Bob Dylan has won the Nobel Prize for Literature "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition," the Swedish Academy said on Thursday in awarding the 8 million Swedish crown ($927,740) prize.
This came as a surprise as it was the first time a singer-songwriter won the world's most prestigious cultural awards.
With this, Bob Dylan also became the first person in the history to win a Grammy, an Oscar and a Nobel Prize.
His songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Masters of War,” “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall,” “The Times They Are a-Changin,” “Subterranean Homesick Blues” and “Like a Rolling Stone” captured a spirit of rebellion, dissent and independence.
"Dylan has the status of an icon. His influence on contemporary music is profound," the Swedish Academy said.
More than 50 years on, Dylan is still writing songs and is often on tour.
"He is probably the greatest living poet," Swedish Academy member Per Wastberg said.
Sara Danius, Permanent Secretary of the Nobel Academy, told a news conference there was "great unity" in the panel's decision to give Dylan the prize.
Literature was the last of this year's Nobel prizes to be awarded.
The prize is named after dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel and has been awarded since 1901 for achievements in science, literature and peace in accordance with his will.
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