Bette Midler receives the 2026 Woody Guthrie Prize at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa

Bette Midler was honoured with the 2026 Woody Guthrie Prize on Friday 16 October at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Tulsa venue where the Woody Guthrie Center stages its prize event.

The prize recognises an artist who carries the spirit of Woody Guthrie's social conscience and musical legacy. Guthrie, the Oklahoma-born songwriter behind "This Land Is Your Land", wrote songs about work, hardship and fairness, and the center in Tulsa holds his archive. U2 were the 2025 recipient, with Bono and The Edge due to accept at the same venue.

Why Midler

The center's announcement points to more than 50 years as a singer, actress, author and producer, and to her work beyond entertainment. In 1995 she founded the New York Restoration Project, which looks after community gardens and green spaces across New York City. The center also cites her advocacy on public health, LGBTQ+ rights and humanitarian causes. Midler has won four Grammys and two Tonys, and she was part of the 2021 Kennedy Center Honors.

The night

According to the event listing, the evening was set up as a concert and interview rather than a straight ceremony. It opened with remarks from Cady Shaw and members of the Guthrie family, followed by the presentation of the prize. Midler then sat down for a conversation with the music journalist Rona Elliot, and country artist Bryan Andrews closed the night with a solo acoustic set.

Ticket and membership proceeds go towards the center's educational programming, public events, exhibitions and outreach. Details of the event are on the Woody Guthrie Center's page.

Why it matters

The Guthrie Prize is one of the few music honours that is explicitly about what an artist does with their platform, and it has tended to go to people with a long public record rather than a recent hit. Midler fits that: her recent music includes the 2026 remix collection In These Shoes (Remixes) on Warner Records, but the award looks at the decades behind it.