On Friday, Sept. 7, the Recording Academy will present awards to Booker T. & the MGs, Memphis producer and arranger Willie Mitchell, and New Orleans soul singer Irma Thomas in an event featuring performances from several award-winning musicians. The Recording Academy, the organization responsible for bestowing Grammy Awards, will also honor music engineer, producer and record executive Knox Phillips with a Special Legacy Presentation. The biennial Honors Gala will be held at the Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tenn., and will celebrate “outstanding individuals whose work embodies excellence and integrity and who have improved the environment for the creative community.”
Presenters include Recording Academy President Neil Portnow as well as President of Festival Productions and producer of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival Quint Davis. Among the many scheduled performers are jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco (pictured) and jazz saxophonist Kirk Whalum, both of whom are Grammy nominees. Other performers include Aaron Neville, John Prine, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Angie Stone and husband-and-wife duo Donald Bryant and Ann Peebles.
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