MusiCares has named Jon Bon Jovi as the 2024 MusiCares Person of the Year. The GRAMMY-winning frontman and founding member of American rock band Bon Jovi is the honoree of the 33rd annual Person of the Year benefit gala, which will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Friday, Feb. 2, 2024, two nights before the 2024 GRAMMYs. Proceeds from the event will provide essential support for MusiCares, the leading music charity providing health and human services to music professionals across a spectrum of needs. 

In addition to his extensive musical achievements, Jon Bon Jovi is recognized for his impactful philanthropic work. In 2006, he established the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, an organization dedicated to disrupting the cycle of hunger, poverty and homelessness. The organization's objective is to recognize and maximize the human potential in those affected by hunger, poverty and homelessness by offering programs that provide food and affordable housing while supporting social services and job training programs. As a health and human service charity, MusiCares is proud to shine a light on Jon Bon Jovi's impactful philanthropy and hopes to raise awareness for these important human rights issues.

"I'm truly humbled to be this year's MusiCares honoree,” Jon Bon Jovi said in a statement. “MusiCares' work with music professionals is vitally important in creating much-needed support and wellness programs that cultivate a healthier and more vibrant community for us all. Philanthropic work has been a cornerstone of my life and has always run in tandem to my music career and achievements. Nearly two decades ago when I formed the JBJ Soul Foundation and JBJ Soul Kitchens, I saw firsthand and continue to see today the impact of charitable, community-based work. I know this for sure: Helping one's community is helping one's self."

"MusiCares is thrilled to honor Jon Bon Jovi at the 2024 Person of the Year Gala," Laura Segura, Executive Director of MusiCares, said in a statement. "His remarkable contributions to rock and roll have not only left an indelible mark on the music industry, but also in the hearts of countless fans around the world. Furthermore, his long-standing commitment to serving food-insecure and unhoused individuals inspires us all. We're looking forward to celebrating him and the many ways he has made a difference in this world."

The MusiCares Person of the Year tribute ceremony is one of the most prestigious events held during GRAMMY Week every year. It includes a cocktail reception followed by a dinner and tribute concert featuring renowned musicians and other artists paying tribute to the gala’s honoree.

Since 1991, money raised from the MusiCares Person of the Year benefit gala goes toward MusiCares’ health and human services programs that assist the music community with physical and mental health, addiction recovery, preventive clinics, unforeseen personal emergencies, and disaster relief.  

Jon Bon Jovi now joins an impressive list of recent MusiCares honorees including Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson, Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac, and Dolly Parton.

The event will again be produced by live event broadcast outfit Lewis & Clark, made up of Joe Lewis and R.A. Clark. Rob Mathes will join the special evening as Musical Director.

The event would not be possible without support from our sponsors, including AEG, ELS STUDIO 3D Premium Audio and Wasserman Foundation.

Nearly five decades into his illustrious career, Jon Bon Jovi is still reveling in a blaze of glory — and his latest honor as the 2024 MusiCares Person of the Year reflects all the ways he's given back to the music community.

Tables and tickets are available for purchase now.

For more information about or sponsorship opportunities for the 2024 MusiCares Person of the Year benefit gala, email personoftheyear@musicares.org.

Learn more about the annual MusiCares Person of the Year benefit gala.

How MusiCares' Annual Person Of The Year Benefit Honors Music's Icons & Supports The Music Community In Need

The Recording Academy Entertainment Law Initiative (ELI) will honor Paul Robinson, Warner Music Group's executive vice president & general counsel, during its annual GRAMMY Week luncheon. Taking place at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, during GRAMMY Week, and days ahead of the 2025 GRAMMYs, the event will celebrate Robinson with the 2025 Entertainment Law Initiative Service Award, presented each year to an attorney who demonstrates dedication to supporting and advancing the music community through their service, in recognition of his contributions to entertainment law.

In addition to honoring Robinson, the event, an official GRAMMY Week 2025 event, will bring together the nation's leading entertainment lawyers to celebrate excellence and also recognize the winner and runners-up of the annual Entertainment Law Initiative Writing Competition.

