Missy Elliott, Queen Latifah, Selena Among Latest National Arts Medal Recipients

Every year, the National Council on the Arts, the advisory committee for the NEA, picks a number of recipients for the National Medal Of Arts, the highest honor that the US government grants to artist and arts patrons. Every year, the president hands out those medals in a gala ceremony. Last year’s honorees included Bruce Springsteen. On Monday, for his last ceremony in office, Joe Biden handed out the honor to 39 recipients, including pioneering rap figures Missy Elliott and Queen Latifah, as well as the late Tejano star Selena Quintanilla.

In a press release, the National Endowment Of The Arts lists off all the recipients of the most recent recipients of the National Medal Of Arts — two years’ worth of honorees. The list also includes Norteño star Leonardo “Flaco” Jiménez, ukulele master Herbert I. Ohta, and the Country Music Hall Of Fame And Museum, as well as Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Ken Burns, Idina Menzel, and Eva Longoria.

On Twitter, Missy Elliott says that she’s “Crying Tears of JOY!” She also congratulates Queen Latifah. Latifah previously inducted Elliott into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2019 and into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last year.