Joni Mitchell and Berry Gordy to receive Kennedy Center honour
The wondrous talents of Joni Mitchell, Berry Gordy, Bette Midler and Lorne Michaels have all been named as part of the Kennedy Center’s 2021 honouree list. The work of the esteemed performers and producers will be celebrated at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Actress Bette Midler, Motown legend Berry Gordy, Canadian folk hero Joni Mitchell and Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels will be joined by opera singer Justino Diaz in the list of honourees.
The award looks to honour the lifetime work that each person has put into their chosen field and is selected by a committee that includes peers, officials and past award recipients.
Unlike last year, this year’s event will take place at the Kennedy Center on December 5th during a live in-person event, which will then be aired later on CBS.
There are countless legendary names attached to the highly-prized accolade as well as jazz pioneer Dizzy Gillespie; there are places on the list for BB King, Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Paul McCartney and many more.
Joni Mitchell has received the honour 50 years after she released her seminal album Blue, arguably the record that turned her into an icon. The album has been recently reissued and is one of the finest records of the 20th century.
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