GRAMMY Week is the Recording Academy's weeklong celebration comprising official GRAMMY Week events celebrating the music community and current GRAMMY nominees in the lead-up to the annual GRAMMY Awards. GRAMMY Week 2025  culminates with the 2025 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards, which take place live on Sunday, Feb. 2, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The 2025 GRAMMYs will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8-11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT. Prior to the telecast, the 2025 GRAMMY Awards Premiere Ceremony will be held at the Peacock Theater at 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on live.GRAMMY.com and the Recording Academy's YouTube channel.

Learn more about Paul Robinson below:

Paul Robinson’s contributions to the music industry extend beyond his role at Warner Music Group, where he joined the legal department in January 1995 as Associate General Counsel. After holding several senior roles, he was appointed Executive Vice President and General Counsel in December 2006. Robinson oversees WMG’s worldwide legal, business affairs, public policy, compliance, and corporate governance functions. Before joining WMG, he was an associate and later a partner at the New York City law firm of Mayer, Katz, Baker, Leibowitz & Roberts, representing corporate clients, artists, songwriters, and executives.

Robinson also serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). 

"As a part of its mission, the Recording Academy works to advocate for creators, and the Entertainment Law Initiative advances this through legal representation, celebrating the achievements of entertainment law practitioners, and providing year-round educational opportunities to cultivate future leaders in the field," Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. said in a statement. "Paul exemplifies these values, and we are proud to honor him with the ELI Service Award at the 2025 ELI GRAMMY Week Luncheon for his three decades at Warner Music Group, where he has championed fair practices and guided the industry through transformative changes."

Learn more about the Recording Academy Entertainment Law Initiative (ELI) below:

Since its inception, the ELI has fostered dialogue on key legal issues shaping the music industry, while supporting future leaders in entertainment law through year-round education, mentorship opportunities, and significant scholarships for law students. Each year, the recipient of the Service Award is selected by the ELI’s Executive Committee, which supports the program by recognizing deserving leaders within the entertainment law community and mentoring aspiring professionals in the field. 

A cornerstone of the annual GRAMMY Week event is the annual ELI Writing Competition, which invites Juris Doctor and Master of Laws students from U.S. law schools to tackle a pressing legal issue in the music industry. Participants are challenged to craft a 3,000-word essay that presents a thoroughly researched analysis and a proposed solution. The following awards are then presented:

• A $10,000 scholarship for the author of the winning paper

• A $2,500 scholarship for each of the two runners-up

• Publication of the winning paper in the American Bar Association's journal, Entertainment and Sports Lawyer

• Travel and tickets to Los Angeles for the winner to attend the 2025 GRAMMYs, MusiCares Person of the Year event and the ELI GRAMMY Week Event

Learn more about the Recording Academy Entertainment Law Initiative and the 2025 GRAMMY Week luncheon.

The Latin GRAMMY Awards have a history of surprise moments and tonight added to that legacy when Pitbull joined forces with a rock icon. The Cuban American superstar teamed up with Jon Bon Jovi for an explosive performance of "Now or Never," a new version of the latter's classic "It's My Life."

While the pairing seems unlikely, Pitbull and Bon Jovi have a history that dates back to 2017 after meeting at the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Since then, the GRAMMY-winning artists have performed together a few times, including a Jimmy Buffet tribute concert last April. Back in September, Pitbull and Bon Jovi teased their updated version of "It's My Life" on Bon Jovi's Party After Dark Tour.

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The duo rocked the house with help from a group of female dancers, exciting pyrotechnics and strobe lights. While Bon Jovi belted out the iconic chorus from "It's My Life," Pitbull added a fresh hip-hop and EDM spin to the song. Mr. 305 even made a nod to Frank Sinatra’s "My Way" in his slick verses. 

Although he's not nominated at the 2024 Latin GRAMMYs, Pitbull has received a total of seven Latin GRAMMY nominations. He won his first Latin GRAMMY in 2013 for Best Urban Fusion/Performance for "Echa Pa'llá" (Hands Up). Three years later, Pitbull won his first GRAMMY Award in 2016 for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album for Dale, which tied with Natalia Lafourcade’s Hasta La Raíz. After recently wrapping the U.S. leg of his world tour, Pitbull will return to Las Vegas next year with Pitbull: Vegas After Dark The residency.

