National Medal of Arts For Bruce Springsteen, Gladys Knight – Billboard
President Joe Biden will present Bruce Springsteen, Gladys Knight and José Feliciano with the National Medal of Arts, the highest national award given to artists and their patrons.
POTUS will present the 2021 awards during a ceremony today (March 21) at the White House from 4:30 p.m. and will be streamed live at www.whitehouse.gov/live.
“National Medal of Arts recipients have helped define and enrich our country’s cultural heritage through their passionate, lifelong commitment,” said National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Chairwoman Maria Rosario Jackson. “We have become a better nation thanks to their contributions. Their work helps us to take a fresh look at the world. It inspires us to reach our full potential and recognize our common humanity. I join the President in congratulating and thanking them.”
Known worldwide as The Boss, Springsteen is known as “one of our greatest performers and storytellers” whose music “celebrates our triumphs, heals our wounds, and gives us hope by reflecting the unwavering spirit of what it means to be American.”
Knight, or “The Empress of the Soul”, is recognized as “an exceptional talent” who “influenced musical genres from rhythm and blues to gospel and pop music – and inspired generations of artists fascinated by her soundtrack from the golden age of American music.” “.
Feliciano, known for his bilingual Christmas classic “Feliz Navidad”, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year and remains one of the top 10 hits in over a decade Billboardon the Holiday 100 chart, will be honored for opening hearts, building bridges and “overcoming obstacles, never losing faith and enriching the goodness and greatness of the nation”.
Born blind in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Feliciano received his first ever Billboard Legend Award in 2022 Billboard Latin Music Award.
Other recipients of the National Medal of Arts for the occasion include actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, designer Vera Wang, and the Billie Holiday Theatre.
The ceremony will also present the 2021 National Humanities Medals and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden has confirmed her attendance.
