during COVID-19 lockdown. Clark and his bandmates found freedom in not having a set path, adding elements of traditional African music and chants, electronic music, and jazz into the milieu.

"We just kind of took it upon ourselves to find our own way and inspire ourselves," says Clark, a four-time GRAMMY winner. "And that was just putting our heads together and making music that we collectively felt was good and we liked, music we wanted to listen to again."

The creation process was simultaneously freeing and scary.

"It was a little of the unknown and then a sense of hope, but also after there was acceptance and then it was freeing. I was like, all right, well, I guess we’re just doing this," Clark recalls. "It was an emotional, mental rollercoaster at that time, but it was great to have these guys to navigate through it and create something in the midst of it."

JPEG RAW is also deeply personal, with lyrics reflecting on the future for Clark himself, his family, and others around the globe. While Clark has long reflected on political and social uncertainties, his new release widens the lens. Songs like "Habits" examine a universal humanity in his desire to avoid bad habits, while "Maktub" details life's common struggles and hopes. 

Clark and his band were aided in their pursuit by longtime collaborator and co-producer Jacob Sciba and a wide array of collaborators. Clark’s prolific streak of collaborations continued, with the album also featuring funk master George Clinton, electronic R&B/alt-pop artist Naala, session trumpeter Keyon Harrold, and Clark’s sisters Shanan, Shawn, and Savannah. He also sampled songs by Thelonious Monk and Sonny Boy Williamson.

Clark has also remained busy as an actor (he played American blues legend Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis) and as a music ambassador (he was the Music Director for the 23rd Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor).

GRAMMY.com recently caught up with Clark, who will kick off his U.S. tour May 8, about his inspirations for JPEG RAW, collaborating with legendary musicians, and how creating music for a film helped give him a boost of confidence in the studio. 

This interview has been edited for clarity.

You incorporated traditional African music on JPEG RAW. How did it affect your songwriting process?

Well, I think traveling is how it affected my songwriting process. I was over in London, and we played a show with Songhoy Blues, and I was immediately influenced. I was like, "dang, these are my musical brothers from all the way across the world." 

I always kind of listened to West African funk and all that kind of stuff. So, I was just listening to that in the studio, and just kind of started messing around with the thing. And that just kind of evolved from there. I was later told by Jacob Sciba that he was playing that music trying to brainwash me into leaning more in that direction. I thought we were just genuinely having a good time exploring music together, and he was trying to manipulate me. [Laughs.]

I quit caring about what people thought about me wanting to be a certain thing. I think that being compared to Jimi Hendrix is a blessing and a curse for me because I'm not that. I will never be that. I never wanted to imitate or copy that, no disrespect. 

You’ve got to find your own thing. And my own thing is incorporating all the styles of music that I love, that I grew up on, and [was] influenced by as a pre-teen/teenager. To stay in one space and just be content doing that has never been my personality ever…I do what I like.

I read that you play trumpet at home and also have a set of bagpipes, just in case the mood strikes. 

I used to go collect instruments and old cameras from thrift stores and vintage shops and flea markets. So, I saw some bagpipes and I just picked them up. I've got a couple of violins. I don't play well at all — if you could consider that even playing. I've got trumpet, saxophone, flutes, all kinds of stuff just in case I can use these instruments in a way that'll make me think differently about music. It'll inspire me to go in a different direction that I've maybe never explored before, or I can translate some of that into playing guitar. 

One of my favorite guitarists, Albert Collins, was really inspired by horn players. So, if you can understand that and apply that to your number one instrument, maybe it could affect you. 

Given recent discussions about advancements in AI and our general inundation with technology, the title of your album is very relevant. What about people seeing life through that filter concerns you? Why does the descriptor seem apt?

During the pandemic, since I wasn't out in the world, I was on my phone and the information I was getting was through whatever social media platforms and what was going on in certain news outlets, all the news outlets. I'm just paying attention and I'm just like, man, there's devastation

I realized that I don't have to let it affect me. Just because things are accessible doesn't mean that you need to [access them].  It just made me think that I needed to do less of this and more of being appreciative of my world that's right in front of me, because right now it is really beautiful.

You’ve said the album plays out like a film, with a wide range of emotions throughout. What was it like seeing the album have that film-like quality?

I had conversations with the band, and I'd expressed to them that I want to be able to see it. I want to be able to see it on film, not just hear it. Keyboardist Jon Deas is great with [creating a] sonic palate and serving a mood along with [Eric] "King" Zapata who plays [rhythm] guitar. What he does with the guitar, it serves up a mood to you. You automatically see a color, you see a set design or something, and I just said, "Let's explore that. Let's make these things as dense as possible. Let's go like Hans Zimmer meets John Lee Hooker. Let's just make big songs that kind of tell some sort of a story." 

Also, we were stuck to our own devices, so we had to use our imagination. There was time, there was no schedule. So, we were free, open space, blank canvas.

