Laurie Anderson and Gladys Knight will also receive the Recording Academy’s special merit prize
Hip-hop trailblazers, the Queen of Disco, and a country legend are among the artists set to receive the Recording Academy’s 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award.
N.W.A., Donna Summer, and Tammy Wynette lead this year’s honorary slate, and will be celebrated at the Recording Academy’s Special Merit Awards Ceremony on Feb. 3, the day before the 2024 Grammys. Other honorees include avant-garde great Laurie Anderson, the “Empress of Soul” Gladys Knight, and the celebrated gospel group the Clark Sisters.
In addition to its Lifetime Achievement Award winners, the Recording Academy announced the recipients of its other merit prizes. The Trustees Award — given to those who’ve made significant contributions to music, other than performance — will be given to rap pioneer DJ Kool Herc, guitarist Peter Asher, and industry stalwart Joel Katz.
This year’s Technical Grammy Award Honorees (for those who’ve made significant technical contributions to the recording field) will be given to audio engineers Tom Kobayashi and Tom Scott. And the Best Song for Social Change Award will go to K’naan’s “Refugee,” co-written with Steve McEwan and Gerald Eaton.
“The Academy is honored to pay tribute to this year’s Special Merit Award recipients — a remarkable group of creators and industry professionals whose impact resonates with generations worldwide,” Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason, Jr. said in a statement. “Their contributions to music span genres, backgrounds and crafts, reflecting the rich diversity that fuels our creative community.”
Along with handing out its special merit awards, the Recording Academy’s charitable arm, MusiCares, will host the other big pre-Grammys event: honoring Jon Bon Jovi as its 2024 Person of the Year. The Feb. 2 show will include a tribute concert as well, though the lineup has yet to be announced.
The 2024 Grammys will take place on Feb. 4 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