The performance was Bon Jovi's second appearance of the night on the Latin GRAMMY stage. Earlier in the evening, he presented the Person Of The Year award to Carlos Vives; the American rocker was the 2023 MusiCares Person Of The Year.

Check out the complete list of winners and nominees at the 2024 Latin GRAMMYs.

And then there were two. Phil Lesh, co-founder and innovative bassist for the Grateful Dead, passed away peacefully on Oct. 25 at his California home surrounded by family. He was 84.

With Lesh’s death, Bob Weir and Bill Kreutzmann are the only remaining original members of the psychedelic rock band that formed in Palo Alto in 1965. Earlier this week, it was announced that the Grateful Dead had been named the 2025 MusiCares Persons Of The Year. 

Lesh’s death was announced late in the day on Friday on his official Instagram. Margo Price, one of the first to comment on the news, simply said, "Thanks for the music." Just this past March, Lesh was joined on stage at The Capitol Theatre by friends and fellow artists to celebrate his 84th birthday. On Friday night on X, the New York venue said they already missed the musician "more than words can tell."

"The Recording Academy mourns the loss of Phil Lesh," Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason, jr said in a statement."For their outstanding contributions to the recording industry, he and his fellow Grateful Dead members were honored in 2007 with our Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. Phil’s legacy is timeless and will live on for generations to come and we look forward to honoring him and the Grateful Dead at our MusiCares Person of the Year ceremony in January."

Phil Lesh left a lifetime's worth of music to be grateful for. The musician was born in Berkeley, California on March 15, 1940. He played trumpet and violin in high school and, during these formative years, fell in love with free jazz and experimental music. This penchant for improvisation that became his trademark for three decades as a member of the Grateful Dead — a  band of musical brothers that left a lasting legacy on the world. 

Lesh became a bassist by default. He was working a variety of jobs, including driving a mail truck and working at a radio station, when Jerry Garcia convinced him to join the new rock band he was forming (the Warlocks), who quickly morphed into the Grateful Dead.   

The Dead defined an era. The band represented a subculture that influenced the mainstream for decades from lifestyle to fashion; from music to marketing. And Lesh, as a co-founder of these musical misfits, was a key cog in this long and strange trip.  

"Phil Lesh changed my life," Dead drummer Mickey Hart wrote on X. "Phil was bigger than life, at the very center of the band and my ears, filling my brain with waves of bass…. Phil was a master of a style he invented, he was singular, an original, nobody sounded like him, nobody."

Read more: A Beginner’s Guide To The Grateful Dead: 5 Ways To Get Into The Legendary Jam Band

The bass does not often get the glory, but it is the backbone of many groups; it provides that steady beat and rhythm that guides the rest of the band. Sometimes, the bass lines are simple; other times complex. Lesh's dexterity with the instrument allowed him to wield it as an inspirational source and force — especially live — as a conduit to take the Grateful Dead and their fans to new realms. 

Lesh played bass like it was the lead instrument of the band. Listen to the Grateful Dead’s vast catalog and the groove of his funky bass notes and improvisations often trump Garcia’s lead guitar playing. Rolling Stone cited Lesh as one of the "50 Greatest Bassists of All Time," noting that that "In the same way that the Grateful Dead reconfigured how a rock band should sound — looser and jammier, incorporating equal parts jazz and country — Phil Lesh made us hear the bass in a new way."  

The Grateful Dead were innovators. No two shows were ever the same. The spirit of each night was unique and that spirit was fuelled by the band members (and just as often by the various drugs that they were under the influence of) and where they went on these spacey jams and explorations, Lesh was often the guide.  

In 1994, Lesh and his jamband mates were enshrined into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame when Bruce Hornsby officially inducted the Grateful Dead. In his acceptance speech, Lesh thanked Deadheads worldwide, acknowledging that "without them, we wouldn’t be anywhere, much less right here, right now."   

After Garcia passed away in 1995, Lesh and Weir both continued to play and perform, together and separately, but never again under the Grateful Dead moniker. Lesh founded Phil Lesh & Friends and, in later years, played often with his sons: Grahame and Brian; Weir fronted Dead and Company, who this past summer completed a 30-day residency dubbed Dead Forever in Las Vegas at the Sphere.