The album opens with "Maktub," which is the Arabic word for fate or destiny. How has looking at different traditions given you added clarity with looking at what's happening here in the U.S.?

I was sitting in the studio with Jacob Sciba and my friend Sama'an Ashrawi and we were talking about the history of the blues. And then we started talking about the real history of the blues, not just in its American form, in an evolution back to Africa. You listen to a song like "Maktub," and then you listen to a song like, "Baby What You Want Me to Do" by Jimmy Reed…. 

The last record was This Land, but what about the whole world? What about not just focusing on this, but what else is going on out there? And we drew from these influences. We talked about family, we talked about culture, we talked about tradition, we talked about everything. And it's like, let's make it inclusive, build the people up. Let's build ourselves up. It’s not just about your small world, it’s about everybody’s feelings. Sometimes they're dealt with injustice and devastation everywhere, but there's also this global sense of hope. So, I just wanted to have a song that had the sentiment of that.

I really enjoyed the song’s hopeful message of trying to move forward.

Obviously, things are a little bit funky around here, and I don't have any answers. But maybe if we got our heads together and brainstorm, we could all figure something out instead of … struggling or suffering in silence. It's like, let's find some light here. 

But part of the talks that I had with Sama'an and his parents over a [video] call was music. He’s from Palestine, and growing up music was a way to connect. Music was a way to find happiness in a place where that wasn't an everyday convenience, and that was really powerful. That music is what brought folks together and brought joy and built a community and a common way of thinking globally. They were listening to music from all over the world, American music, rock music, and that was an influence.

The final song on the album, "Habits," sounds like it was the most challenging song to put together. What did you learn from putting that song together?

Well, that song originally was a bunch of different pieces, and I thought that they were different songs, and I was singing the different parts to them, and then I decided to put them all together. I think I was afraid to put them all together because we were like, "let's not do these long self-indulgent pieces of music. Let's keep it cool." But once I put these parts together and put these lyrics together, it just kind of made sense. 

I got emotional when I was singing it, and I was like, This is part of using this as an outlet for the things that are going on in life. We went and recorded it in Nashville with Mike Elizondo and his amazing crew, and it's like, yep, we're doing it all nine minutes of it.

You collaborated with a bunch of musicians on this album, including Naala on "This Is Who We Are." What was that experience like?

Working with Naala was great. That song was following me around for a couple of years, and I knew what I wanted it to sound like, but I didn't know how I was going to sing it. I had already laid the musical bed, and I think it was one of the last songs that we recorded vocals on for the album. 

Lyrically, it’s like a knight in shining armor or a samurai, and there's fire and there's war, and this guy's got to go find something. It was like this medieval fairytale type thing that I had in my head. Naala really helped lyrically guide me in a way that told that story, but was a little more personal and a little more vulnerable. I was about to give up on that song until she showed up in the studio. 

"What About the Children" is based on a demo that you got from Stevie Wonder. You got to duet with him, what was that collaboration like?

Oh, it was great. It was a life-changing experience. The guy's the greatest in everything, he was sweet, the most talented, hardworking, gracious, humble, but strong human being I've been in a room with and been able to create with. 

I was in shock when I left the studio at how powerful that was and how game changing and eye-opening it was. It was educational and inspiring. It was like before Stevie and after Stevie.

I imagine it was also extra special getting to have your sisters on the album.

Absolutely. We got to sing with Stevie Wonder; we used to grow up listening to George Clinton. They've stuck with us throughout my whole life. So, to be able to work with him and George Clinton — they came in wanting to do the work, hardworking, badass, nice, funny — it was a dream. 

Stevie Wonder and George Clinton are just different. They're pioneers and risk takers. For a young Black kid from Texas to see that and then later to be able to be in a room with that and get direct education and conversation…. It's an experience that not everybody gets to experience, and I'm grateful that I did, and hopefully we can do it again.

In 2022, you acted in Elvis. What are the biggest things you've learned from expanding into new creative areas?

I really have to give it up to a guy named Jeremy Grody…I went to his studio with these terrible demos that I had done on Pro Tools…and this guy helped save them and recreate them. I realized the importance of quality recordings. Jeremy Grody was my introduction to the game and really set me up to have the confidence to be able to step in rooms like that again.

I played some songs in the film, and I really understood how long a film day was. It takes all day long, a lot of takes, a lot of lights, a lot of big crews, big production.

I got to meet Lou Reed [while screening the film] at the San Sebastian Film Festival, and I was super nervous in interviews. I was giving away the whole movie. And Lou Reed said, "Just relax and have fun with all this s—." I really appreciated that.

Do you have a dream role?

I don't have a dream role, but I do know that if I was to get into acting, I’d really dive into it. I would want to do things that are challenging. I like taking risks. I want to push it to the limit. I would really like to understand what it's like to immerse yourself in the character and in the script and do it for real.

