Berklee Honors Ringo Starr, Lalah Hathaway, James Newton Howard, and Chuck Rainey at Commencement The entertainment legends received honorary doctorates for their immeasurable impact on music, film and television, and popular culture.
By
Daniel Pesquera
May 7, 2022
From left to right: Berklee President Erica Muhl; honorees Chuck Rainey, Lalah Hathaway, and James Newton Howard; and Berklee Provost Larry Simpson
Image by Mike Spencer
More than 900 graduates from 67 countries and 46 U.S. states came together to celebrate at the Agganis Arena in Boston for Berklee College of Music's 2022 commencement, the first in-person ceremony held in three years. Berklee President Erica Muhl presented honorary doctorates to Beatles icon Ringo Starr, R&B luminary and Berklee alumna Lalah Hathaway '90, decorated composer and producer James Newton Howard, and legendary bass player Chuck Rainey.
The annual commencement concert took place the previous evening at Agganis and featured many of Berklee's most talented graduates paying tribute to the honorees by performing their music, including Hathaway's Grammy-winning songs Something and Angel, Howard's compositions from Pretty Woman and The Hunger Games franchise, and a panoply of hits from Aretha Franklin, the Jackson 5, and Quincy Jones to reflect Rainey's contributions to music. During the concert, Hathaway took to the stage to deliver a stirring tribute to her late father, Donny Hathaway, with A Song for You, backed by a band of Berklee student musicians.
Starr delivered a surprise address in a prerecorded statement to the class of 2022. The rock legend will visit Berklee to receive his honorary degree in person this summer.
If I could wish anything for you, it would be that the passion and love that you have for making music continues to guide you through wherever your career takes you next, said Starr. It's great when success happens, and Berklee students have seen a lot of it but it's important to remember that's not what this is all about. For each of us, it started with a dream to play music. May your dream keep unfolding for you, as it has for me.
Hathaway, a genre-defying singer-songwriter and five-time Grammy Award-winner, was recognized for her vocal range, emotional live performances and recordings, and empowering songwriting. In her address, Hathaway touched on her formative experience as a Berklee student, when she recorded her debut album. She talked about the shared language and connection in the Berklee community, and how she played with some of the greatest musicians ever still to this day. There are people out there in the halls at Berklee that I still think about, that electrify me, and push me toward greatness.
Lalah Hathaway performs A Song for You at the commencement concert.
Image by Kelly Davidson
Reflecting upon her time at the college, Hathaway thanked Maggie Scott, professor of voice, who encouraged her to make her disco album in Los Angeles and then return to Boston to make her jazz album. I'm glad she told me that, said Hathaway. In that moment I didn't know that I could do whatever I wanted to do. I had a vision for who I was as an artist, as a musician, when I came here, and I'm glad that I wasn't fully in charge of that because I might have pigeonholed myself. So don't do that to yourselves. That's important for you to remember. You can do whatever you want to do. As soon as you realize what your path is and you are clearly going on that path, you're the greatest.
On the dynamics of being an artist, Hathaway said, You've done something really great. You have made the choice to share your God-given thoughts and your dreams and your ruminations and your nightmares and your talent. All of that goes into your music. All of that plays into your art. You've taken the next step and a leap of faith toward becoming an alchemist, a storyteller, a game changer, a healer. I hope that you have made an agreement with yourself to be honest and truthful with your art. Do not look to the music industry to tell you that you're an artist.
Be uncompromising about finding your life's work, but be open to it being something you can't imagine for yourself now.
- James Newton Howard
Howard, an acclaimed film composer, conductor, songwriter, and record producer, was celebrated for his original scores for such foundational movies as Pretty in Pink, The Fugitive, and The Sixth Sense across a storied career that has included nine Oscar nominations, an Emmy, and a Grammy. President Muhl acknowledged Howard's mark on popular music through collaborations with cultural icons Elton John, Diana Ross, and Crosby, Stills & Nash, among many others, as well as his masterful arrangements brought to life by the Pacific Symphony and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
I don't believe we make our own luck, but I do believe we need to be available, willing, and capable of responding when the opportunity knocks, said Howard. Don't settle for mediocre. You will become what you practice most, so practice excellence, practice creativity, and remember the creative muscle is a muscle that needs to be exercised and strengthened. He closed his speech by offering the graduating class the following advice: Be uncompromising about finding your life's work, but be open to it being something you can't imagine for yourself now.
Next time it rains, be still and listen to it there's a bass line in there.
- Chuck Rainey
One of the most ubiquitous and influential bass players in American music, Chuck Rainey earned honors from Berklee for advancing intricate techniques still employed by bassists today. President Muhl related how Rainey quickly became a coveted fixture of major recording studios and touring acts of the '60s and
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Berklee Honors Ringo Starr, Lalah Hathaway, James Newton Howard, and Chuck Rainey at Commencement The entertainment legends received honorary doctorates for their immeasurable impact on music, film and television, and popular culture.
