Lunch at the Luckman Club, Common Receives the First Artist Impact Award in West Hollywood
SAG-AFTRA and SoundExchange honored the rapper and actor at Soho House with Andra Day, Janelle Monáe and Questlove hosting.
On Thursday afternoon, September 24, Common was the guest of honor at an intimate luncheon in The Luckman Club at Soho House West Hollywood. SAG-AFTRA and SoundExchange presented him with their first Artist Impact Award, created for an artist whose work crosses music, film, television and media.
The host committee was Andra Day, Rebecca Ferguson, Janelle Monáe and Questlove. Anthony Anderson, No I.D., DeRay Davis, D-Nice, Lisa Loeb and Shari Belafonte were among the guests celebrating the Grammy, Oscar and Emmy winner.
Common told the room why artists matter. “As artists, whether through comedy, acting, storytelling, music, songwriting, or playwriting, we bring light and joy into the world,” he said. “Paul Robeson called artists ‘the gatekeepers of truth’ and ‘civilization’s radical voice.’”
Before the presentation he spoke with Billboard about what the honor meant. “When I got to do the movie Selma, it made me feel like I could do more,” he said. “This [award] makes me feel like I’ve got to do more.”
The award grows out of a partnership of more than two decades. Billboard reported that SoundExchange sends 5% of its annual collections, roughly $50 million, to SAG-AFTRA so that background singers, session musicians and other non-featured performers get paid when their work plays on digital platforms. SoundExchange chief Michael Huppe said the two groups wanted to celebrate people who refuse to stay in one lane. “Common is a great example,” he told Billboard. “He’s a musician, storyteller, actor, author, producer, entrepreneur and advocate.”
SAG-AFTRA national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland tied the afternoon to the moment. “As AI reshapes our industry, honoring him is also a reminder that progress must move forward with artists, not at their expense,” he said in the announcement.
It was a long day of honors for Common. That same Thursday night, the Black Music Action Coalition honored him at its gala at the Beverly Hilton, as Velvet reported in Music Is Medicine at the Beverly Hilton, BMAC Honors Patti LaBelle and Common.