You're about to go out on tour. How will the show and production on this tour compare with the past ones?

We're building it currently, but I'm excited about what we got in store as far as the band goes. There are a few additions. I've got my sisters coming out with me. It's just going to be a big show.There's a new energy here, and I'm excited to share that with folks. 

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ReImagined: Gen Neo Delivers A Lo-Fi Cover Of Seal's "Kiss From A Rose"
Gen Neo

Photo: Courtesy of Gen Neo

video

ReImagined: Gen Neo Delivers A Lo-Fi Cover Of Seal's "Kiss From A Rose"

Singaporean R&B singer/songwriter Gen Neo offers a sultry take on Seal's three-time GRAMMY-winning hit, "Kiss from a Rose."

GRAMMYs/Mar 5, 2024 - 06:03 pm

In 1994, Seal's completely self-written "Kiss from a Rose" won him the first GRAMMYs of his career for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, Song Of The Year, and Record Of The Year. 

Nearly 30 years later, Singaporean songwriter Gen Neo takes a turn at the microphone with a synth-driven rendition of the romantic track for the latest installment of ReImagined.

"Baby, I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the gray/ The more I get of you, stranger it feels," Gen Neo sings in the iconic chorus. "And now that your rose is in bloom/ A light hits the gloom on the gray."

Much like Seal, Gen Neo has written the majority of his solo tracks. He also has an extensive list of songwriting credits for K-pop artists like Henry Lau, f(x), Super Junior, Eric Nam, and more.

Gen Neo has continuously released singles since 2023, including "Same Mistakes," "Unless We Try," and "Stay." His most recent track, "KISS&TELL," which dropped on Feb. 23, is a collaboration with fellow Singaporean R&B singer Ethan Low.

Press play on the video above to hear Gen Neo's cover of Seal's "Kiss from a Rose," and check back to GRAMMY.com for more new episodes of ReImagined.

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In Memoriam (2023): The Recording Academy Remembers The Music People We Lost
Tina Turner on stage at Wembley 1990.

Photo: Dave Hogan / Getty Images Archive

list

In Memoriam (2023): The Recording Academy Remembers The Music People We Lost

Take a moment to salute the members of the music community we lost in 2022-2024.

GRAMMYs/Feb 9, 2024 - 09:02 pm

Below is a tribute to the luminaries and esteemed professionals from the music community we lost between Dec. 5, 2022, through Jan. 26, 2024.

During the 2024 GRAMMYs broadcast, the Recording Academy's In Memoriam segment featured performances by several masterful musicians. Annie Lennox  was joined by Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman to honor Sinéad O’Connor. Stevie Wonder took the stage to pay homage to the legendary Tony Bennett, Jon Batiste honored the "Godfather of Black Music" Clarence Avant and Fantasia Barrino paid tribute to the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll, Tina Turner. The performances were set against a video homage of several of the distinguished figures on this list. Every individual who passed away before the publication date has also been respectfully commemorated in the official 2024 GRAMMYs program book.

The Recording Academy offers its profound respect and appreciation for the unique gifts and enduring contributions these individuals have bestowed upon our culture and collective spirit.

Aaron Spears

Abe Stoklasa

Adam Johnstone

Aérea Negrot

Ahmad Jamal

Akbar Golpayegani

Alan Arkin

Alan Copeland

Alan Niederland

Alan Rankine

Alan Warner

Alan Moore Stowell

Alba 'Albita' Eagan

Algy Ward

Alice Parker

Allen Becker

Alton Wade Kelley

Amos Ettinger

Amp Fiddler

Amparo Rubín

Ana Clara Benevides Machado

Anatol Ugorski

André Watts

Andrew Penhallow

Andrew Speight

Andy Rourke

Angela Zilia

Angelo Badalamenti

Angelo Bruschini

Anita Kerr

Anita Pointer

Anne Hart

Annie Nightingale

Anthony Topham

Anthony John Heyes

Anup Ghoshal

April Stevens

Arie Levanon

Arif Cooper

Arthur Ward Eller

Astrud Gilberto

Audie Blaylock

August 08

Axali Doëseb

B. Sasikumar

Barbara Bryne

Barrett Strong

Baxter Black

Beeyar Prasad

Ben Lipitz

Benito Castro

Benjamin Zephaniah

Berit Lindholm

Bernie Marsden

Betta St. John

Betty Price

Beytocan

Bhavani Shankar

Bhavatharini Raja

Big Pokey

Big Scarr

John Nelson "Big John" Trimble Jr.

William "Bill" Castle

Bill Humble

Bill Lee

Bill Mayne

Bill Rice

Bill Saluga

Bill Zehme

Bill Hayes

Billy Smith

Billy White Jr.

