The Recording Academy will honor its eight 2016 Special Merit Awards recipients with an awards ceremony and live tribute concert on April 23 that will be broadcast later in the year on PBS.

GRAMMY Salute to Music Legends will take place at the Dolby Theater and will be produced in partnership with THIRTEEN as part of the Great Performances series. Don Was will serve as musical director; the concert will feature performances by honorees and the artists they have inspired. R&B pioneer Ruth Brown, salsa queen Celia Cruz, R&B legends Earth, Wind & Fire, jazz great Herbie Hancock, Jefferson Airplane, Linda Ronstadt and rappers RUN D.M.C. are this year's Lifetime Achievement Award honorees.

This is the first time the Recording Academy has celebrated the Special Merit Awards with a stand-alone event and musical tribute. In addition to the tribute concert, celebrity guests will present recipients their awards.

"For many years now, we've wanted to honor Special Merit Awards recipients on a larger scale with an event like GRAMMY Salute to Music Legends, so I'm delighted to partner with THIRTEEN Productions and PBS to bring this worthy celebration to a bigger stage," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy. "The contributions of our honorees are innumerable, and we look forward to an unforgettable evening as we pay tribute to their exceptional accomplishments."

GRAMMY Salute to Music Legends will be written by David Wild and directed for television by David Horn, with Mitch Owgang as producer, and Horn and Portnow as executive producers.