KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — East Tennessee’s own Dolly Parton has received the 2024 PEACE Through Music Award from the U.S. Department of State and Recording Academy.
The award honors American musicians whose work advances peace and understanding across the globe. The award was introduced in 2023 and Music icon Quincy Jones was the inaugural recipient. The Department of State shared that Parton embodies understanding, peace, inclusion, and unity, adding that her “commitment to serving others is unparalleled.”
“Parton’s Imagination Library, which provides underserved children the opportunity to learn through reading, stretches from the hills of Appalachia to the outback of Australia. She has been a champion of public health, most recently around the COVID-19 vaccine, which not only reached millions of Americans, but also people worldwide,” wrote the Department of State.
The award winner is chosen through a nomination process. U.S. embassies submitted nominations, then a selection committee created by the State Department and Recording Academy® considered each nominee. The honorees are then approved by the CEO of the Recording Academy and presented to the Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, who makes the final decision.
“I want to thank you, the people, and I want to thank the US Department of State and Recording Academy for this honor. Now, there is a power in music that can soothe, educate and bring people together. Yes, to actually bring us all a little peace. So thank you for thinking of me and remember there will always be music as long as there’s a story to be told. There always be music, cause music is the voice of the soul”, said Parton during her acceptance speech.
She will be celebrated on Oct. 25 at the GRAMMY Museum® in Los Angeles during an event hosted by the state department and the Recording Academy®. The event also honors the first cohort of the American Music Mentorship Program, which took place October 15-25 in Los Angeles.