WASHINGTON, DC (CelebrityAccess) – The John F. Kennedy Heart for the Performing Arts has introduced the forty seventh Kennedy Heart Honors recipients for lifetime creative achievements. This December, the honorees embrace acclaimed filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, legendary rock band the Grateful Useless (Mickey Hart, Invoice Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Bobby Weir), blues rock singer Bonnie Raitt, jazz musician Arturo Sandoval, and The Apollo, which is able to obtain a particular honor as an iconic American establishment.
Kennedy Heart Chairman David M. Rubenstein said, “The Kennedy Heart Honors acknowledges artists who’ve made a rare impression on the cultural lifetime of our nation and proceed to have an immeasurable affect on new generations. A superb and masterful storyteller with an unrelenting revolutionary spirit, Francis Ford Coppola’s movies have turn out to be embedded within the very thought of American tradition; a social and cultural phenomenon since 1965, the Grateful Useless’s music has by no means stopped being a real American authentic whereas inspiring a fan tradition like no different; Bonnie Raitt has made us love her many times together with her inimitable voice, slide guitar, and countless musical vary encompassing blues, R&B, nation rock, and folks; ‘an envoy of each music and humanity,’ Arturo Sandoval transcended literal borders coming from Cuba 30-plus years in the past and immediately continues to bridge cultures together with his intoxicating mix of Afro Cuban rhythms and fashionable jazz; and on its ninetieth anniversary, The Apollo, one of the vital consequential, influential establishments in historical past, has elevated the voices of Black leisure in New York Metropolis, nationally, and around the globe, and launched the careers of legions of artists.”
Kennedy Heart President Deborah F. Rutter added, “Our Honorees this 12 months have every performed a useful, pioneering position in creating American tradition—not with one act of artwork however with their decades-long devotion to pushing inventive boundaries. We’re thrilled to pay particular tribute to New York Metropolis’s famend Apollo Theater on its ninetieth anniversary in December. All through its historical past, The Apollo has guided us and the world ahead by discovering and nurturing uncooked expertise, molding a singular cultural identification that also defines American tradition immediately. Throughout Honors weekend, artists with particular connections to The Apollo can be ambassadors of the establishment’s legacy.”
The Honors Gala, set for December 8 on the Kennedy Heart Opera Home, will function performances and tributes by main artists from New York, Hollywood, and worldwide arts capitals. The occasion will culminate in a post-performance celebration within the Grand Lobby. The Honorees can be celebrated for his or her contributions to American tradition by the performing arts, encompassing music, dance, theater, opera, movement photos, and tv.
Carried out+Dusted, identified for producing main dwell tv occasions, will produce the Kennedy Heart Honors for the third 12 months in affiliation with ROK Productions. David Jammy and Elizabeth Kelly will government produce the occasion, which can be joined by Jack Sussman and directed by Alex Rudzinski.
The choice course of for the Honorees includes suggestions from former Honorees, the creative group, the Kennedy Heart Board of Trustees, and the general public. This 12 months’s Honorees had been chosen by the Heart’s Particular Honors Advisory Committee, chaired by David Bohnett and together with previous Honors recipients and distinguished artists equivalent to Gloria Estefan, Sally Discipline, Renée Fleming, Herbie Hancock, Judith Jamison, Lionel Richie, and John Williams. The Govt Committee of the Heart’s Board of Trustees confirms the Honorees yearly, guaranteeing a steadiness amongst varied arts and creative disciplines.
CBS sponsors the Kennedy Heart Honors, Boeing is the unique underwriter of the Honors Gala, and Delta Air Traces is the official airline. Stephen and Christine Schwarzman are the Honors Gala Chairs and George Stevens, Jr. is the Founding Producer of the Kennedy Heart Honors.
Honoree Statements:
“I take into account myself very lucky to have been in a position to collaborate with nice artists and fantastic individuals all through my profession, and I’ve by no means stopped studying. There isn’t any higher honor than to be included together with those that impressed me, who I appeared as much as, and who gave me encouragement when occasions had been dim. I’m grateful to the Kennedy Heart, my beloved colleagues, to those that equate magnificence and fact, and to all the youngsters of the world.” – Francis Ford Coppola
“It goes with out saying that the Kennedy Heart Honors represents the best of reaches for creative achievement. To be acknowledged alongside the artists who’ve prior to now obtained this honor is past humbling. The Grateful Useless has all the time been about group, creativity, and exploration in music and presentation. We’ve all the time felt that the music we make embodies and imparts one thing past the notes and phrases being performed—and that’s one thing we’re privileged to share with all who’re drawn to what we do—so it additionally should be mentioned that our music belongs as a lot to our followers, the Useless Heads, because it does to us. This honor, then, is as a lot theirs as ours.
“From our earliest days in San Francisco and so far as our excursions have taken us, it has been and nonetheless is an unbelievable experience. We’ve had the chance to play with many gifted musicians, work together with many gifted individuals—and to be a part of one thing a lot bigger than ourselves. Our music has all the time been about exploration and breaking by or discovering our approach round limitations, not simply musically but additionally in bringing individuals collectively. The power, the love, the connection and sharing—as soon as once more, that’s what it’s all about. As we enter our sixtieth 12 months of the Grateful Useless’s journey in 2025, we’re past grateful for this recognition and for the journey we’re on collectively. This honor reminds us of all these moments and the individuals who helped us alongside the best way.
“Thanks, Kennedy Heart, and to all the parents who had a hand in bringing us right here, for this unbelievable honor.”
—Mickey Hart, Invoice Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh & Bobby Weir of the Grateful Useless
“I’m deeply honored and thrilled to have been chosen to obtain one in all this 12 months’s Kennedy Heart Honors. I’ve lengthy been an admirer of the awards and have been so blessed to have the ability to take part in a number of reveals honoring others. There isn’t any larger stage of esteem nor as pleasant a celebration and I wish to prolong my honest due to all who’ve chosen me to obtain this honor. I stay up for the upcoming ceremony and festivities, which I do know can be one in all my life’s peak experiences.” —Bonnie Raitt
“I’m profoundly humbled and deeply honored to be chosen as a recipient of the celebrated Kennedy Heart Honors. This recognition is a rare milestone in my profession and a testomony to the assist and encouragement I’ve obtained from my household, buddies, colleagues, and followers. All through my journey, I’ve strived to create, carry out, and encourage with ardour and integrity. Being acknowledged by such an esteemed establishment validates my efforts and motivates me to proceed pushing the boundaries of my artwork. I’m extremely grateful to the Kennedy Heart for this honor, and I stay up for contributing additional to the colourful cultural tapestry that the Heart celebrates and nurtures. Thanks as soon as once more for this unbelievable honor.” —Arturo Sandoval
“We’re thrilled to be the primary group honored within the historical past of the Kennedy Heart Awards, emphasizing The Apollo’s impression on the previous, current, and way forward for American tradition and the performing arts. From the longest-running expertise present in America with Novice Evening at The Apollo, which launched the careers of icons like Ella Fitzgerald and Lauryn Hill, to performances from beloved legends like Smokey Robinson and Lil’ Kim and immediately’s greatest stars like Drake, The Apollo has all the time been a house for artists to create and a house for audiences to see unbelievable music and artwork from legendary artists.” —Michelle Ebanks, President & CEO, on behalf of The Apollo