DHAKA: Musician Bob Dylan is honoured with US Medal of Freedom. President Barack Obama has bestowed the nation’s highest civilian honour on political and cultural figures in a ceremony at the White House.
Musician Bob Dylan received with award along with astronaut John Glenn, and Israeli President Shimon Peres, reports BBC.
The award is given to people from all walks of life who have made exceptional contributions to society.
It was established by former President John F Kennedy in 1963.
Dylan was born Robert Allen Zimmerman on 24 May 1941 and began his musical career in 1959, playing in Minnesota coffee houses.
He took his stage name from the poet Dylan Thomas and, not coincidentally, paid as much attention to his lyrics as his music.
Much of his best-known work dates from the 1960s, when he became an informal historian of America`s troubles.
Songs such as ‘Blowin’ In The Wind’ and ‘The Times They Are a-Changin’ became anthems of the anti-war and civil rights movements.
His move away from traditional folk songwriting, paired with a controversial decision to ‘go electric’, proved equally influential - his confessional, introspective lyrics were undoubtedly absorbed by The Beatles in their later work.
He continues to record and tour, expanding his horizons with a US radio show and a recently signed six-book publishing deal.
Another luminary to be awarded the honour, Toni Morrison, is renowned for her portrayal of the African-American experience in novels such as ‘Song Of Solomon’, and ‘Beloved’, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988.
Born Chloe Anthony Wofford in 1931 in Ohio, she went on to become a senior editor at publishers Random House before pursuing her writing career.
BDST: 1335 HRS, MAY 30, 2012
Edited by Robab Rosan, Cultural Affairs Editor
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