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Kings Of Leon, Elle King, Steve Vai, More Performing At Kennedy Center Honors

CBS has confirmed the lineup of performers and presenters for this year’s Kennedy Honors ceremony.

Set to air as a CBS broadcast on December 27 (9-11PM ET/PT), the 39th Annual Kennedy Center Honors will be hosted by Stephen Colbert. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will be in attendance, while Brian Stokes Mitchell will perform the Star-Spangled Banner.

Honorees include James Taylor, Al Pacino, Mavis Staples, Martha Argerich, and the Eagles.

CBS’ roster of tribute speakers and performers follows:

HONOREE: James Taylor

Multiple Grammy Award and Emmy Award-winning singer-songwriter and guitarist

TRIBUTE PRESENTERS/

PERFORMERS: President William Jefferson Clinton (Spoken Tribute)

42nd President of the United States (1993-2001)

Darius Rucker (Performs “Sweet Baby James”/“Carolina in My Mind”)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter

Sheryl Crow (Performs “Fire & Rain”/“Your Smiling Face”)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning musician

Yo-Yo Ma (Spoken Tribute)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning cellist; 2011 Kennedy Center Honoree

Garth Brooks (Performs “Shower the People”)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning country singer-songwriter

James Taylor Tribute Cast (Performs “How Sweet It Is”)

HONOREE: Al Pacino

Academy Award, Tony Award, Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award-winning actor, filmmaker and screenwriter

TRIBUTE PRESENTERS/

PERFORMERS: Chris O’Donnell (Spoken Tribute and Tango Performance from “Scent of a Woman” with Gabrielle Anwar)

Golden Globe Award nominated actor

Bobby Cannavale (Spoken Tribute)

Emmy Award-winning and Tony Award nominated actor

Lily Rabe (Performance Tribute)

Tony Award nominated actress

Laurence Fishburne (Performance Tribute)

Academy Award nominee, Tony Award and Emmy Award-winning actor, playwright, director and producer

Kevin Spacey (Spoken Tribute)

Multiple Academy Award, Golden Globe Award and Tony Award-winning actor, director, producer, screenwriter and singer

Gabrielle Anwar (Tango Performance from “Scent of a Woman” with Chris O’Donnell)

Actress

Sean Penn (Spoken Tribute)

Academy Award-winning actor and filmmaker

HONOREE: Mavis Staples

Grammy Award-winning gospel and blues singer and actress

TRIBUTE PRESENTERS/

PERFORMERS: Bonnie Raitt (Spoken Tribute and Performance of “We Shall Not Be Moved”/“Freedom Highway” with Andra Day)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter; inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000

Elle King (Performs “Respect Yourself”/“I’ll Take You There”)

Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter and actress

Don Cheadle (Spoken Tribute)

Academy Award and Golden Globe Award-winning actor, writer, producer and director

Andra Day (Performs “We Shall Not Be Moved”/“Freedom Highway” with Bonnie Raitt)

Grammy Award nominated singer-songwriter

HONOREE: Martha Argerich

Multiple Grammy Award-winning Argentinian pianist

TRIBUTE PRESENTERS/

PERFORMERS: Jeff Goldblum (Spoken Tribute)

Academy Award and Emmy Award nominated actor

Itzhak Perlman (Performs “Beethoven: Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 8, in G, Op. 30, No. 3. Allegro Vivace (Third Movement)” with Yefim Bronfman)

Multiple Grammy Award and Emmy Award-winning violinist and conductor; 2003 Kennedy Center Honoree

Yefim Bronfman (Performs “Beethoven: Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 8, in G, Op. 30, No. 3. Allegro Vivace (Third Movement)” with Itzhak Perlman)

Classical pianist

Placido Domingo (Spoken Tribute)

Multiple Grammy Award and Latin Grammy Award-winning singer and conductor, Kennedy Center Honoree

Yuja Wang (Performs “Piazzola Grand Tango”)

Classical pianist

JOHN F. KENNEDY

TRIBUTE SEGMENT: Jack Schlossberg, Rose Schlossberg and Tatiana Schlossberg Grandchildren of John F. Kennedy (Spoken Tribute)

Cynthia Erivo (Performs “The Impossible Dream” from the Broadway musical “Man of La Mancha”)

Tony Award-winning actress and singer

HONOREE: Eagles

Multiple Grammy Award-winning rock band, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1998

TRIBUTE PRESENTERS/

PERFORMERS: Ringo Starr (Spoken Tribute)

Founding member of the Beatles; Academy Award-winning musician, singer-songwriter and actor; inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2015

Kings of Leon (Performs “Take It Easy”)

Grammy Award-winning American rock band

Vince Gill (Performs “Peaceful Easy Feeling”)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist

Bob Seger (Performs “Heartache Tonight”)

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004

Juanes (Performs “Hotel California” with Steve Vai and Steuart Smith)

Multiple Grammy Award and Latin Grammy Award-winning musician

Steve Vai (Performs “Hotel California” with Juanes and Steuart Smith)

Multiple Grammy Award-winning guitarist, singer, composer, songwriter and producer

Steuart Smith (Performs “Hotel California” with Juanes and Steve Vai)

Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, writer and producer

Eagles Tribute Cast (Performs “Life in the Fast Lane”)

Brian Cantor

Brian Cantor is the editor-in-chief for Headline Planet. He has been a leading reporter in the music, movie, television and sporting spaces since 2002. Brian's reporting has been cited by major websites like BuzzFeed, Billboard, the New Yorker and The Fader -- and shared by celebrities like Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj. Contact Brian at brian.cantor[at]headlineplanet.com.

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