We've had a post on bassist and vocalist Esperanza Spalding previously, but perhaps we could do with an update. Last year she played at the White House for Stevie Wonder's Gershwin Prize concert and again for the Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word (previously). In December she performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, and, according to wikipedia, her February 6 performance on Austin Cty Limits (PBS [US only?], with Madeleine Peyroux) made her the most-searched person, and the second-most-searched item on Google the next day. [more inside]
posted by Someday Bum on Apr 16, 2010 - 7 comments

Obama's Nobel Peace Prize lecture
posted by Dumsnill on Dec 10, 2009 - 155 comments

Albert A. Gore Jr. shares the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. "He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted." Still not running for president.
posted by blacklite on Oct 12, 2007 - 213 comments

What do the pope, Bono, former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, and Michael Jackson have in common? They're all part of one of the weakest Nobel Peace Prize slates in history. Peace has been a commodity in such short supply recently that a Norwegian researcher has commented that "no political leaders have distinguished themselves in ways deserving of the prize." Another commentator said this time last year that the committee would send the strongest message to the world by selecting nobody.
posted by PrinceValium on Oct 6, 2003 - 28 comments

"It's a beautiful day..." So i hear U2's singer, the great and charismatic Bono, has just been nominated for nobel peace prize. Of course, we the french, find it very amusing to find Chirac nominated. (Oh, the hysteria if ever he won). Also in the race is ex Gov. George H Ryan, who amongst other achievements declared a moratorium in 2000, before leaving his job a few months ago... with class. Or maybe they'll just choose Bono & Chirac for knowing how to work together on the 'drop the debt' issue? So, what do you say? (i'd have to go with Bono, i'm afraid. Rock n roll but effective and passionate...)
posted by Sijeka on Feb 19, 2003 - 39 comments

A petition to give the Nobel Peace Prize to Afghan Nuclear Scientists for hiding radioactive material that could have been used for a nuclear bomb by Al Qaeda. I think it's an inspired and appropriate suggestion, and the petition could be of great use in attraction the attention of nominators and Nobel committee.
posted by adrianhon on Apr 13, 2002 - 4 comments

In case you still thought there was still anything even slightly rational, even-handed and non-ideological about the Nobel Peace Prize: Members of the NPP committee that gave Shimon Peres the Prize in 1994 are now attacking him for not singlehandedly putting a stop to Israeli reoccupation of Palestinian territory, even though here's only a member of the cabinet, not the leader of the country. (Alternatively, they say, he should have quit.) Which would be okay, since what's going on now isn't very peaceful ... except that they've said not a peep about about the actions of one of the other two men that shared the prize that year, one Yassir Arafat. (The third, Yitzhak Rabin, apparently gets off the hook since he's already dead.)
posted by aaron on Apr 5, 2002 - 12 comments

Eyes on the Prize White House lobbied Norwegians for Clinton Nobel Peace Prize. Clinton and his minions are despicable, no?
posted by argus on Oct 13, 2000 - 4 comments