The Bee Gees’ Barry Gibb and Dionne Warwick are among the 2023 Kennedy Center honorees.
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On Thursday (June 22), the newest inductees to the Kennedy Center Honors were unveiled, with Queen Latifah, actor Billy Crystal and soprano singer Renée Fleming joining Warwick and Gibb. “The Kennedy Center Honors recognizes artists who have made profound contributions to the cultural life of our nation,” Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein said in a press release.
Throughout the course of her more than seven-decade career, Warwick has sold more than 100 million albums and is known for hits like “Walk on By,” “Reach Out for Me” and “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again,” among many others. Rising to fame in the late 1960s as part of The Bee Gees alongside brothers Maurice and Robin Gibb, Barry Gibb is also an accomplished songwriter and producer, having written “All the Love in the World” by fellow honoree Warwick, “Chain Reaction” by Diana Ross, “Grease” from the hit musical of the same name and many more.
“I’m exceptionally happy to be honored by the Kennedy Center,” Warwick said in a statement. “It’s very exciting to be recognized for my contributions to the music industry for the past 60 years.”
Added Gibb: “This is a wonderful honor! It’s hard to be proud and humble at the same time. It is one of the most special moments in my life and something that I will always cherish. … Receiving the Kennedy Center Honors is something that everyone hopes might happen one day. I’ve often thought about [it], but never dreamed it could come true.”
Before starring in Living Single, the 2002 film adaption of the musical Chicago and other film and TV projects, Queen Latifah launched her career as a singer. She released her debut album, All Hail the Queen, in 1989.
Emmy Award-winning actor Crystal also has ties to music, as his father was an executive at Commodore Records. Crystal himself released the album Mahvelous! in 1985.
A five-time Grammy Award winner, Fleming became the first woman to headline the season-opening gala at the Metropolitan Opera, among many other accomplishments.
The 2023 Kennedy Center Honors will take place on December 3 in Washington, D.C. It will be hosted by past Kennedy Center honoree Gloria Estefan. The special will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ at a later date.
(Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images for Stan Ponte)
