Fela Kuti, Whitney Houston, and Paul Simon are among those set to receive Lifetime Achievement Awards at the 2026 Grammys, the Recording Academy announced today. Cher, Carlos Santana, and Chaka Khan will round out the honorees. Bernie Taupin, Eddie Palmieri, and Sylvia Rhone have been named as next year’s Trustees Award winners, and the Technical Grammy will go to John Chowning, who discovered frequency modulation (FM) synthesis in 1967.
The Grammys’s Special Merit Awards Ceremony—where the awards, many posthumous, will be handed out—takes place the day before the main event, on Saturday, January 31, The 2026 Grammy Awards air live from Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on February 1.
Last year’s Lifetime Achievement honorees were Prince, the Clash, Frankie Beverly, Roxanne Shanté, Frankie Valli, Dr. Bobby Jones, and Taj Mahal.
In a press release, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said, “It’s a true honor to recognize this year’s Special Merit Award recipients — an extraordinary group whose influence spans generations, genres, and the very foundation of modern music. Each of these honorees has made a profound and lasting impact, and we look forward to celebrating their remarkable achievements on the eve of Grammy Sunday.”
Houston celebrated globally as “the Voice,” continues to hold an unmatched legacy more than a decade after her passing. With more than 200 million records sold, seven consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits, and the first Black artist to have three diamond albums, she remains one of the highest bars for vocal excellence. Her cousin Dionne Warwick received the same honor in 2019, making this a full-circle moment for their family.
Chaka Khan is a 10-time Grammy winner and spiritual blueprint for generations of vocalists, so her recognition shouldn’t be a surprise. Her cross-genre collaborations and her Chaka Khan Foundation’s global wellness work underscore why she remains, as the release notes, “a living force in music.”
Fela Kuti’s honor marks a historic moment as well. The Afrobeat pioneer’s political resistance, genre-shaping catalog, and multigenerational legacy continue to echo through Afrobeats, Hip Hop and global pop culture. His influence, the Academy notes, “spans generations,” inspiring everyone from Beyoncé to Paul McCartney.
Additional awards will go to Trustees Award recipients Bernie Taupin, Eddie Palmieri, and Sylvia Rhone, while John Chowning will receive the Technical Grammy Award.
These events will spotlight artists whose impact extends far beyond the charts.
Credit: PitchFork
