The recipients of the 46th Kennedy Center Honors were officially announced this week.
Along with comedian Billy Crystal, soprano Renée Fleming and the Bee Gees’ Barry Gibb, Queen Latifah and Dionne Warwick are set to be honored with the award.
Previously, Queen Latifah made appearances for honorees such as the late Tina Turner, Barbra Streisand and LL Cool J while Warwick paid tribute to Lena Horne and Elizabeth Taylor.
Set for airing on Dec. 3, the ceremony will be hosted by previous awardee Gloria Estefan. Created in 1977, the Kennedy Center Honors will celebrate the work of these artists throughout their career. They’ll also honor their impact with performances by people who they’ve inspired.
In a statement, the Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter announced that this year’s ceremony will focus on honoring the 50th anniversary of hip hop specifically.
“Hip hop has been an important, thriving art form here at the Center for a number of years,” Rutter said. “What a privilege it is to bestow an Honors to the First Lady of Hip Hop who has inspired us along the way.”
As the “First Lady of Hip Hop,” Queen Latifah helped trailblaze the genre as the first woman to become a hip hop star. Part of the Flavor Unit and an all-female rap group in high school known as Ladies Fresh, Tommy Boy Records signed her at the age of 18 after listening to one of her demos.
With her debut album “All Hail the Queen,” Queen Latifah immediately broke out onto the hip hop scene, reaching the sixth spot of the US Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums on the Billboard charts.
Featuring her signature song and feminist anthem “Ladies First,” Queen Latifah’s first album has been recognized as part of lists of “100 Best Albums” and has been preserved by the Library of Congress.
Throughout her career, Queen Latifah’s success has earned her a variety of awards, including a Grammy Award, two NAACP Image Awards and the BET Lifetime Achievement Award. Also the first hip hop artist to be awarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, her work in film and TV has earned her an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, three SAG awards and one Academy Award nomination.
“When we started on this journey decades ago, we were often told, ‘No,'” said Queen Latifah in a statement. “To now be recognized amongst so many multi-hyphenates feels unbelievable, not for just me and my team, but for our community.”
