Chaka Khan is set to receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement award at the 2026 ceremony. The 10-time Grammy winner has become one of the most recognized voices in the world through the decades, starting out with Rufus in the ’70s. Her music helped shape the vocabulary of modern R&B, funk, pop, and dance music. She is referred to as the Queen of Funk, which is a title she shuns because she has always been interested and able to sing anything, like her remarkable take on the jazz classic “A Night In Tunisia.” The Recording Academy reserves the honor for artists whose work has made “creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance” to recorded music. Khan joins a class of honorees that includes Fela Kuti, Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana, Paul Simon, and Cher.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said the 2026 Special Merit honorees represent “an extraordinary group whose influence spans generations, genres, and the very foundation of modern music.” The Special Merit Awards event also recognizes Trustees Award and Technical GRAMMY Award recipients, spotlighting a wide range of impact—from performance and songwriting to behind-the-scenes innovation.
Khan’s award is happening as she is in the midst of The Queens: 4 Legends, 1 Stage tour with Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, and Stephanie Mills. The Queen of Funk will be celebrated during the 2026 Special Merit Awards Ceremony on Saturday, January 31, 2026, at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles, held during GRAMMY Week and on the eve of Grammy Sunday.
