GMA President and Executive Director Jackie Patillo, who described Grant as “a Christian music sweetheart,” said it’s a “big deal” that the Kennedy Center has taken this step to honor an artist who crossed over to mainstream pop and served as an ambassador of the Christian music subgenre.
“I think that Amy Grant lives a very holistic life in that her faith is just a part of everything that she does, and so whether her music is being acknowledged or played on pop radio or CCM (stations), she’s, still, consistently Amy Grant,” said Patillo.
“The way God has used her has stretched the industry and the church.”
Grant, who, like other honorees, sat in an Opera House balcony not far from President Biden, Vice President Harris and their spouses, drank in the praise without having to take the stage to speak or perform.
In the audience of more than 1,900 were actresses Anna Deavere Smith and Julia Roberts, politicians Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, and Dallas megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes and Grant’s first record producer Brown Bannister.
Kennedy Center Board Chair David Rubenstein acknowledged the significance of the recognition of contemporary Christian music.
“We felt that it was long overdue,” he told Religion New Service. “There was only one person who could really fulfill that requirement, and that was Amy.”
Gospel artist CeCe Winans echoed Rubenstein’s comment when she appeared with her brother BeBe on the red carpet shortly before the event began but started with an exuberant “Woo!”
“We’re so excited,” she said. “It’s been a long time coming. But she’s a perfect person to open up that door. And so we’re excited about that.”
Added her brother: “Amen.”
