Bonnie Raitt, Grateful Dead Lead Kennedy Center Honorees
Bonnie Raitt and the Grateful Dead lead this year’s class of Kennedy Center honorees. Also being honored: filmmaker (and winemaker) Francis Ford Coppola and Cuban-American jazz musician Arturo Sandoval. And for the first time, a building is being honored: namely, Harlem’s legendary Apollo Theater.
Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein said, “A brilliant and masterful storyteller with an unrelenting innovative spirit, Francis Ford Coppola’s films have become embedded in the very idea of American culture; a social and cultural phenomenon since 1965, the Grateful Dead’s music has never stopped being a true American original, while inspiring a fan culture like no other; Bonnie Raitt has made us love her again and again with her inimitable voice, slide guitar, and endless musical range encompassing blues, R&B, country rock, and folk; ‘an ambassador of both music and humanity,’ Arturo Sandoval transcended literal borders coming from Cuba 30+ years ago and today continues to bridge cultures with his intoxicating blend of Afro Cuban rhythms and modern jazz; and on its 90th anniversary, The Apollo, one of the most consequential, influential institutions in history, has elevated the voices of Black entertainment in New York City, nationally, and around the world, and launched the careers of legions of artists.”
Raitt, whose self-titled debut came out in 1971, released her most recent album, Just Like That… in 2022. The title track, which Raitt wrote, won Song of the Year at the Grammys. She’ll be on a U.S. tour starting in the fall. The Grateful Dead’s career, which started in 1965, effectively ended with the death of their leader Jerry Garcia in the summer of 1995. But, as they sang, the music never stopped. Different ad hoc reunions with different members of the band have toured over the years. Dead and Company, featuring guitarist/singer Bob Weir and drummer/percussionist Mickey Hart, are currently playing a residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
Other musicians who are Kennedy Center Honorees include Led Zeppelin, Buddy Guy, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Dolly Parton Smokey Robinson, Sting, U2, Chuck Berry, Carlos Santana, Earth Wind & Fire, Diana Ross, Cher, Mavis Staples, LL Cool J, Garth Brooks, and Billy Joel.
Francis Ford Coppola, of course, is a filmmaker whose filmography includes some of the greatest movies ever, including 1972’s The Godfather, 1974’s The Godfather Part II, 1979’s Apocalypse Now and 1983’s Rumble Fish (and, unfortunately, one of the worst films ever, 1990’s The Godfather Part III). Coppola’s next film, Megalopolis — his first since 2011 — hits theaters in September.
The annual Kennedy Center Honors ceremony takes place on Sunday, December 8 and will air on CBS on December 23.
