Nile Rodgers, who co-founded Chic and produced hits for a wide variety of artists, including Diana Ross, David Bowie, Duran Duran, Sister Sledge and Madonna, and Esa-Pekka Salonen, the Finnish-born composer and conductor whose long list of achievements include top-notch concerts in Los Angeles and San Francisco, the laureates for the Polar Music Prize 2024 have been named. Both will be honored in the presence of the Swedish royal family at a ceremony and dinner on May 21 at Stockholm's Grand Hotel.
The prestigious Polar Music Award was created by Stig “Stikkan” Anderson, renowned Swedish writer/producer/label owner/publisher and manager of ABBA, and was first presented in 1992. This year's honorees, who will be in attendance, will each receive of a cash prize of one million Swedish kroner (approximately US$96,700).
Rodgers first came to prominence as a co-founder (with Bernard Edwards) of Chic, the group that debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1977 with “Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)” and won two Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s, “Le Freak” and the oft-sampled “Good Times”.
Salonen, born in Finland, enjoyed worldwide success. He is currently the music director of the San Francisco Symphony and was previously the conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra.
Rodgers and Salonen both have numerous connections to Sweden. Rodgers recalls a conversation he had with Prince about the Scandinavian country. “He told me he wanted to move to Sweden because there were so many beautiful girls driving BMWs,” Rodgers tells Billboard exclusively. “And Chic was the last band to record at Polar Music's studio. They had already closed the studio for good, but they reopened it to us.” Polar Music studio was originally owned by Stig Anderson and ABBA recorded many of their hits there. Rodgers has also worked with and mentored Avicii, having met after the famous DJ performed at Radio City Music Hall in New York in 2012.
Growing up in neighboring Finland, Salonen first traveled to Sweden as a child, on the overnight ferry from Helsinki. “I will never forget my first time in Stockholm. My parents took me to a pizzeria. There were no pizzerias in Finland at that time, at least as far as I know,” says Salonen Advertising sign. “I was captivated by the absolute beauty of the city. It is one of the most beautiful cities, partly because it is built on a set of islands and there are also beautiful buildings.'
As an adult, Salonen lived in Stockholm for 10 years. When he returns for the Polar Music Prize ceremony and banquet in May, it will not be the first time he receives an award from the hands of King Carl XVI Gustaf. “I attended the Polar Music Prize dinner in 1996. The winners were Pierre Boulez and Joni Mitchell. The next day I received a medal that was awarded to me when I was leaving the post of conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. The King gave me the medal and commented on the tempo I had chosen the night before for a performance of an overture by Wilhelm Stenhammar entitled 'Excelsior!' The King said to me, “You took this piece fearlessly, didn't you?” I told him he was absolutely right. It was perhaps faster than usual. He was very happy. He turned to his assistant and said, “I told you, didn't I?” So it's a very fond memory. Somehow these things are mysteriously interconnected.”
“In Nile Rodgers, we honor a ground-breaking pioneer whose legacy spans his work as co-founder of Chic and as the record producer and creator behind so much of the world's greatest music,” says Marie Ledin, CEO of the Polar Music Prize . “Nile's impact on pop culture is unparalleled, and his timeless songs will continue to delight, excite and inspire for many years to come.”
Of Salonen, Ledin says “he's an innovator. His artistic curiosity, creativity and forward-thinking approach to composition and conducting lead the way in classical music. He is a master of tone, perfectly balancing sound and emotion to produce and drive music that deeply moves the listener.”
Rodgers and Salonen join a long list of honorees that includes Elton John, Ravi Shankar, Metallica, Ennio Morricone, Led Zeppelin, Renée Fleming, Paul McCartney, Grandmaster Flash, Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel, Isaac Stern, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon , Sonny. Rollins, Diane Warren, Gilberto Gil, BB King, Emmylou Harris, Yo-Yo Ma, Miriam Makeba, Björk, Wayne Shorter, Patti Smith, Dizzy Gillespie, Chris Blackwell, Iggy Pop, Angélique Kidjo, the Kronos Quartet, Youssou N'Dour and Chuck Berry.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/nile-rodgers-esa-pekka-salonen-2024-polar-music-prize-laureates-1235625381/