Andra Day To Receive Humanitarian Award at Annual Chapin Awards Gala

Award-winning singer/songwriter and actress Andra Day will be honored with the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award at WhyHunger’s Chapin Awards Gala on May 6, 2026, at Cipriani 25 in New York City. Tickets are available here.

WhyHunger is a global nonprofit dedicated to ending hunger and advancing the human right to nutritious food. The award honors those who use their public voice and artistry to advocate for a more just, equitable world. 

“‘Rise Up’ began as a personal reminder to keep going when the world feels heavy, and I never imagined it would become an anthem for resilience and justice,” Andra Day shares. “To me, justice isn’t abstract — it means no one goes hungry, every child has nourishment, and every community has hope. If this song has helped even one person have more compassion or be healed, I’m grateful.”

The Chapin Awards Gala will bring together artists, activists, and supporters for a cocktail reception, dinner, and live music, all in support of WhyHunger’s mission to end hunger and its root causes. Previous event honorees have included Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris, Grace Potter, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Harry Belafonte, Jackson Browne, Jason Mraz, John Mellencamp, Jon Batiste, Judy Collins, Pete Seeger, and Tom Morello. 

Featuring the quadruple platinum single “Rise Up,” Andra Day's debut album Cheers to the Fall (2015) cracked the Top 10 of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts and paved the way for a handful of Grammy nominations & win, plus an Academy Award nomination for "Stand Up for Something" (2017) from the Marshall soundtrack.

Following her Golden Globe-winning portrayal of Billie Holiday in The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021), Day's second album of original material, CASSANDRA (cherith), was released in 2024. Day’s participation in the 2020 PlayOn televised benefit concert helped raise over $7 million to support WhyHunger and the NAACP LDF. Beyond hunger, Day’s charitable work has championed social and racial justice, gender equality, girls’ and women’s rights, Elton John AIDS Foundation, and advocating for juvenile justice system reform.

In 2025, WhyHunger celebrated 50 years of impact and raised $1.4 million from its 40th Annual Hungerthon fundraiser involving Bruce Springsteen, Chef Marcus Samuelsson, SAINt JHN, Yola, Young the Giant & more. In the last five years, WhyHunger has connected 6.6 million people to food and invested $9.6 million in community-led solutions globally. The nonprofit works in the United States and 24 countries around the globe to end hunger and advance the human right to nutritious food for all.

About Andra Day

Andra Day is an Emmy Award-winning, GRAMMY Award-winning, Golden Globe Award-winning, and Academy Awar®-nominated singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. In her very first on-screen acting role, she portrayed Billie Holiday in The United States vs. Billie Holiday. For her performance, she became only the second Black actress in history to win the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama. She also earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress and took home a GRAMMY for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media. She also won a Children and Family EMMY Award for her work as a writer and performer in We The People.

Most recently, she starred in the Netflix hit The Deliverance, also starring alongside Andre Holland and Aunjunue Ellis in the film Exhibiting Forgiveness. Additionally, she shares the screen with Bradley Cooper, Laura Dern, and Will Arnett in Is This Thing On?, directed by Bradley Cooper. She also portrays the goddess Athena in the Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians.