Tracy Chapman, whose 1988 song, Fast Car, became a hit in 2023 for Luke Combs, is set to receive a lifetime achievement award at the 2024 International Folk Music Awards scheduled for February 21, 2024.
The award show is organized on the first day of the Folk Alliance International (FAI) Conference, and the event, which is in its 36th year, will take place from February 21-25, 2024 at the Westin Crown Center Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri.
Others listed to receive awards at the event are the late Chilean songwriter and activist, Victor Jara and McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, California, which has been hosting concerts in Southern California for over 50 years.
The People’s Voice Award would be presented to Alynda Segarra of Hurray for the Riff Raff. The award is given to a person who “unabashedly embraces social and political commentary in their creative work and public careers.”
Sara Curruchich, the Guatemalan songwriter, vocalist, and activist would receive the Rising Tide Award. She is the first musician to use the Kaqchikel language of her people in popular music for an international audience.
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The Clearwater Award, which is presented to a festival that prioritizes environmental stewardship and demonstrates public leadership in sustainable event production, would be received by the LEAF Global Arts Festival.
Lead Belly Estate’s Terika Dean, Amanda Rheaume, who is an artiste from the Metis Nation of Ontario, Canada, Jim Fleming, who is the founder of Fleming Artists, the booking agency, and Jerod Rivers, the conference director, would be given the Spirit of Folk Awards.
Newly minted Folk Radio Hall of Famers include Folk Alley’s Linda Fahey; roots music and folk expert, Jan Vanderhorst, the host of Just Us Folk, founder of Mountain Stage, Larry Groce, Bob Sherman, whose Woody’s Children show graced the airwaves of New York City for nearly 55 years, and Celtic music ambassador, Brian O’Donovan.