The Blues Music Awards, formerly known as the

W. C. Handy William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was an American composer and musician who referred to himself as the Father of the Blues. Handy was one of the most influential songwriters in the United States. One of many musici ...

Awards (or "The Handys"), are

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

s presented by the

Blues Foundation The Blues Foundation is an American nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, that is affiliated with more than 175 blues organizations from various parts of the world. Founded in 1980, a 25-person board of directors governs the ...

, a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

set up to foster

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

heritage. The awards were originally named in honor of

, "Father of the Blues." The first award was presented in 1980 and is "universally recognized as the highest accolade afforded musicians and songwriters in blues music." In 2006, the awards were renamed Blues Music Awards in an effort to increase public appreciation of the significance of the awards. The are presented annually in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, where the Blues Foundation is located, although the 2008 award ceremony was held in

Tunica, Mississippi Tunica is a town in and the county seat of Tunica County, Mississippi, United States, near the Mississippi River. Until the early 1990s when casino gambling was introduced in the area, Tunica had been one of the most impoverished places in the Un ...

. The 39th Blues Music Awards was held on May 10, 2018, at the

Memphis Cook Convention Center The Renasant Convention Center is a convention complex located in downtown Memphis, Tennessee, United States. The building is East of the Mississippi River just south of Interstate 40. The building's raised exhibition space spans over North Front ...

in Memphis. Two new award categories had been announced (Instrumentalist-Vocals and Blues Rock Artist of the Year) bringing the number of awards to be presented up to 26 in total. The 40th Blues Music Awards took place on May 9, 2019, with the Historical Album of the Year category being dropped, reducing the overall number to 25. The 41st ceremony was scheduled for May 7, 2020, but the live event was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. The 2020 winners were announced at a " virtual" event. The 42nd ceremony was again presented at a virtual event on June 6, 2021. The 43rd ceremony took place on May 5, 2022, as the first in-person event since 2019.

2022

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2015

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2011

References

External links

Blues Music Awards Information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blues Music Awards American music awards Blues music awards 1980 establishments in the United States