On X, as news of the musician’s passing spread, tributes poured in from celebrities, fellow musicians, legendary venues, and regular Deadheads. The Empire State Building even announced it would light up the New York City skyline for one hour on Friday night in homage to Lesh’ legacy.

Beyond its longtime care for its community of loyal fans (Deadheads), the band supported many causes over the years — from mental health to music education and social justice. In 1997, Lesh and his wife Jill founded the Unbroken Chain Foundation to raise money and give back to various charitable organizations. 

MusiCares also mourned the loss of Lesh. "As a legendary bassist and founding member of the Grateful Dead, Phil’s distinctive contributions to music, advocacy, and philanthropy leave an enduring impact," the organization said in a statement. "Phil will be reverently honored with his Grateful Dead bandmates as our 2025 Persons of the Year, commemorating their journey that transcends music and fosters a profound sense of unity and generosity. This tribute stands as a testament to Phil’s remarkable legacy, commitment to creating community, and unwavering dedication to causes close to his heart, including his Unbroken Chain Foundation and MusiCares."

Phil Lesh leaves behind his wife Jill and children, Grahame and Brian. 

In memory of Phil Lesh, press play on five songs that feature bass lines that groove, melodies that linger long after the record is done, and showcase his musical legacy and influence.

This country-folk song is a Deadhead favorite and concert staple. The melody and instrumentation for "Box of Rain" (from American Beauty,1970), came to Lesh as something to sing to his dad, who, at the time of its writing, was dying of cancer; Lesh practiced it in his head during his drives to visit his ailing father at his nursing home.

One of the Dead’s most mainstream cuts and highest-charting songs, it’s hard to listen to this catchy number without getting hypnotized by the funky bass groove supplied by Lesh that keeps the song rollicking down the highway on this long strange trip.  

From 1970's Workingman’s Dead, this song is about the trials and tribulations of toiling in the Cumberland coal mines in Kentucky. In live shows, this is one where Lesh was let off his leash; listening to this track you can feel how much fun the bassist is having.   

This song was co-written by Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh and Robert Hunter. Appearing on the 1969 album Aoxomoxoa, this tune opens with Lesh playing single notes that resonate and then kicks into a romp that continues to build until the bridge that slows things down briefly before another explosion of sound that spirals the song to a climactic ending with the melodic bass lines of Lesh leading this psychedelic trip. 

Lesh co-wrote this complex melodic song, which is also the name of his charitable foundation, with longtime Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter. Appearing on 1974’s From the Mars Hotel, the band never performed the song in concert until 1995, likely due to its difficulty. 

The phrase symbolizes (just like the classic 1907 gospel hymn "Will the Circle be Unbroken" the journey of the band and the fans that have followed them on their trips for nearly 60 years. Though yet one more member of the Grateful Dead is now gone, the songs remain to help family, friends and Deadheads grieve to make sure the links to their music never breaks or fades away.  

It’s officially awards season! Today, the nominees for the 2024 Emmys dropped — and, happily, the 2024 GRAMMYs telecast received a whopping five nominations.

At the 2024 Emmys, the 2024 GRAMMYs telecast is currently nominated for Outstanding Variety Special (Live), Outstanding Production Design for a Variety Special, Outstanding Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Variety Special, Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special, and Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork for a Special.

Across these categories, this puts Music’s Biggest Night in a friendly head-to-head with other prestigious awards shows and live variety specials, including the Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show starring Usher as well as fellow awards shows the Oscars and the Tonys.

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2024 was a banner year for the GRAMMYs. Music heroes returned to the spotlight; across Categories, so many new stars were minted. New GRAMMY Categories received their inaugural winners: Best African Music Performance, Best Alternative Jazz Album and Best Pop Dance Recording. Culture-shaking performances and acceptance speeches went down. Those we lost received a loving farewell via the In Memoriam segment.

The 2025 GRAMMYs will take place Sunday, Feb. 2, live at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on demand on Paramount+. Nominations for the 2025 GRAMMYs will be announced Friday, Nov. 8, 2024.

For more information about the 2025 GRAMMY Awards season, learn more about the annual GRAMMY Awards process, read our FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section, view the official GRAMMY Awards Rules and Guidelines, and visit the GRAMMY Award Update Center for a list of real-time changes to the GRAMMY Awards process.