Billy "The Kid" Emerson

Bilqees Khanum

Bishop Carlton Pearson

Blair Tindall

Blas Durán

Blayne Tucker

Bob Burwell

Bob Feldman

Bob Jones

Bob Mummert

Bob Nalbandian

Bob Rice

Bob Siggins

Bob "Norton" Thompson

Bobbi Staff

Bobby Caldwell

Bobby Casey

Bobby Eli

Bobby Osborne

Bobby Schiffman

Bonny Beverley

Brad Houser

Brad Thomson

Bram Inscore

Brandon Marcel Williams

Brett Radin

Brian McBride

Brian "Brizz" Gillis

Bridgette Wimberly

Broderick Smith

Bruce Gowers

Bruce Guthro

Brucene Harrison

Bruno Ducol

Buck Trent

Buddy McNeill

Burt Bacharach

C-Knight

C.J. Harris

Calton Coffie

Calton Coffie

Calvin Newton

Canelita Medina

Canisso Canisso

Care Failure

Carl Davis

Carl Pagter

Carl Tovey

Carla Bley

Carlee Ann Vaughn

Carlin Glynn

Carline Smith Wilhite

Carlos Fonseca

Carlos Lyra

Carmen Jara

Carmen Xtravaganza

Carole Cook

Catherine Christer Hennix

Cayle Sain

Cecilia Pantoja Levi

Chabelita Fuentes

Chad Allan

Chaim Topol

Charline Whillhite

Charles Gayle

Charlie Dominici

Charlie Gracie

Charlie Monk

Charlie Robison

Chas Newby

Chick Rains

Chico Novarro

Choi Sung-Bong

Chris Ford

Chris Ledesma

Chris Lee

Chris Peluso

Chris Strachwitz

Christy Dignam

Chuck Flood

Chuck Jackson

Chuck Morris

Charley Morris

Clarence Avant

Clarence Barlow

Claude Kahn

Clay Hart

Cliff Fish

Clifton Oliver

Clint Yeager

Cobi Narita

Coco Lee

Colette Maze

Colin Burgess

Conny Van Dyke

Costa Titch

Craig Burbidge

Craig Hayes

Curtis Fowlkes

Cynthia Haring

Cynthia Weil

Dan Lardner

Daniel Bourgue

Daniel Jones

Daniel Lee Stephen Jones

Danny Kaleikini

Danny Schur

Danny Milhon

Dave Cohen

Dave Dickerson

Dave Roe

Dave Freeman

David Crosby

David Darling

David Del Tredici

David Drozen

David LaFlamme

David Lindley

David McCallum

David Leland

David Soul

David Lumsdaine

David Beckwith

David Jude Jolicoeur

Dedi Graucher

Del Palmer

Denis Badault

Denny Laine

Denyse Plummer

Dev Kohli

Dick Biondi

Dickie Harrell

Dima Nova

Dino Danelli

DJ Casper

DJ Deeon

DJ Dino Calvao

Djalma Corrêa

Don Graham

Don Kissil

Don Mulkey

Don Sebesky

Don Williams

Donnie McKethan

Dorian Kweller

Dr Latozi Madosini Mpahleni

Duane Tabinski

Dusty Street

Dwight Twilley

Ed Ames

Ed Stone

Ed "Beanpole" Efaw

Edino Krieger

Edward Sexton

Edward Walters

Edward "Kidd" Jordan

Elayne Jones

Eliud Treviño

Ellen Fitzhugh

Elliot Goldman

Eloise Wyatt Russo

Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou

Enrique "Zurdo" Roizner

Eric Boehlert

Eric Shoutin' Sheridan

Eric Moyo

Eric Alan Livingston

Essra Mohawk

Fallece Marilú

Faye Fantarrow

Fito Olivares

Florence Malgoire

Fran La Maina

Francesa Cappucci

Francis Monkman

François Glorieux

Frank Harlow

Frank Kozik

Frank Solivan Sr.

Frank Woodard

Frank Ford

Frank Farian

Fred White

Freddie Ross Hancock

Fuzzy Haskins

Gabriele Schnaut

Gangsta Boo

Garry Mapanzure

Garry Lee Rentfro

Gary Hobish

Gary Rossington

Gary Smith

Gary Wright

Gary Young

Gary Noble

Gennady Gladkov

George Brown

George Logan

George Maharis

George Moffett

George Newall

George Portz

George Tickner

George Winston

George Yanok

Georgia Holt

Gerald Fried

Gérard Drouot

Germano Mathias

Glen "Spot" Lockett

Gloria Belle

Gloria Coates

Glynis Johns

Goa Gil

Gordon Lightfoot

Gordy Harmon

Gordy Nichol

Grace Bumbry

Grady Hockett

Graeme Malcolm

Graham Clark

Grand Daddy I.U.

