Library of Congress
2. The Library of Congress inherits 200 rare artist interviews. Former Capitol Records/EMI president Joe Smith, donated these interviews featuring artists including Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, Ella Fitzgerald, Paul Simon, Joan Baez, B.B. King, Tina Turner, and Elton John. The library has plans to digitize these interviews and make them available to stream online. On the donation, Joe Smith said,
"In recent years, it dawned on me that, if anything, the significance of recollections from Jerry Lee Lewis, Mick Jagger, Smokey Robinson, Ahmet Ertegun, Herb Alpert, Ruth Brown and all the other notables I was fortunate enough to interview are truly part of the fabric of our cultural history. I hope that generations to come will benefit from hearing the voices of these brilliant artists and industry luminaries recounting their personal histories. I'm just thrilled that the Library of Congress has agreed to preserve and safeguard these audio artifacts."These interviews give the utmost insight in to these artists lives, showing them at their most vulnerable and personal state. [Rollingstone] [Joe Smith via]