Source: Stephane Cardinale – Corbis / Getty
Actress and legendary Hip-Hop veteran Queen Latifah and actress and legendary R&B hitmaker Dionne Warwick are among the iconic artists selected for this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.
For those who are unfamiliar with the ceremony, the Kennedy Center Honors is an annual gala that has taken place in the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington D.C. since 1978, and it honors five veterans of the performing arts and their lifetime of contributions to the culture.
According to USA Today, the other three honorees for 2023 are comedian Billy Crystal, opera singer Renee Fleming and ’70s music icon Barry Gibb.
Latifah and Warwick both expressed surprise and great delight that they’re included in this year’s host of inductees, which Kennedy Center president Deborah F. Rutter described as “an extraordinary mix of individuals who have redefined their art forms.”
From USA Today:
At age 82, Warwick also cheerfully disregards a bit of Kennedy Center tradition: acting humble and shocked at receiving the honor. In an interview with the AP, Warwick said she absolutely deserved it and had wondered at times what was taking so long.
“As my son said the other day, ‘Congratulations, and it’s about time,’” Warwick said. “I told him everything happens when it’s supposed to happen.”
Latifah, 53, received the news of her honor while on the set of her TV show “The Equalizer” and said she appreciates the Kennedy Center’s efforts to embrace hip-hop. The cultural center has established its own division of hip-hop culture and made LL Cool J a Kennedy Center Honors recipient in 2017.
“It’s important because hip-hop is a uniquely American artform,” she said, “just like jazz, just like blues, just like rock and roll.”
According to NPR, the 46th Kennedy Center Honors awards show will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ on Dec. 3 and will be hosted for the third time by singer Gloria Estefan, who was an honoree in 2017.
