Gladys Knight, N.W.A, Donna Summer among Grammy lifetime achievement honorees

Gladys Knight will be honored at the Recording Academy Special Merit Awards Ceremony during Grammys week. File Photo by Gary I. Rothstein/UPI
Gladys Knight will be honored at the Recording Academy Special Merit Awards Ceremony during Grammys week. File Photo by Gary I. Rothstein/UPI

Jan. 5 (UPI) -- The Recording Academy has announced the honorees for its Special Merit Awards Ceremony.

Gladys Knight, N.W.A, Donna Summer, Laurie Anderson, the Clark Sisters and Tammy Wynette will receive lifetime achievement awards at the event Feb. 3 at Wilshire Ebel Theatre in Los Angeles.

Peter Asher, DJ Kool Herc and Joel Katz are the Trustees Award recipients, while Tom Kobayashi and Tom Scott will receive technical Grammy awards. "Refugee," written by K'naan, Steve McEwan and Gerald Eaton, will be honored with the Best Song for Social Change Award.

"The Academy is honored to pay tribute to this year's Special Merit Awards recipients -- a remarkable group of creators and industry professionals whose impact resonates with generations worldwide," Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said in a press release.

"Their contributions to music span genres, backgrounds and crafts, reflecting on the rich diversity that fuels our creative community. We look forward to honoring these music industry trailblazers next month as part of our week-long celebration leading up to Music's Biggest Night."

Donna Summer performs in Hollywood, Fla., in 2010. File Photo by Michael Bush/UPI
Donna Summer performs in Hollywood, Fla., in 2010. File Photo by Michael Bush/UPI

The 67th annual Grammy Awards will take place Feb. 4 in Los Angeles. SZA, Victoria Monét, Phoebe Bridgers and mixing engineer Serban Ghenea lead the nominees.