On Wednesday (September 27), US Secretary of State Antony Blinken launched the Global Music Diplomacy Initiative in Washington, DC, alongside the Recording Academy and other music industry leaders, organizations, and artists.

The initiative is described as “a global effort to elevate music’s role as a diplomatic tool to promote global peace and democracy.”

The Global Music Diplomacy initiative was created in response to the PEACE Through Music Diplomacy Act, which was signed into law in December 2022.

The Recording Academy championed it in 2022 during Grammys on the Hill and during the annual District Advocate Day.

GAYLE, Dave Grohl, Mickey Guyton, Herbie Hancock, LADAMA, and others performed live at this week’s premiere event.

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Along with Secretary Blinken, Quincy Jones received the first-ever Peace via Music Award, a cooperation between the US Department of State and the Recording Academy.

The prize “recognizes and honors an American music industry professional, artist, or group, that has played an invaluable role in cross-cultural exchanges and whose music work advances peace and mutual understanding globally” .

Jones has worked as a composer, record producer, artist, arranger, conductor, instrumentalist, label executive, film & TV producer, magazine founder, multi-media entrepreneur, and philanthropist during the course of his seven-decade career.

Jones has had a total of 80 Grammy nominations, with 28 wins in a variety of categories, including jazz, R&B, pop, rap, spoken word, children’s, cast album, instrumental arrangement, music film, and music video, as well as Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Producer of the Year.

In the 1950s and 1960s, he collaborated with Lionel Hampton, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Count Basie (with whom he earned his first Grammy in 1963), Dinah Washington, Cannonball Adderley, LaVern Baker, Leslie Gore, and Frank Sinatra.

The American Music Mentorship Program (AMMP), created in collaboration between the US Department of State and the Recording Academy, will bring international mid-career artists and music industry professionals to the US for mentorship and networking opportunities, with the first event scheduled for the fall of 2024.

“WE’RE HONORED TO BEGIN OUR WORK WITH THE STATE DEPARTMENT TO PROMOTE PEACE AND CROSS-CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING THROUGH MUSIC WHILE CONTINUING OUR MISSION TO LIFT UP MUSIC PEOPLE AROUND THE GLOBE.” RECORDING ACADEMY CEO HARVEY MASON JR.

“From advocating for the PEACE Through Music Diplomacy Act in 2022 to partnering with the US State Department on the Global Music Diplomacy Initiative, the Academy firmly believes that music’s transformative power can be a global force for good,” stated Harvey Mason jr., CEO of the Recording Academy.

“We’re honored to begin our work with the State Department to promote peace and cross-cultural understanding through music while continuing our mission to lift up music people around the globe.”

“MUSIC REMINISCES ON THE FACT THAT WE HAVE MORE IN COMMON THAN WHAT SEPERATES US.” IT CURES US. IT BRINGS US TOGETHER. IT GETS US EXCITED.” YOUTUBE, GOOGLE, AND LYOR COHEN

“Music reminds us that we have more in common than what divides us,” said Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music for YouTube and Google. It restores our health. It brings us together. It makes us excited.

“Through our global platform, we have the incredible responsibility of assisting music to transcend borders.” For millennia, music has served as a catalyst for significant social and cultural changes.

“Artists like Aretha Franklin, John Lennon, Kendrick Lamar, and countless others have written songs that bring people together to create understanding and drive peace,” Cohen added.

“This initiative creates a new avenue for us to raise their voices and drive global music diplomacy forward; breaking down cultural barriers and fostering peace through music.”

“Music gives voice to democratic ideals, to the powerful and the powerless, across borders and beyond barriers, and the United States is elevating music to meet the moment, convey American leadership globally, and promote peace globally,” said Lee Satterfield, Assistant U.S. Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs.

“All of us have a role to play in promoting peace, and with the support of the American music industry and private sector, such as YouTube and the Recording Academy, we can do even more through music.”

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