A new “Memphis Music Hall of Fame,” a project of the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum, announced its first batch of inductees this afternoon.
Via the official press release:
At a press conference hosted by Mayor AC Wharton held here today at the The Warehouse, a video and performance facility in downtown Memphis the names of the 25 initial inductees to the recently announced Memphis Music Hall of Fame were announced. The induction ceremony is set for Thursday, November 29th at Cannon Center for Performing Arts in downtown Memphis. Tickets are now on sale through www.ticketmaster.com.
The inaugural inductees were selected earlier this year by a Nominating Committee of local and national music professionals, including studio owners, producers, authors, and historians who discussed and debated at length who would be tapped for induction based on a variety of criteria reflecting the fact that Memphis has long been, and continues to serve as the fulcrum for music’s most original creators working in all genres including blues, gospel, jazz, rhythm and blues, soul, country, rockabilly, rock and roll, hip-hop. The Memphis Music Hall of Fame is under the administration of the Smithsonian-developed Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum.
Alphabetical listing of 2012 initial Memphis Music Hall of Fame inductees:
Estelle Axton & Jim Stewart
Bobby “Blue” Bland
Booker T. and The MG’s
Lucie Campbell
George Coleman
Jim Dickinson
Al Green
W.C. Handy
Isaac Hayes
Howlin’ Wolf
B.B. King
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jimmie Lunceford
Professor W.T. McDaniel
Memphis Minnie
Willie Mitchell
Dewey Phillips
Sam Phillips
Elvis Presley
Otis Redding
The Staple Singers
Rufus Thomas
Three 6 Mafia
Nat D. Williams
ZZ Top
