Claim: Michael Jackson was a musician.

The Grammy Legend Award , or the Grammy Living Legend Award , is a special award of merit given to recording artists by the Grammy Awards , a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards . Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry .   The first Grammy Legend Awards were issued in 1990 to Smokey Robinson , Willie Nelson , Andrew Lloyd Webber , and Liza Minnelli . The honor was inaugurated to recognize `` ongoing contributions and influence in the recording field '' . The next year four more musicians -LRB- Aretha Franklin , Billy Joel , Johnny Cash and Quincy Jones -RRB- were acknowledged with Grammy Legend Awards . The award was given to Barbra Streisand in 1992 and Michael Jackson in 1993 .   After 1994 , when the American musicians Curtis Mayfield and Frank Sinatra were both issued Grammy Legend Awards , the honors have been given to recording artists intermittently . Italian operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti was the 1998 recipient of the award . The following year , British singer-songwriter Elton John was recognized with the honor . The Bee Gees became the first recipients of the award in the 21st century when the brothers were acknowledged by the Grammys in 2003 . Overall , fourteen solo musicians and one band have received the Grammy Legend Award .