On Sunday, July 13th 2025 Willie Stewart was chosen by People Profile as the recipient for the 2025″ Lifetime Achievement Award” presentation took place at the Broward Center for The Performing Arts.
SPEECH FROM WILLIE STEWART: “I am deeply honored and incredibly humbled to accept this Lifetime Achievement Award.
To be recognized for a life lived in music and in service to young people is truly overwhelming—and a gift I don’t take lightly. Congratulations to all the other awardees – what an inspiring group – what we share in common is the love and passion for what we do thank you to the organizers of this wonderful event People Profile Awards and also congratulations on their decade of excellence, Your belief in my work means more than I can say.
To my family—thank you for being my foundation. And to my beautiful wife, Carol Stewart, you’ve been my heart, my strength. Thank you for walking beside me through every note, every challenge, every victory. To Dynamic Visions, Inner Circle, Byron Lee, Third World Band, Stevie Wonder, Eddy Grant, Gamble & Huff to Mention a few and every musician, colleague, and professional I’ve worked with through the years—thank you. Each of you helped shape my journey. But most of all, I want to thank the incredible young people I’ve had the privilege of teaching. You are the reason I do what I do.
You’ve taught me just as much as I’ve tried to teach you. Watching you discover your voice—your rhythm, your soul—has been the greatest reward. Music is more than sound. It is connection, it is healing, it is hope. And for the youth—it is a lifeline, a way in, and a way forward. I accept this award not just for myself, but on behalf of every child who ever picked up an instrument in one of my classrooms, every young person who dared to dream a little bigger because of music.
I must give a big shout-out to our Board members and CEO of Embrace Music Foundation and the wonderful Hardworking Team and steering committee that keeps our dream alive Through the Embrace Music Foundation, we’ve worked to make sure music stays relevant and accessible to all children—because every child deserves the chance to feel seen, heard, and empowered through music. Thank you to everyone who believed in me and this mission.
This award is a beautiful honor—but the real reward has always been the music, and the young lives it touches. I give God thanks for the talent and the blessing Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart.”