ICON: The Life and Legacy of B.B. King
THE GRAMMY FOUNDATION® AND GRAMMY MUSEUM® PARTNER TO PRESENT ICON: THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF B.B. KING FEATURING JOE BONAMASSA, KEB’ MO’, KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD, SLASH, SUSAN TEDESCHI, DEREK TRUCKS, JIMMIE VAUGHAN, AND JOE LOUIS WALKER WITH JIMMY VIVINO AND THE BASIC CABLE BAND
GRAMMY Foundation® Vice President Scott Goldman to Host Benefit Tribute Event
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (July 26, 2016) — The GRAMMY Foundation® and GRAMMY Museum® are partnering on Sept. 1 to celebrate the life and legacy of B.B. King, 15-time GRAMMY®-winning rhythm & blues singer. Titled Icon: The Life And Legacy Of B.B. King, the live tribute, sponsored in part by Gibson USA, will include performances by multi-GRAMMY winners Keb’ Mo’, Derek Trucks, and Jimmie Vaughan; GRAMMY winners Slash and Susan Tedeschi; GRAMMY nominees Joe Bonamassa and Kenny Wayne Shepherd; and blues guitarist Joe Louis Walker. The show’s music director will be Jimmy Vivino of the “Conan” show. He will be joined by the Basic Cable Band, who will serve as the house band for the evening. Scott Goldman, Vice President of the GRAMMY Foundation, will be the evening’s host.
In addition to live tribute performances and storytelling by artists influenced by King’s music, a pre-event VIP reception will be held at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, Calif.
“This evening marks a unique collaboration between the GRAMMY Foundation and GRAMMY Museum, and it serves to showcase these charities founded by The Recording Academy® that share a mission of preserving music’s legacy and presenting it to a wide range of audiences,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation, and Board Chair of the GRAMMY Museum. “This event is designed to be an annual fundraiser in honor of a music icon that will invite the public to enjoy tribute performances by an array of talented artists that engage, entertain, and enlighten.”
“Exploring the enduring legacies of all forms of music, and the artists who created them, is a large part of our mission, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with the GRAMMY Foundation on a spectacular evening that will demonstrate our shared commitment to preserving the legacy of B.B. King,” said Bob Santelli, Executive Director of the GRAMMY Museum. “We’re looking forward to having this amazing lineup of artists join us for a night that will introduce, or reintroduce, hundreds of music fans to the legacy of the King of the Blues.”
Proceeds raised from Icon: The Life And Legacy Of B.B. King will support the initiatives of the GRAMMY Foundation and GRAMMY Museum, two charitable organizations of The Recording Academy.
Referred to as the King of the Blues, King released more than 50 albums since he began recording in the 1940s, creating classics such as “3 O’Clock Blues,” “You Don’t Know Me,” and “The Thrill Is Gone,” among many others. King was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He received The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, has had four recordings inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame, and he received honorary doctorates from several universities and music colleges. King has inspired a variety of artists through the years, including Bonamassa, Elvis Costello, Robert Cray, J.J. Cale, John Mayer, Delbert McClinton, Jimmy Page, Diane Schuur, Slash, Tedeschi, and Vaughan, several of whom will perform at the concert.
The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts is located at 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills, Calif., 90210. The red carpet portion of the evening will take place from 5:30–6:30 p.m., the reception from 6:30–8 p.m., and the show will begin at 8 p.m. The attire is business casual, and ticket prices are $250 for admission to the reception and show, $100 for the show only, and $50 for mezzanine seating. Tickets can be purchased here.
The GRAMMY Foundation was established in 1988 to cultivate the understanding, appreciation, and advancement of the contribution of recorded music to American culture. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programs and activities that engage the music industry and cultural community as well as the general public. The Foundation works in partnership year-round with its founder, The Recording Academy, to bring national attention to important issues such as the value and impact of music and arts education and the urgency of preserving our rich cultural heritage. In recognition of the significant role of teachers in shaping their students’ musical experiences, The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation partnered to present their first Music Educator AwardTM in 2014. Open to current U.S. music teachers in kindergarten through college, the fourth annual Music Educator Award will be given out during GRAMMY Week 2017 and nominations are being accepted for the 2018 cycle. With funding generously provided by The Recording Academy, the GRAMMY Foundation Grant Program awards grants each year to support efforts that advance the preservation of music and the recorded sound heritage of North America, and research projects related to the impact of music on the human condition. Letters of Inquiry are currently being accepted through Oct. 1, 2016, for the 2017 grant cycle. For more information about the Foundation, please visit www.grammyfoundation.org. For breaking news and exclusive content, please “like” GRAMMY in the Schools on Facebook, follow the GRAMMY Foundation on Twitter (@GRAMMYFdn) and join us on Instagram (@GRAMMYFdn).
Paying tribute to music’s rich cultural history, the GRAMMY Museum explores and celebrates the enduring legacies of all forms of music, the creative process, the art and technology of the recording process, and the history of the premier recognition of excellence in recorded music — the GRAMMY Award. The GRAMMY Museum features 30,000 square feet of interactive and multimedia exhibits located within L.A. Live, the downtown Los Angeles sports, entertainment, and residential district. Through thought-provoking and dynamic public and educational programs and exhibits, guests experience music from a never-before-seen insider perspective that only the GRAMMY Museum can deliver. For more information, please call 213.765.6800 or visit www.grammymuseum.org. For breaking news and exclusive content, follow @TheGRAMMYMuseum on Twitter and Instagram, and “like” The GRAMMY Museum on Facebook.
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Media Contacts:
Christina Cassidy/GRAMMY Foundation /310.581.8670/ christina.cassidy@grammy.com
Crystal Larsen/GRAMMY Museum /213.763.2133/ clarsen@grammymuseum.org
Joe Schneider/Rogers & Cowan/310.854.8140/jschneider@rogersandcowan.com
Holly Taylor/Rogers & Cowan/310.854.8115/hetaylor@rogersandcowan.com
