UPDATE (January 10): Athlete and activist Colin Kaepernick, civil rights activist and former NAACP president Myrlie Evers-Williams and mixed media artist Mickalene Thomas have been added to the list of honorees at the Gordon Parks Foundation's Annual Awards Dinner, which will be held on 21 May. at Cipriani 42nd St. in New York.
Kaepernick, holder of the all-time NFL record for most rushing yards in a game by a quarterback, knelt during the playing of “The Star Spangled Banner” in 2016 to call attention to systemic oppression against Black and Brown people . Since then, he has founded and helped fund three organizations – Know Your Rights Camp, Kaepernick Media and Kaepernick Publishing – that seek to advance the liberation of black and brown people.
Evers-Williams played a key role in the civil rights movement both before and after the assassination of her husband, Medgar Evers. He served as president of the NAACP from 1995 to 1998 and founded the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Institute. He currently serves as president of the Institute.
Thomas, who is renowned for her artwork that analyzes the intersecting complexities of black and female identity, is also nominated for a Tony as a co-producer of the 2022 revival about girls of color who have thought about killing themselves/when the rainbow is enuand curator, educator and mentor to many emerging artists.
PREVIOUS (Oct. 25): Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz, the late Richard Roundtree and more are set to be honored at the 2024 Gordon Parks Foundation Awards. The annual awards dinner and auction to celebrate Parks' legacy and continued commitment to advancing social justice will take place on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at Cipriani 42nd St. in New York.
Keys and Kasseem Dean (aka Swizz Beatz) are set to receive the Arts Patrons Award. The couple married in 2010 and have two children. Both are Grammy winners. Additionally, both have won for collaborations with Jay-Z. “Empire State of Mind,” Keys' Billboard Hot 100 collaboration with Hova, won two Grammys in 2011. Jay-Z's “On to the Next One,” featuring Swizz Beatz, won best performance in a rap duo/group. same year.
“We have co-chaired the Gordon Parks Foundation Awards Gala for a decade — and are honored to receive the 2024 Gordon Parks Patrons of the Arts Award,” Keys and Dean said in a joint statement. “We truly appreciate the foundation's work providing scholarships and bursaries to the next generation of students and artists whose creative work reflects and extends Gordon's significant legacy.”
The evening will also posthumously honor Roundtree, who starred in the groundbreaking 1971 film Parks Axis; mixed media artist Mickalene Thomas; and civil rights activist and former NAACP president Myrlie Evers-Williams, widow of civil rights activist Medgar Evers. Along with Gordon Parks Foundation honorees and fellows (to be announced in early 2024), the evening will pay tribute to Roundtree, who died on Tuesday (October 24) aged 81, and highlight his lasting cultural impact of Axis both in film and music. This event had been in the planning stages for months when Roundtree died.
“We learned the sad news that Richard Roundtree passed away last night just as we were preparing to announce him as one of the Gordon Parks Foundation's 2024 honorees,” said Peter W. Kunhardt, Jr., executive director of the Gordon Foundation Parks. a statement. “Richard has been a true cultural force and supporter of the important work the foundation does throughout the year. We look forward to celebrating his legacy and his iconic performance as Shaft in the 1971 film Parks, along with our other esteemed honorees, at our awards dinner next year.”
“Earlier this year, when Richard found out he was going to be honored at the Gordon Parks Foundation Awards, he was delighted,” said Patrick McMinn, Roundtree's long-time manager. “Working with Gordon was a high point in his long career. He often spoke of Gordon's lasting influence on him not only as an actor Axis but as a man. His family and I will be working closely with the foundation to plan an unforgettable tribute to him that night.”
Axis It is best remembered for two things – Roundtree's strong, confident, dynamic portrayal of a black man, which was groundbreaking at the time, and Isaac Hayes' brilliant score. Hayes' funky yet classy “Theme From Shaft” spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 and received a Grammy nod for record of the year. It also won an Academy Award for Best Original Song, making Hayes the first Black songwriter to win in that category and also the first African-American to win a non-acting award.
Hayes' score for Axis it was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score. The Axis The soundtrack reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and ended up with a Grammy nod for album of the year.
Hayes died in 2008 at the age of 65. Parks died in 2006 at the age of 93.
The gala will include a live auction of Parks' photographs. Co-chairs for the 2024 Gordon Parks Foundation Dinner & Auction are Kathryn and Kenneth Chenault. Agnes Gund; Judy and Leonard Lauder. Tonya and Spike Lee. Carol Sutton Lewis and William M. Lewis, Jr. Crystal McCrary and Raymond McGuire. and Clara Wu Tsai and Joseph Tsai.
All proceeds from the evening will support educational programming throughout the year as well as scholarships, awards and grants provided by the Gordon Parks Foundation to the next generation of artists, writers and students whose work follows in their footsteps by Parks.
tickets are available from $2,000. They can be purchased on the Gordon Parks Foundation website or by contacting Buckley Hall Events at gpfgala@buckleyhallevents.com or 914-579-1000.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/alicia-keys-swizz-beatz-2024-gordon-parks-foundation-awards-honorees-1235454368/