Fela Kuti Whitney Houston 2026 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award announcement Thursday revealed the Afrobeat pioneer and R&B superstar leading an extraordinary group of honorees alongside Carlos Santana, Chaka Khan, Cher and Paul Simon . The Special Merit Awards Ceremony will be held January 31 at Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, the afternoon before the 68th annual Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena . Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr stated the honorees represent an extraordinary group whose influence spans generations, genres and the very foundation of modern music .
Fela Kuti Whitney Houston 2026 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award makes Kuti the first African musician to receive this prestigious honor . Although Fela didn’t win a Grammy during his lifetime, he has received numerous posthumous awards with his 1976 album Zombie inducted into the 2025 Grammy Hall of Fame . The Nigerian musician created Afrobeat in the 1960s by combining funk, jazz, salsa, calypso and traditional Nigerian rhythms .
Fela Kuti Whitney Houston 2026 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award honors Houston who achieved six Billboard Hot 100 hits and eight consecutive multi-platinum albums . The six-time Grammy winner was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2020 and became the first Black artist with three RIAA Diamond-certified albums . Houston died in 2012 while Afrobeat giant Fela Kuti died in 1997 .
Fela Kuti Whitney Houston 2026 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award also recognizes Bernie Taupin, Eddie Palmieri and Sylvia Rhone with Trustees Awards while John Chowning receives the Technical Grammy Award. Fela’s influence spans generations inspiring artists such as Beyoncé, Paul McCartney and Thom Yorke while shaping modern Nigerian Afrobeats . The ceremony celebrates outstanding contributions to the recording field during Grammy Week festivities.
