George Clooney and Irish rock group U2 are among the personalities who will receive the Kennedy Center honors, Washington’s most prestigious cultural award, in the presence of Joe Biden on Sunday.
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A host of Hollywood stars and all of Washington will be honored during this gala evening, marking its 45th
Joe Biden and his wife Jill, as well as Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Douglas Emhoff must attend this prestigious evening in the great cultural center of the American capital, which ex-President Donald Trump has made very unpopular in the world of American culture He had throughout his tenure avoided.
A number of celebrities will follow one another on the Kennedy Center stage to pay tribute to Sunday honorees, who previously attended a private reception at the White House with the Bidens and a few hand-picked guests, the day after Saturday night’s honoree dinner at the Department of State in the presence of the head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken.
The show will air December 28 on all major US channels.
Oscar-winning actor George Clooney, 61, and his wife Amal, a lawyer specializing in human rights defense, are expected to be on the red carpet this year. A star of the films “Ocean’s Eleven” and “Batman and Robin,” who also directed and produced several films, he said he was honored to receive the honor.
“Growing up in a small town in Kentucky, I never thought that one day I would be sitting on the Kennedy Center’s Honors Balcony,” he said in a press release. “To be named alongside the rest of these incredible artists is an honor.”
“Wide the circle”
Nicknamed the “Empress of Soul,” Gladys Knight, 78, said she was “endlessly touched.”
“The Kennedy Center’s commitment to the arts is unparalleled and I am so grateful,” she added.
Singer and philanthropist Bono and his group U2, who have sold 170 million albums worldwide, are honored for iconic tracks like Sunday Bloody Sunday, Desire and With or Without You.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Music for her opera Stride, Tania Leon, 79, is known for her innovative and powerful compositions that blend classical music and Cuban rhythms, as well as for her chamber music.
Amy Grant, 62, was the first Christian music singer to go platinum and she has won six Grammy Awards.
As the first Christian music star to be recognized by the Kennedy Center, she said she “never in[her]wildest dreams” thought she would receive the award.
“Over the years I’ve seen many of my heroes celebrated by their fellow artists, always moved by the ability of films and music to bring us together and find the best in us,” he said, adding them in a press release. “Thank you for expanding the circle for all of us.”