The Recording Academy and the U.S. Department of State announced that music icon, global philanthropist, and 10-time GRAMMY Award winner Dolly Parton is the 2024 recipient of the PEACE Through Music Award. This award goes to an American music professional, artist, or group who has made a difference in bringing cultures together through their music and promoting peace and understanding around the world. As a champion of global communities, Dolly Parton represents the heart of this award. Watch Dolly Parton’s acceptance video here.
“Dolly Parton represents the best of America – her excellence in music, her servant’s heart in giving back to those in need, and her unique ability to always bring people together,” said Lee Satterfield, Acting Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. “On behalf of the American people and Secretary of State Blinken, we are honored to celebrate all of her contributions to people around the world with the PEACE Through Music Award in partnership with the Recording Academy.”
“To say that I was honored to accept the PEACE Through Music Award from the Recording Academy and the U.S. State Department would be putting it mildly. I was very touched and moved by that. If I have been an inspiration in any way through some act of kindness or through some music that I have written, well, that makes me feel like I have done my job properly. Thanks again for such a great honor.” Love, Dolly.
The PEACE Through Music Award is a key part of the Global Music Diplomacy Initiative, the Academy’s partnership with the US State Department launched in 2023, which built on the PEACE Through Music Diplomacy Act and which aims to elevate the role of music as a diplomatic tool to promote peace and democracy. The partnership also includes the American Music Mentorship Program, which pairs international mid-career music industry professionals and musical artists with mentors from the Recording Academy community.