Gregory Brian Wright

Hans Poulsen

Harley Worthington

Harold Childs

Harold Killian

Harold Black

Harry Belafonte

Harry Sheppard

Haydn Gwynne

Heather Dunbar

Heike Matthiesen

Heklina Heklina

Helen Thorington

Henri Duaman

Henry Grossman

Herb Deutsch

Hiroshi "Heath" Morie

Hoppy Hopkins

Horacio Malvicino

Howie Kane

Huey "Piano" Smith

Ian Bairnson

Ian Emes

Ian Tyson

Iasos

Ilanga

Inga Swenson

Ingrid Haebler

Ira Selsky

Irish Grinstead

Irma Capece Minutolo

Irv Lichtman

Isaac "Redd" Holt

Ismaïlia Touré

Ivan "Mamão" Conti

Ivan M. Tribe

J.J. Barnes

Jack Lee

Jack Pruett Jr.

Jack Sonni

Jacqueline Dark

Jaquelyne Ledent-Vilain

Jah Shaka

Jaimie Branch

Jake Marlowe

James Bowman

James Casey

James Harvey IV

James Jorden

James Lewis

James Kottak

James C. "Jimmy" LaRocca

Jamie Reid

Jamie Tiller

Jan Woods

Jane Birkin

Jannis Noya Makrigiannis

Jasmin Stavros

Javier Álvarez Fuentes

Jay Goldberg

Jay Weston

Jay Clayton

Jean Knight

Jeff Beck

Jeff Cook

Jeff Davis

Jeff Heiman

Jeffrey Foskett

Jeno Jandó

Jeremiah Green

Jerry Bradley

Jerry Dodgion

Jerry Fretwell

Jerry Kearns

Jerry Moss

Jerry Samuels

Jerry Springer

Jerry Whitehurst

Jerry Kramer

Jerry Paul Arnold

Jerry Lee Lewis

Jesse McReynolds

Jesus Garber

Jet Black

Jim Boyer

Jim Gordon

Jim Parker

Jim Sharpley

Jim Vienneau

Jim Ladd

Jim Rae

Jimmy Buffett

Jo Mersa Marley

Jo-El Sonnier

Joanna Merlin

João Donato

Joaquin Romaguera

Joaquin "Jocko" Fajardo

Joe Fagin

Joe McGuire

Joey Bogan

John Albert

John Beckingham

John Cirillo

John Deyle

John Giblin

John Gosling

John Kezdy

John Lomax IV

John Marshall

John Miller

John Morris

John Regan

John Waddington

John Cutler

John Alexander

John Andrew Tartaglia

John Watson Algee

Johnny Allon

Johnny Fean

Johnny Ruffo

Jon Fausty

Jon Kennedy

Jordan Blake

José Evangelista

Joseph Koo

Joshua Culbreath

Joshua Madsen

Joss Ackland

Jovit Baldivino

Joy McKean

Joyce Bryant

Juan Carlos Formell

Judy Massey

Julián Figueroa

Julian Sebothane Bahula

Justin Bartlett

Justin Fontaine

K. Neville Garrick

K.J. Joy

Kaija Saariaho

Karaikudi Mani

Karl Berger

Karl Tremblay

Karl F. Dieterichs

Katherine Anderson Schaffner

Kathy Chow

Keiko Okuya Jones

Keith Gattis

Keith Reid

Keith Holzman

Kelly Joe Phelps

Ken Brigham

Ken Fish

Ken Roberts

Ken Calvert

Kendall A. Minter

Kenneth Anger

Kenneth Force

Kenneth Montgomery

Kenneth Riegel

Kent Stax

Kevin Fleming

Kevin Lemons

Kevin "Geordie" Walker

Kihnu Virve

Kim Simmonds

Kirk Arrington

Kirstie Alley

Klee Benally

Kwame Brathwaite

Kyle Jacobs

Ladislav Jásek

Lalo Rodriguez

Lance Reddick

Larry Chance

Larry Morris

Larry Collins

Lasse Wellander

Laura Lynch

Lawrence "Larry" Cohn

Lázaro Valdés

Lee Berk

Lee Purkis

Lee Rauch

Leela Omchery

Lefty SM

Leiji Matsumoto

Len Chandler

Lena McLin

Lenka Hlávková

Leny Andrade

Leo D. Sullivan

Leonard Abrams

Leonard Zinn

Leroy "Black Stalin" Calliste

Les Brown Jr.

