The Americana Music Association has selected Jackson Browne, Loretta Lynn, Flaco Jimenez and Taj Mahal as the winners of Lifetime Achievement Awards at The 13th Annual AMA Honors and Awards ceremony at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville this September.

Classic rock musician and political activist Jackson Browne will be presented with the “Spirit of Americana Award, Free Speech in Music” co-presented  with the First Amendment Center.  Browne has long campaigned for environmental conservation and pushed for the use of clean energy on tour. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in 2007, Browne’s music immortalized post-Vietnam America in the seventies, disputed foreign policy in the eighties and became a pivotal voice in musical history.

Country music legend Loretta Lynn, the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” from Johnson County, Kentucky, will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for songwriting. Her groundbreaking music has placed her among the most admired women in history of American Music. Loretta Lynn is already a Country Music Hall of Fame member, and along with Browne, has also been inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.

Texas-born conjunto tejano accordionist, Flaco Jimenez, will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award as an Instrumentalist. Jimenez has collaborated with dozens of legends, including Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones, and is the winner of several Grammy awards. The Lifetime Achievement in Performance award will be going to self-taught blues legend, Taj Mahal. The Harlem multi-instrumentalist has influenced many with his unique take on traditional musical styles.

“These artists have not only influenced the Americana community, but the musical landscape on the whole,” said Jed Hilly, Executive Director of the Americana Music Association. “They all have been an inspiration to our community and we are humbled they will honor us in song at the Ryman this fall.”

– Samantha M. Lopez