èAV

èAVHonors

Tune In on CBS | Streaming on Paramount+

èAVHonors

and streaming on Paramount+ 

Celebrate the 47th Honors, hosted by Queen Latifah. Watch highlights from the event, and see tribute performances from this year and past shows.

Meet the Honorees

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has selected the 47th Honorees for lifetime artistic achievements: acclaimed director and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola; legendary American rock band Grateful Dead (Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Bobby Weir); blues rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Bonnie Raitt; jazz trumpeter, pianist, and composer Arturo Sandoval; and The Apollo, which will receive a special Honors as an iconic American institution.

Francis Ford Coppola

Francis Ford Coppola

“I consider myself very fortunate to have been able to collaborate with great artists and wonderful people throughout my career, and I have never stopped learning.

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Grateful Dead

Grateful Dead

“It goes without saying that the Kennedy Center Honors represents the highest of reaches for artistic achievement. To be recognized alongside the artists who have in the past received this honor is beyond humbling.

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Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Raitt

“I am deeply honored and thrilled to have been chosen to receive one of this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

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Arturo Sandoval

Arturo Sandoval

“I am profoundly humbled and deeply honored to be selected as a recipient of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors.

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The Apollo

The Apollo

“We are thrilled to be the first organization honored in the history of the Kennedy Center Awards, emphasizing The Apollo’s impact on the past, present, and future of American culture and the performing arts.

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Meet the Host

  • Queen Latifah

    Grammy® award-winning & Oscar®-nominated host of the 47th Kennedy Center Honors.

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    Queen Latifah

Get the Latest on Social Media

Follow the #KCHonors on social media and streaming platforms.

  • Facebook

    Taken at the Medallion Ceremony at the State Department

  • YouTube

    Watch an ever-growing playlist of videos surrounding the 2024 Kennedy Center Honors. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive updates.

  • Instagram

    Singing to a man who knows something about dreaming seemingly impossible dreams,  performs in the tribute to  in this sneak peek from the .

  • Instagram

    See if you know the answers to rapid fire questions about the first organization to be a Kennedy Center Honoree. #KCHonors

  • Instagram

  • Apple Music

    Put on a mix of Kennedy Center Honoree "masterworks" by genre.

Recent Video Releases

Kennedy Center Honors Video Hub

Experience our new home for 47 years of Honors memories captured on film.

Explore Galleries and Watch Now

In Memoriam

History of the Kennedy Center Honors

Throughout its 47-year history, the Kennedy Center Honors has redefined America’s perception of its artistic legacy and reinvented the way this nation rewards its artists. The Honors have been compared to a knighthood in Britain, or the French Legion of Honor -- the quintessential reward for a lifetime’s endeavor. At the same time, the annual addition of new names to the roster of Honors recipients charts the international standard of excellence set by America’s artists, as well as the aesthetic inspiration provided by artists of other nations who have achieved prominence on these shores.

The annual Honors gala is an evening without categories, without disappointments, without competition -- and the Honors telecast is a perennial Emmy nominee. It serves for millions of American arts lovers as the year’s crowning event, paying tribute to our nation’s preeminent artists with performances by the great stars of today who have followed in their footsteps. The complete list of guest performers is kept secret until the show is in progress, keeping both the Honorees and the nation on the edge of their seats.

Past Honorees

Throughout the years, the Kennedy Center Honors has upheld a tradition of recognizing the lifelong accomplishments and extraordinary talents of our nation’s most-prestigious artists. Find out more about past Honorees by clicking on a name below.

Submit a Kennedy Center Honors Recommendation

èAVHonors provide recognition to living individuals who throughout their lifetimes have made significant contributions to American culture through the performing arts. The primary criterion is excellence, and artistic achievement in dance, music, theater, opera, motion pictures, and television is considered. Recommendations are now being accepted for the Kennedy Center Honors. Please use the fields below to submit a recommendation.

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More Broadcast & Streaming

NEXT at the Kennedy Center

Tune In Tues., Dec. 31, 2024 at 8/7c on PBS

Join Sara Bareilles for a career-spanning New Year's Eve! Since her first mega-hit “Love Song,” Bareilles has become one of the most acclaimed singers and songwriters of her era. The two-time Grammy winner was nominated for Album of the Year for The Blessed Unrest and made her Broadway debut in 2016 with Waitress, which she starred in and for which she wrote the music and lyrics, picking up a pair of Tony nominations in the process.

NEXT at the Kennedy Center on PBS Snarky Puppy: The Family We Make

Available NOW

Snarky Puppy, the acclaimed Grammy Award-winning band, brings their genre breaking sound to a sold-out show at the Kennedy Center’s Concert Hall. When one of the main guest artists, Afro-Peruvian icon Susana Baca, falls ill the band quickly come up with a new plan to transform the concert into a loving tribute to her music and influence.

The bandmembers of Snarky Puppy on stage at the Kennedy Center with the Next logo and the words Snarky Puppy: The Family We Make

Terms and Conditions

All events and artists subject to change without prior notice.

Sponsors

The Exclusive Sponsor of the Kennedy Center Honors

The Exclusive Underwriter of the Kennedy Center Honors Gala

The Official Airline of the Kennedy Center Honors

Stephen and Christine Schwarzman are the Honors Gala Chairs.

The Founding Producer of the Kennedy Center Honors is George Stevens, Jr.

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