Les Leverett

Les McCann

Leslie Jordan

Lester Sterling

Lewis Largent

Lewis Spartlan

Lewis Pragasam

Lily Afshar

Linda de Suza

Linda Lewis

Lisa Roy

Lisa Marie Presley

Lisandro Meza

Lisl Steiner

Liz Thiels

Lizeta Nikolaou

Lois Curtis Shepherd

Lola Mitchell "Gangta Boo"

Lola Dee

Lord Creator

Lou Deprijck

Loyal Jones

Luis Vasquez

Luke Bell

Lyn McLain

M Daud Kilau

Malini Rajurkar

Mam' Sylvia Mdunyelwa

Manana Doijashvili

Mandla 'Mampintsha' Maphumulo

Manny Martinez

Manuel Göttsching

Manuel Castillo Girón

Marc Roy

Marcel Amont

Marcel Zanini

Marek Kopelent

Margaret Josephine Nisbett

Margie Hunt

Margie Sullivan

María Jímenez

Mariana Sîrbu

Marianne Mantell

Marilyn Johnston Blankenship

Mark Adams

Mark Capps

Mark Howard

Mark James

Mark Kuykendall

Mark Russell

Mark Sheehan

Mark Stewart

Mark Thomas

Mark Nelson

Marlena Shaw

Mars Williams

Marsha Gray Basore

Martha Owen

Martin Duffy

Martin Petzold

Martin Stevens

Mary Weiss

Mary G. Dawson

Mary Jane Thomas

Mary Turner Pattiz

Mason Ruble

Massimo Savić

Matt Alese

Matt Stewart

Maurice Bourgue

Maurice Hines

Max Morath

Maxi Jazz

Mbongeni Ngema

Mbuya Stella Chiweshe

MC Fats

Megan Terry

Melanie Safka

Melvin "Magoo" Barcliff

Menahem Pressler

Merv Shiner

Michael Blackwood

Michael Keith

Michael Kupper

Michael Leon

Michael McGrath

Michael Parkinson

Michael Rhodes

Michael Snow

Michael "Ibo" Cooper

Michael John McGann

Mick Slattery

Mikael Maglieri

Mike Henderson

Mike Reeves

Mike Brown

Mike Taylor

Mike J Rojas

Miki Liukkonen

Mildred Miller

Milo Hrnić

Minneapolis Backyard Punk Show Shooting

Misha K. Hunke

Mo Foster

Mohbad

MoneySign Suede

Monte Cazazza

Moonbin

Myles Goodwyn

Mylon LeFevre

Najah Salam

Nancy Van de Vate

Nashawn (Lotto) Breedlove

Neal Langford

Neela Rampogal

Neil Kulkarni

Neville Garrick

Nicholas Lloyd Webber

Niel Immelman

Nihal Nelson

Niko Everette

Nina Matviienko

Nobuyuki Idei

Nora Forster

Norby Walters

Norm Pattiz

Notis Mavroudis

O.S. Thyagarajan

Oladips

Olga Chorens

Ordy Garrison

Orlando Marin

Óscar Agudelo

Otis Barthoulameu

Otis Redding III

Özkan Ugur

Pacho El Antifeka

Pamela Blair

Pamela Chopra

Pansequito

Pat Bunch

Patricia Burda Janečková

Patrick Emery

Paul Beasley

Paul Cattermole

Paul Desenne

Paul Justman

Paul Prestopino

Paul Woseen

Paxton Whitehead

Pedro Lavirgen

Pedro Messone

Pedro Henrique

Pedro Suárez-Vértiz

Pepe Domingo Castaño

Petch Osathanugrah

Pete Brown

Pete Garner

Peter Austin

Peter Brötzmann

Peter Cooper

Peter Kowalsky

Peter Luboff

Peter McCann

Peter Nero

Peter Solley

Peter Schickele

Phil Quartararo

Phill Niblock

Pilarín Bueno

Pluto Shervington

Polito Vega

Prabha Atre

Pt Vijay Kichlu

Qamar Gula

R.C. Harris

Ralph Gordon

Ramani Ammal

Ramla Beegum

Ramsey Lewis Jr.

Randy Bailey

Randy Meisner

Rashid Khan

Ray Cordeiro

Ray Hildebrand

Ray Pillow

Ray Shulman

Ray Sparks

Raymond Froggatt

Raymond Lumpkin

Red Paden

Reiner Goldberg

Rena Koumioti

Renata Scotto

Renée Geyer

Ricardo Iorio

Ricardo Drue

Richard Davis

Richard Landis

Richard Law

Richard Ross

Richard Gaddes

Rick Froberg

Rick Newman

Rickie May

Rita Hollingsworth

Rita Lee

R.L. Boyce

Rob Laakso

Robbie Bachman

Robbie Robertson

Robert Becerra

Robert Black

Robert Haimer

Robert Hicks

Robert Michaels

Robert H. Precht

Robert W. Smith

Robin Tamang

Rock Brynner

Rodney Hall

Rodriguez

Roger Sprung

Roger Whittaker

Rohana  Jalil

Rolf Harris

Ron Cornett

Ron Haffkine

Ron Hamilton

Ron Spears

Ron S. Peno

Ronnie Turner

Roseline Damian

Roxie Cawood Gibson

Roy Rifkind

Roy Taylor

Royal Blakeman

Royston Ellis

Rudolph Isley

Russell Batiste Jr.

