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Gershwin Prize


The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is an award given to a composer or performer for his or her lifetime contributions to popular music. Created in 2007 by the United States Library of Congress, the prize is named after brothers George and Ira Gershwin, whose contributions to popular music included songs such as "I Got Rhythm," "Embraceable You," and "Someone to Watch Over Me," the orchestral pieces Rhapsody in Blue and An American in Paris, and the opera Porgy and Bess. Smokey Robinson was named the 2016 recipient.

The national prize for popular song, eventually named the Gershwin Prize, was created by Peter Kaminsky, Bob Kaminsky, Cappy McGarr, Mark Krantz, and Dalton Delan, subsequent to their creation of the national humor award, the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize. The project was presented to the Librarian, James Billington in 2003. The executive producers then secured a partnership with WETA, PBS, and CPB. The Librarian bestowed the first award in 2007 to recognize "the profound and positive effect of popular music on the world’s culture" as part of the Library's mission to recognize and celebrate creativity. The recipient of the Gershwin Prize is said to "exemplify the standard of excellence associated with the Gershwins." In selecting the recipient, the Librarian of Congress works with staff of the Library's Music Division as well as the broader music community.

On March 1, 2007, the Library announced Paul Simon as the first recipient of the new award, which joins other awards bestowed by the Library including the Living Legend and Kluge Prize. Simon received the Prize during a concert gala featuring his music at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C., on the evening of May 23, 2007. The event was nationally broadcast on PBS the evening of June 27, 2007. Performers included Yolanda Adams, Marc Anthony, Shawn Colvin, The Dixie Hummingbirds, Jessy Dixon and the Jessy Dixon Singers, Jerry Douglas, Philip Glass, Alison Krauss, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Lyle Lovett, Stephen Marley, Dianne Reeves, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, and Buckwheat Zydeco, as well as Simon's former collaborator Art Garfunkel.


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