Latin superstar Selena Quintanilla is set to posthumously join rap pioneers Salt-N-Pepa and rockers Talking Heads among the recipients of the 2021 Grammy Awards Lifetime Achievement honours.
Also set to be feted with the Special Merit Awards are hip-hop icons Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, opera singer Marilyn Horne, and late jazz musician Lionel Hampton.
Recording Academy officials have additionally named the stars selected for the Trustees Awards, with R&B legend Kenny 'Babyface' Edmonds, saxophonist Benny Golson, and noted producer and engineer Ed Cherney, who lost his battle with cancer last year, due to be saluted for their "significant contributions... to the field of recording". Engineer Daniel Weiss has also been recognised with the Technical Grammy Award.
"As we welcome the new class of Special Merit Award honorees, it gives us a chance to reward and recognize the influence they've had in the music community regardless of genre," Harvey Mason, Jr., Interim President and CEO of the Recording Academy, shared in a statement.
"As a music creator and music lover, I am grateful that we are able to look back at our influences and see the impact that they have made on our community," he went on, adding: "In a year where music has helped keep us together, I look forward to honoring this iconic group of music creators."
All of the honourees will be celebrated at a special ceremony on 31 January, although it's yet to be announced if the event will be a virtual affair amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
