Celebrities, cultural icons and a few surprise guests gathered in D.C. for the annual Kennedy Center Honors celebration on Sunday night.
This year’s recipients of the lifetime achievement award for artistic accomplishment are director Francis Ford Coppola, rock band the Grateful Dead, jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt. In addition, the venerable Harlem theater The Apollo, which has launched generations of Black artists, is being recognized.
The annual gala at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts features personalized tributes with performances and testimonials from fellow artists. Medallions were presented during the traditional Saturday night ceremony at the State Department.
The awards show will air on CBS on Dec. 22.
Before the Kennedy Center Honors Gala, WTOP’s Jimmy Alexander spoke with honorees Bonnie Raitt and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola about their careers. Alexander also heard from singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile and actor Laurence Fishburne about Raitt and Coppola’s impact to their respective industries.
Read more about the Honors by The Associated Press.
See photos from the star-studded event below.