Russell Sherman

Ryan Siew

Ryuichi Sakamoto

Sajid Khan

Sakevi Yokoyama

Sal Piro

Sam Cutler

Sanath Nandasiri

Sandra Butler Truesdale

Sandra Trehub

Sara Tavares

Sarah Schlesinger

Sarah Rice

Scott Johnson

Scott Schinder

Séamus Begley

Sean Martin

Seán Keane

Sebastian Marino

Seóirse Bodley

Seymour Stein

Shahidul Haque Khan

Shane Yellowbird

Shaul Greenglick

Shaun Roberts

Sheila Smith

Sheldon Harnick

Sheldon Reynolds

Shoji Tabuchi

Silent Servant

Silvio Berlusconi

Sinéad O'Connor

Sir David Lumsden

Sixto Diaz Rodriguez

Slim Andrews

Smokey Greene

Soňa  Červená

Spot

Stainslaw Radwan

Stan Hitchcock

Stanley Drucker

Stella Stevens

Stephen Gould

Stephen "tWitch" Boss

Stephen Allen Davis

Steve Harwell

Steve Riley

Steve Skold

Steve Travis

Steve Nelson

Steven Lutvak

Stevie B-Zet

Stuart Margolin

Sudakshina Sarma

Sueli Costa

Sulochana Chavan

Suna Kan

Surinder Shinda

Suzanne Somers

Suzy Frank

Swarup Nayak

Sweet Charles Sherrell

Tamara Milashkina

Tapas Das

Teddy White

Teresa Taylor

Teri Bristol

Terri Nolan

Terry Hall

Terry Kirkman

Terry Thacker

Terry Baucom

Teté Caturla

Thanga Darlong

The 45 King

Theo de Barros

Theresa Reneé Watson

Thom Bell

Thomas Stacy

Thomas H. Lee

Thomasina Winslow

Thotakura Somaraju

Tim Bachman

Tim Stacy

Tim Rogers

Tim Norell

Tina Turner

TJ De Blois

Tohru Okada

Tom Jones

Tom Langdon

Tom Leadon

Tom Verlaine

Tom Whitlock

Tom Wilkerson

Tom Smothers

Tom Mazzetta

Tony Bennett

Tony Coe

Tony McPhee

Tony Oxley

Tony Clarkin

Torben Ulrich

Toru Mitsui

Toto Cutugno

Treat Williams

Treva Chrisco

Trish Williams Warren

Troy Brammer

Tshala Muana

Vakhtang Kikabidze

Valentin Gheorghiu

Van Conner

Varnell Harris Johnson

Victor Pikayzen

Victor Rasgado

Vilayil Faseela

Vince Hill

Violeta Hemsy de Gainza

Virginia Zeani

Vivian Trimble

Vivian Williams

Vivienne Westwood

Walt Groller

Walt Wilson

Walter Aipolani

Walter Arlen

Walter Charles

Walter Cole Darcelle XV

Walter Ulloa

Walter "Wolfman" Washington

Wayne Shorter

Wayne Swinny

Wee Willie Harris

William "DJ Casper" Perry Jr.

Willie Ruff

Willis Spears

Yaacov Bergman

Yehonatan Geffen

Yitzhak Klepter

Yogesh Vaidya

Yotam Haim

Young Capone

Yukihiro Takahashi

Yuri Temirkanov

Yuzo Toyama

Yvonne Přenosilová

Zahara

Zdenek Macal

Zita Carno

2024 GRAMMY Nominees and Winners: See The Full List

Inside The 2024 Special Merit Awards Ceremony Honoring N.W.A, Gladys Knight, Donna Summer & More
Chair of the Recording Academy's Board of Trustees Tammy Hurt, Trustees Honoree Award Honoree DJ Kool Herc, Cindy Campbell and CEO of the Recording Academy and Musicares Harvey Mason Jr.

Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

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Inside The 2024 Special Merit Awards Ceremony Honoring N.W.A, Gladys Knight, Donna Summer & More

A deeply emotional pre-GRAMMY ceremony honored an extraordinary group of musical creators, pioneers, educators and icons including the Clark Sisters, Tammy Wynette, K'naan and others legendary innovators.

GRAMMYs/Feb 7, 2024 - 04:20 pm

This year, the Special Merit Awards ceremony was not for the faint of heart. 

The 2024 GRAMMY Week event, held Saturday at a capacity Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, presented Lifetime Achievement Awards, Trustees Awards, the Technical GRAMMY,  and the Music Educator Award to a dazzling gallery of musical innovators whose work has generated deep emotional connections across decades. In a world currently ensnared in a pattern of global conflict, the presentation of the award for Best Song for Social Change for the first time at the Special Merit Award ceremony this year added an extra layer of poignancy.

