Music Facts: Spoken Word

• The GRAMMY for Best Spoken Word Album has been awarded since the GRAMMY Awards first began in 1959; however, the category has undergone several minor name changes throughout the decades. 

• Spoken word poetry, audiobooks, storytelling, non-musical dramas, sermons, narrations with or without music collaboration or accompaniment, and instructional recordings are eligible for the Best Spoken Word Album GRAMMY. 

• John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Joan Baez, George Takei, and Carrie Fisher have all won the GRAMMY for Best Spoken Word Album.