January 2017

The Recording Academy will honor three-time GRAMMY® award-winning country music icon Charley Pride with its 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award.Three-time GRAMMY winner Charley Pride taught himself to play guitar in his early teens, but he dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. After playing in the Negro American League, he was signed by RCA Victor and in 1967 he became the first African-American singer to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. (Later, in 1993, Pride became the Grande Ole Opry’s first African-American member.) Just Between You And Me launched Pride to stardom, earning him his first GRAMMY nomination for 1966. In 1969, Pride scored his first No. 1 country hit with All I Have To Offer You (Is Me). The recognition led to a long and auspicious career for Pride, who is considered the first African-American superstar in country music.The Recording Academy will also honor Shirley Caesar, Ahmad Jamal, Jimmie Rodgers, Nina Simone, Sly Stone and the Velvet Underground with the Lifetime Achievement Award.“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.”The Lifetime Achievement Award celebrates performers who have made outstanding contributions of artistic significance to the field of recording, while the Trustees Award honors contributions in areas other than performance. The recipients are determined by vote of The Recording Academy’s National Board of Trustees. Technical GRAMMY Award recipients are voted on by The Academy’s Producers & Engineers Wing Advisory Council and Chapter Committees, and are ratified by The Academy’s Trustees. The award is presented to individuals and/or companies who have made contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording industry.

Country superstar Reba McEntire, who makes a welcome return to these shores to headline the C2C music festival in March in London, Glasgow and Dublin, releases a new studio album SING IT NOW: SONGS OF FAITH & HOPE on February 3, 2017 via Big Machine/Universal.  In an illustrious career that has elicited 35 No.1 singles and over 56 million albums sold worldwide, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry member has won 15 American Music Awards, 13 ACM Awards, nine People’s Choice Awards, seven CMA Awards and two Grammy Awards in addition to several prestigious leadership, humanitarian and milestone honours. She is also an acclaimed actress with 11 movie credits to her name, a prominent role on Broadway and starred in the six-season US television sitcom Reba. Most recently she debuted her Reba Beauty cosmetic line and online education platform MasterClass invited Reba to offer her wisdom and knowledge as one of world’s best creators in a series out now. SING IT NOW: SONGS OF FAITH & HOPE is a double-disc project highlighting traditional hymns of “faith” on the first CD and more contemporary tracks of “hope” on the second. “SING IT NOW was the perfect title for this album because the message and melody throughout the song connects the dots between the traditional hymns I grew up on and new music that has been uplifting for me in challenging times,” said Reba. Reba let her heart and friends help guide the song selection, which includes the first tune she ever sang in public, “Jesus Loves Me,” a former Reba co-star’s suggestion of “Oh Happy Day” and an introduction from a close associate to “From The Inside Out”, alongside a collaboration with Kelly Clarkson and Trisha Yearwood, “Softly and Tenderly.” Reba co-produced the album with Jay DeMarcus* of Rascal Flatts in his home studio and band leader/musical director Doug Sisemore. “Music conjures up great memories and goes hand and hand with us McEntires,” said Reba. “Mama, Susie and Alice even came into the studio with me to record ‘I’ll Fly Away.’