1. Willie Nelson, 87
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How you know him: Willie Nelson has been a country music legend since the '60s, when he wrote Patsy Cline's timeless hit "Crazy." He released the classic album Red Headed Stranger in the '70s, dropped "On the Road Again" in the '80s, and has pretty much toured the whole time.
What he's up to today: The man does not stop — he's released 14 albums since 2010 alone! The song above is a beautiful ballad, "Our Song," off his 2020 album, First Rose of Spring. His next album, That's Life, arrives in February.
2. Dionne Warwick, 80
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How you know her: Dionne Warwick possesses one of popular music's greatest voices and has charted more times than I can count with timeless hits like "I Say a Little Prayer" (in the '60s), "Then Came You" (in the '70s), and "That's What Friends Are For" (in the '80s).
What she's up to today: In addition to becoming a Twitter darling in 2020, she appeared on The Masked Singer and sang "What the World Needs Now Is Love." She recorded the same song (above) for her 2019 album She's Back.
3. Tony Bennett, 94
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How you know him: After fighting in World War II, the classy Tony Bennett established himself as one of the world's most recognizable pop and jazz singers with a silky, timeless croon, famous for hits like "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."
What he's up to today: Bennett is still going strong at 94. After recording and touring with Lady Gaga in his late eighties, he recorded a collaborative album with Diana Krall, Love Is Here to Stay, in 2018. Above, they sing the Gershwin-penned title track.
4. Paul McCartney, 78
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How you know him: Paul McCartney was the Beatle behind classic songs like "Yesterday," "Can't Buy Me Love," and "Hey Jude." After the Beatles, he formed Wings, which went on to become one of the biggest acts of the '70s, thanks to classic albums like Band on the Run. Every decade from the '60s through the '00s, he was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards.
What he's up to today: In 2020, during lockdown (or "rockdown," as McCartney calls it), he wrote and recorded the album McCartney III all by himself. It topped the charts in England and hit No. 2 in the United States. Above is the song "Find My Way" off the album.
5. Ringo Starr, 80
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How you know him: Ringo Starr was the drummer in the Beatles and sang the classics "Yellow Submarine" and "With a Little Help From My Friends." Later, he scored chart-topping solo hits like "Photograph," and he has toured almost every year since 1989 with his All-Starr Band.
What he's up to today: He recorded an EP during lockdown and plans to release it in 2021. Last month, he released a star-packed single from the sessions entitled "Here's to the Nights."
6. Yoko Ono, 87
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How you know her: Yes, Yoko Ono was John Lennon's wife, but by the time she met him, she'd already made her name as an avant-garde artist. She would go on to cowrite "Imagine" with Lennon and release the gritty, influential albums Fly and Approximately Infinite Universe. In 1980, she and Lennon released the collaborative album Double Fantasy, which won Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards.
What she's up to today: Ono has continued to record and perform, often with her son, Sean Lennon, and spreads John Lennon's and her message of peace. "Woman Power" is a track off her 2018 album, Warzone.
7. Buddy Guy, 84
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How you know him: One of the greatest guitarists of all time, Buddy Guy spent the '50s and '60s playing on classic Chess Records tracks by blues legends like Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and Little Walter. Later, he released his own acclaimed albums and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
What he's up to today: Guy is still an incredible force to be reckoned with in his live performances. Above, he plays "Cognac," off his 2018 Grammy-winning album, The Blues Is Alive and Well.
8. Loretta Lynn, 88
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How you know her: She's a legend of country music who has scored two dozen No. 1 hits over the years, like "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)" and "Coal Miner's Daughter," the latter of which became the title of an acclaimed film about her life.
What she's up to today: Lynn will release her 50th studio album, Still Woman Enough, in March. The song above — "Ain't No Time to Go" — is a keeper off her 2018 album, Wouldn't It Be Great.
9. Bob Dylan, 79
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How you know him: Bob Dylan is America's most legendary singer-songwriter — and some say the greatest songwriter in music history. His songs have been covered thousands of times by artists ranging from Jimi Hendrix ("All Along the Watchtower") to Adele ("To Make You Feel My Love").
What he's up to today: Dylan, who has toured nonstop for decades, had to finally come off the road in 2020 because of the pandemic, but he still released his 39th studio album, Rough and Rowdy Ways, which featured "False Prophet" (above).
10. The Rolling Stones, Late Seventies
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How you know them: The Rolling Stones have been one of rock's greatest bands for almost 60 years. Original members Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, both 77, wrote classic Stones songs like "Satisfaction" and "Gimme Shelter," while drummer Charlie Watts, 79, has been laying down the beat since the beginning. (Guitarist Ron Woods, who has been with the band since 1975, is 73.)
What they're up to today: Like everyone else, the Stones had to cancel their touring plans last year, but they released the gritty single "Living in a Ghost Town" (above), which was very appropriate for 2020.
11. Barbra Streisand, 78
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How you know her: Barbra Streisand is the legendary actor, director, and, of course, singer with a voice "like buttah." She's one of the few entertainers to pull off an EGOT (winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award).
What she's up to today: She still sounds incredible, as you can hear above in a "behind the song" video for "The Rain Will Fall" off her 2018 album, Walls.
12. Bobby Rush, 87
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How you know him: Bobby Rush is the bluesman behind the '70s hit "Chicken Heads," which re-charted in 2006 when it was featured in the film Black Snake Moan. His blues roots are deep — he was friends with Elmore James and later performed with Etta James, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and Jimmy Reed.
What he's up to today: After winning his first Grammy at age 83 for the 2017 album Porcupine Meat, Rush released Rawer Than Raw last August. The video above is of Rush playing an at-home version of one of the album's tracks, "Let Me in Your House."
13. Dion DiMucci, 81
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How you know him: He was a massive star in the late '50s and early '60s when he led Dion and the Belmonts and scored hit after hit, like "Runaround Sue" and "The Wanderer." Later, he gravitated more to the blues.
What he's up to today: Last year, he released Blues With Friends, an album that saw him performing bluesy new songs with everyone from Paul Simon to Bruce Springsteen. The track above, "Can't Start Over Again," is a beautiful ballad featuring guitarist Jeff Beck.
14. Nana Mouskouri, 86
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How you know her: Nana Mouskouri is the Greek singer who has an incredible fluency for singing in different languages; she has released over 200 albums in at least 12 languages. She was also a beloved TV host on the BBC in the '70s.
What she's up to today: In 2018, she toured for five months behind her new album Forever Young, featuring her take on the Bob Dylan classic (above).
15. Clarence Carter, 84
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How you know him: Clarence Carter is the Grammy-winning blues and soul singer behind hits like "Patches" and "Slip Away." You may also have raised your eyebrows at his raunchy songs "Backdoor Santa" and "Strokin'".
What he's up to today: Carter dropped Mr. Old School last year, featuring the song "G Spot" (above), which proves that he can be just as raunchy in his eighties as he was in his youth.
16. Dolly Parton, 75
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How you know her: Dolly Parton is the incredibly wise, funny, and philanthropic country singer and actor...who also happens to be the all-time great songwriter of "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You."
What she's up to today: Last year, she released her first Christmas album, A Holly Dolly Christmas, and performed a Christmas special of the same name. Above, she performs the moving "I Believe" on the special.