James Named 2016 Kennedy Center Honoree
James has been selected as one of the recipients of the 39th Kennedy Center Honors, the annual celebration recognizing lifetime artistic achievement. This year’s other honorees are Martha Argerich, Eagles, Al Pacino and Mavis Staples. The Honors will be presented in a gala ceremony to be held at The Kennedy Center on Sunday, December 4 and will be broadcast on CBS on Tuesday, December 27. Upon learning of his selection, James wrote the following note:
Having grown up in the confines of Chapel Hill, NC in the 1950’s, I found myself, at the age of 18, on my own in Greenwich Village in the mid-60’s. It was a time of great change, many dangers and near complete freedom, purchased at the cost of any sense of a secure future. I had no concept of where I might be next week, never mind 16 years into the next century. So the prospect of attending the Kennedy Center Honors again, but this time as an honoree, is astonishing. I am deeply moved to be included in such august company and hugely grateful to the Kennedy Center Honors for the gift of this great award.
James Taylor
Read about the 2016 Kennedy Center Honorees on WashingtonPost.com.