Charley Pride Named Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient from The Recording Academy
Chosen by a vote of The Recording Academy’s National Board of Trustees, Lifetime Achievement Award recipients are performers who have made an outstanding contribution of artistic significance to the field of recording.
Country music icon Charley Pride will soon be awarded with The Recording Academy’s 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Chosen by a vote of The Recording Academy’s National Board of Trustees, Lifetime Achievement Award recipients are performers who have made an outstanding contribution of artistic significance to the field of recording. Three-time GRAMMY winner Pride will be honored alongside Shirley Caesar, Ahmad Jamal, Jimmie Rodgers, Nina Simone, Sly Stone and the Velvet Underground.
“This year’s Special Merit Awards recipients comprise a prestigious group of diverse and influential creators who have crafted or contributed to some of the most distinctive recordings in music history,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy. “These exceptionally inspiring figures are being honored as legendary performers, creative architects, and technical visionaries. Their outstanding accomplishments and passion for their respective crafts have created a timeless legacy.”
Pride’s acknowledgement comes after a lifelong and successful career. The Mississippi native taught himself how to play guitar as a young man, while still chasing his dreams of becoming a professional baseball player. After playing in the Negro American League, Pride earned a record deal with RCA Victor. He broke many barriers after becoming the first African-American singer to perform on the Grand Ole Opry and in 1993, became the Opry’s first African-American member. He earned his first GRAMMY nomination in 1966 with “Just Between You and Me.”
