Dave Matthews Band will receive the special Chairman’s Award at the upcoming NAACP Image Awards for its devotion to social and environmental causes and its “dignified representation of people of color,” the civil rights group has announced.
With the awards, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People honors people and companies that support positive change for people of color in arts and entertainment. The honor will be bestowed at the March 6 awards ceremony in Los Angeles. Fox will broadcast the program on March 11.
The racially mixed music group includes drummer Carter Beauford, bassist Stefan Lessard, vocalist-guitarist Dave Matthews, saxophonist Leroi Moore and violinist Boyd Tinsley.
NAACP Board Chairman Julian Bond, who chose the group for the special award, praised band members for their distinguished service to social causes and dignified representation of people of color.
“Dave Matthews Band demonstrated what commitment means in an artist. With their music and their generosity, they have made a difference in the lives of many,” Bond said. “To see and hear them is to recognize great talent; to learn of their good deeds is to recognize they are good souls.”
Dave Matthews Band released a statement Sunday saying, “It is a great honor to us that an institution with the history and accomplishments of the NAACP has chosen to recognize our actions. We will always greatly value this award.”
The group’s Bama Works Foundation has donated millions of dollars in grants to a variety of groups around the world, including conservation organizations for the Amazon rain forest, family farmers, youth community clubs and AIDS charities.
Previous NAACP Chairman’s Award recipients include actor Danny Glover, cartoonist Aaron McGruder and singer-actress Janet Jackson.