The $100,000 Glenn Gould Prize will go to Elton John this year
'I am awestruck and honoured to receive this award,' the British star said upon receiving the biennial honour
Elton John will receive this year's Glenn Gould Prize, a $100,000 award for an artist whose work has "enriched the human condition."
The biennial award administered by the Glenn Gould Foundation goes to an artist whose work demonstrates excellence and has been influential "either on their discipline or the broader culture." The award was established in 1987 by the Glenn Gould Foundation to honour Canadian pianist Glenn Gould, who died in 1982 at 50 years old.
The jury, led by former prime minister Kim Campbell, said they selected John from a pool of candidates submitted by the public because of his massive musical success and the way he leverages his fame to advocate for the greater good.
"In selecting our laureate, Elton John, we chose to honour someone who has great artistic accomplishments but whose life and whose art has been translated into something much greater than just performance or the consumption of music and things they've created," Campbell said in a statement.
"He's been courageous in taking on causes, whether AIDS, LGBTQ+ rights, addiction and all sorts of issues that were not popular when he engaged with them and he was prepared to take the wonderful success that his musical talent had given him to make a difference in the world," she continued.
"After spending decades admiring the virtuosity of Glenn Gould's work, I am awestruck and honoured to receive this award," John said in a statement.
John will receive the award at a special gala presentation in Toronto in the fall. He will also choose a protégé to receive $25,000 from the foundation.
Other Glenn Gould Prize laureates include Yo-Yo Ma, Philip Glass, Alanis Obomsawin and Leonard Cohen, who donated his then $50,000 reward to the Canada Council for the Arts.