The presentation was touching from the very beginning, with a video montage of previous winners set to the historic recording of Aretha Franklin singing the Puccini aria "Nessuna Dorma." Glimpses of many legendary faces and performances on the screen underscored the Academy’s empathy for impactful music history: from Marvin Gaye to Janis Joplin; Billie Holiday to The Carter Family; The Beatles and Tina Turner to Dolly Parton and The Supremes.

The 2024 Music Educator Award was then given to Annie Ray, a music teacher and orchestra leader from Annandale, Virginia selected for her relentless positivity and inclusive energy. "Orchestra is much more than a class — it’s a family," said one of her students during a brief video chronicling her work. Ray, whose classrooms include students from 66 different countries — put together, they speak 59 languages — was visibly touched as she received the award. "I am thankful to share with the world what my students have taught me," she said.

The year’s Technical GRAMMY belonged to Tom Scott and the late Tom Kobayashi, who met at Lucasfilm’s Skywalker Sound in 1985 and together launched the Entertainment Digital Network (EDnet), which allows the sharing of high-quality video and audio. An estimated 250,000 musical collaborations have been facilitated by their innovations, including many GRAMMY performances. 

Next up were the three Trustee Awards: British pop legend Peter Asher, member of Peter & Gordon, prolific A&R executive, producer, manager, and a self-professed "admirer and member of the Recording Academy for almost 60 years"; legendary entertainment attorney and former Recording Academy Chairman Joel Katz, known as "the dealmaker who thinks outside of the box"; and Jamaican American DJ Kool Herc, renowned as one of the founders of East Coast hip-hop in ‘70s. He received the award joined by his sister Cindy who promoted his initial series of parties in the Bronx, noted for his groundbreaking use of two turntables and the extension of funky breaks in songs. 

It was time to honor the Lifetime Achievement recipients, and a sprightly Laurie Anderson stepped onstage and gave a witty assessment of her reputation as an uncompromising song alchemist. "They say my music is experimental, which sounds like doing something in the lab that might explode," she said. From her wonderfully robotic, left-field 1982 hit "O Superman" to her poetic concept album Homeland in 2010, Anderson has created her share of aesthetically explosive works of the art-pop and avant-garde variety.

"I love music so much, and I married a musician," she said acknowledging her husband, the late Lou Reed. "Wouldn’t it be great if there was a piano on every corner?"

The best-selling female gospel group in history, Detroit-based The Clark Sisters are known for their soaring vocal harmonies and powerhouse hits like "You Brought The Sunshine." 

"We thank our Lord and Savior for allowing us to do what we do: singing," they said, adding words of gratitude for their mother — "the lady who paved the way" — the late choral director Dr. Mattie Moss Clark.

The importance of a rich spiritual life was also emphasized by Motown legend and Soul empress Gladys Knight. The singer known for classic hits such as "Midnight Train to Georgia" and a raucous rendition of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" beamed onstage as she recalled her beginnings in music, before she became an international star with The Pips. "We had to go to church every Sunday, and it did make a difference," she said. "Everybody was singing around me when I grew up. And my mom would never allow me to do it easy. It had to come from the heart."

It was time to witness the strength of street knowledge. Delving into the very core of hip-hop identity, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to N.W.A, the revolutionary Los Angeles collective that transformed the landscape of popular music with its 1988 debut Straight Outta Compton. The group was joined by the mother and son of late rapper Eazy-E, who passed away in 1995 at age 30. The surviving members of the group – excepting Dr. Dre, who was celebrating his daughter’s birthday and sent a text greeting – looked vindicated. "We always knew that a GRAMMY was not in the cards for us, but we still wanted to express ourselves," said Ice Cube. "When you do your thing, the world will come to you."

Donna Summer, the ethereal and visionary singer who took disco music into progressive territory during the ‘70s, passed away in 2012. The "I Feel Love" star received a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday — and her husband Bruce Sudano and their three daughters were there to collect it. "Her voice and music are omnipresent in the [cultural] zeitgeist," said Sudano. "Donna continues to inspire people worldwide. She always referred to herself as an ordinary girl."

Last but not least, GRAMMY winning country star Tammy Wynette, who died in 1998, was also honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award — accepted by her daughters, Georgette Jones and Jackie Daly.

"Mom would feel very humbled to be in such a talented group of people," Jones said. "She always thought that the GRAMMYs were the biggest accomplishment in music. And she never fully understood her own impact."

When rapper and singer K’naan was a child in Mogadishu, his mother managed to get the family out of Somalia on the last commercial flight before the civil war erupted. Together with songwriters Gerald Eaton and Steve McEwan, K’naan was honored with the Best Song for Social Change award for "Refugee," a track about the plight of political refugees around the world.

"In the Somali language, the word 'home' derives from the word 'mother,'" explained K’naan as he received the award to a standing ovation. "I dedicate this GRAMMY to my home — my mother."

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Full Winners & Nominees List