American producer Suzanne de Passe will receive the Bob Marley Award tonight from the American Foundation for the University of the West Indies (AFUWI) at the foundation's 14th gala, taking place tonight in New York. The gala allows the foundation to raise funds to develop educational programmes at the University of the West Indies.
Suzanne de Passe will be the first woman to receive the prize, which rewards contributions in the field of the arts and culture that "transcend the boundaries of race, colour and country, uniting people around the world in a spirit embodying the music of Bob Marley".
A producer, Suzanne de Passe began her career at Motown, discovering among others The Jackson Five, and Lionel Richie and the Commodores. Now co-chair of de Passe Jones Entertainment, she is currently working on King, the biopic about Martin Luther King co-produced with Steven Spielberg.