The year is 1996 and the awards dinner had garnered a reputation as an event not to be missed. In celebration of #BlackMusicMonth & our 30th Anniversary, we are remembering our past awards dinners and honorees. The Impact Super Summit left Atlantic City and moved their conference to the Opryland Hotel in Nashville and we went with them. The hosts in 1996 were the legendary
“Chief Rocker” Frankie Crocker and the Empress Of Soul, Gladys Knight! This year was also bittersweet because beloved retailer Beverly Taylor died of a heart attack before she could get her award. What do you remember about this awards show? The honorees were:
L-R: Ted Hudson, owner of 11 Hudson’s Embassy Records stores and Ted’s One Stop in St. Louis; Warren Lanier Sr., PR Specialist & syndicated columnist “Ebony Etchings Etc”; Tom Draper, SVP RCA, Warner Bros & Time Warner
L-R: Claude “BB” Davis, gospel DJ KOKA & KVKI, Shreveport; Eddie O’Jay, DJ WABQ, WUFO, WWRL, WBLS, WLIB (He discovered the Mascots singing group, who were renamed The O’Jays); Beverly Taylor, owner of The Joy Of Music record store in Cleveland
Some of these honorees are no longer with us but their contributions to the Black Music industry will never be forgotten.
Full bios will be at livinglegendsfoundation.com
#livinglegendsfoundation30 #musicdaypodcast #BlackMusic365 #tellourownstories