Starbucks Celebrates Tony Bennett’s 90th Birthday
Starbucks commemorates the 90th birthday of the legendary Tony Bennett with a day of his music and audio tributes from famed admirers.
When Tony Bennett celebrated his 80th birthday in 2006, Starbucks commemorated the occasion by carrying two albums by the music icon – a Starbucks-produced retrospective called “Through the Years” and the chart-topping “Duets: An American Classic.” The celebration continues a decade later as the living legend turns 90 and Starbucks stores mark Bennett’s birthday with a day of his music and audio tributes from admirers.
On August 3, the singer’s birthday, Starbucks celebrates the artistry of Bennett by playing his music in more than 7,500 participating U.S. stores. Audio birthday greetings from friends and admirers, including Oprah Winfrey, James Taylor, Whoopi Goldberg, Gloria Estefan, Garth Brooks, and many more, will be interspersed in the decades-spanning playlist.
“It’s a thrill to have Starbucks play my music in their stores today to celebrate my 90th birthday and I appreciate all the fantastic birthday wishes,” Bennett said.
A Bennett-curated playlist of all-time favorites, including the singer’s duets with Lady Gaga, Ray Charles and Amy Winehouse, will be available on the Starbucks profile on Spotify and through the Starbucks mobile app under Now Playing. Customers can save the playlists to their favorites or take them with them using Spotify.
“Starbucks has always been a phenomenal partner and a champion of Tony’s music. We’re happy to invite all Starbucks customers to celebrate on the occasion of his 90th birthday,” said Danny Bennett, Tony’s son and manager.
“Tony Bennett is a music legend and we’ve been lucky enough to enjoy a relationship with him for more than 20 years,” said Holly Hinton, director of Curation for Starbucks Entertainment team. “He’s one of our absolute favorites and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate this milestone birthday than to dedicate a day in our stores to his iconic catalogue with a few special surprises thrown in.”
Born Anthony Dominick Benedetto, the 19-time GRAMMY® Award-winner grew up in the Astoria section of the New York City borough of Queens and made his professional debut in the late 1940s after serving in Germany during World War II. He had his first No. 1 hit in 1951 and went on to become one of the most enduring artists in recording history, earning his most recent GRAMMY® last year for “The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern.”
