Annual awards by the Blues Foundation since 1980
The Blues Music Awards , formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards (or "The Handys"), are awards presented by the Blues Foundation , a non-profit organization set up to foster blues heritage. The awards were originally named in honor of W. C. Handy , "Father of the Blues".[1] The first award was presented in 1980 and is "universally recognized as the highest accolade afforded musicians and songwriters in blues music".[2] In 2006, the awards were renamed Blues Music Awards in an effort to increase public appreciation of the significance of the awards.[3]
They are presented annually in Memphis, Tennessee , where the Blues Foundation is located, although the 2008 award ceremony was held in Tunica, Mississippi .[4] The 39th Blues Music Awards were held on May 10, 2018, at the Memphis Cook Convention Center . 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.[5] 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 of categories to 25.[6]
The 41st ceremony was scheduled for May 7, 2020, but the live event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[7] [8] The 2020 winners were announced at a virtual event.[9] The 42nd ceremony was again presented at a virtual event on June 6, 2021.[10] The 43rd ceremony took place on May 5, 2022, as the first in-person event since 2019.[11] The 44th event was held on May 11, 2023, in Memphis.[12] The 45th event will be held on May 8, 2024, in Memphis.[13]
Category Winner Acoustic Album of the Year Acoustic Artist of the Year Album of the Year B.B King Entertainer of the Year Band of the Year Best Emerging Artist Album Contemporary Blues Album of the Year Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year Instrumentalist – Bass Instrumentalist – Drums Instrumentalist – Guitar Instrumentalist – Harmonica Instrumentalist – Horn Instrumentalist – Vocals Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female) Blues Rock Album of the Year Blues Rock Artist of the Year Song of the Year Soul Blues Album of the Year Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year Traditional Blues Album of the Year Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year
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Category Winner Acoustic Album of the Year Journeys to the Heart of the Blues , Joe Louis Walker , Bruce Katz , Giles Robson Acoustic Artist of the Year Rory Block Album of the Year America's Child , Shemekia Copeland B.B King Entertainer of the Year Mike Ledbetter Band of the Year Welch-Ledbetter Connection Best Emerging Artist Album Free , Amanda Fish Contemporary Blues Album of the Year America's Child , Shemekia Copeland Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Danielle Nicole Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year Kenny Neal Instrumentalist – Bass Danielle Nicole Instrumentalist – Drums Cedric Burnside Instrumentalist – Guitar Monster Mike Welch Instrumentalist – Harmonica Dennis Gruenling Instrumentalist – Horn Vanessa Collier Instrumentalist – Vocals Mike Ledbetter Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Marcia Ball Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female) Ruthie Foster Blues Rock Album of the Year The Big Bad Blues , Billy F Gibbons Blues Rock Artist of the Year Eric Gales Song of the Year "No Mercy In This Land", Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite Soul Blues Album of the Year I'm Still Around , Johnny Rawls Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year Annika Chambers Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year Sugaray Rayford Traditional Blues Album of the Year The Blues Is Alive and Well , Buddy Guy Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year Nick Moss
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Category Winner Acoustic Album of the Year Timeless , John Hammond Acoustic Artist of the Year John Hammond Album of the Year Can't Even Do Wrong Right , Elvin Bishop B.B King Entertainer of the Year Bobby Rush Band of the Year Elvin Bishop Band Best New Artist Debut Don't Call No Ambulance , Selwyn Birchwood Contemporary Blues Album of the Year BLUESAmericana , Keb' Mo' Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Janiva Magness Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year Gary Clark, Jr. Historical Album of the Year Soul & Swagger: The Complete “5” Royales 1951-1967 – The "5" Royales Instrumentalist – Bass Lisa Mann Instrumentalist – Drums Jimi Bott Instrumentalist – Guitar Joe Bonamassa Instrumentalist – Harmonica Charlie Musselwhite Instrumentalist – Horn Deanna Bogart Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Marcia Ball Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female) Ruthie Foster Rock Blues Album of the Year Step Back , Johnny Winter Song of the Year "Can't Even Do Wrong Right", Elvin Bishop Soul Blues Album of the Year Memphis Grease , John Németh Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year Sista Monica Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year Bobby Rush Traditional Blues Album of the Year For Pops (A Tribute to Muddy Waters) , Mud Morganfield , Kim Wilson Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year Lurrie Bell
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Category Winner Acoustic Album of the Year There's A Time , Doug MacLeod Acoustic Artist of the Year Doug MacLeod Album of the Year Remembering Little Walter , Billy Boy Arnold , Charlie Musselwhite , Mark Hummel , Sugar Ray Norcia and James Harman B.B King Entertainer of the Year Buddy Guy Band of the Year Tedeschi Trucks Band Best New Artist Debut Daddy Told Me , Shawn Holt & the Teardrops Contemporary Blues Album of the Year Badlands , Trampled Under Foot Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Susan Tedeschi Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year Gary Clark, Jr. DVD Songs From The Road , Royal Southern Brotherhood Historical Album of the Year The Sun Blues Box , Various artists Instrumentalist – Bass Danielle Schnebelen Instrumentalist – Drums Cedric Burnside Instrumentalist – Guitar Ronnie Earl Instrumentalist – Harmonica Charlie Musselwhite Instrumentalist – Horn Eddie Shaw Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Victor Wainwright Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female) Diunna Greenleaf Rock Blues Album of the Year Made Up Mind , Tedeschi Trucks Band Song of the Year "Blues in My Soul", Lurrie Bell Soul Blues Album of the Year Down in Louisiana , Bobby Rush Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year Irma Thomas Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year John Németh Traditional Blues Album of the Year Remembering Little Walter , Billy Boy Arnold , Charlie Musselwhite , Mark Hummel , Sugar Ray Norcia and James Harman Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year James Cotton
Category Winner Acoustic Album of the Year Last Train to Bluesville , The Nighthawks Acoustic Artist of the Year John Hammond Album of the Year Living Proof , Buddy Guy B.B King Entertainer of the Year Buddy Guy Band of the Year The Derek Trucks Band Best New Artist Debut On the Floor , Matt Hill Contemporary Blues Album of the Year Living Proof , Buddy Guy Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year Robin Rogers Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year Buddy Guy DVD Ruf, Songs From The Road , Luther Allison Historical Album of the Year Harmonica Blues , Bob Corritore and Friends Instrumentalist – Bass Bob Stroger Instrumentalist – Drums Cedric Burnside Instrumentalist – Guitar Derek Trucks Instrumentalist – Harmonica Charlie Musselwhite Instrumentalist – Horn Eddie Shaw Instrumentalist – Other Sonny Rhodes , Lap steel guitar Koko Taylor Award (Traditional Blues Female) Ruthie Foster Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Dr. John Rock Blues Album of the Year Live! In Chicago , Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band featuring Hubert Sumlin , Willie "Big Eyes" Smith , Bryan Lee and Buddy Flett Song of the Year "Living Proof", (Tom Hambridge / Buddy Guy), Living Proof , Buddy Guy Soul Blues Album of the Year Nothing's Impossible , Solomon Burke Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year Irma Thomas Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year Solomon Burke Traditional Blues Album of the Year Joined At the Hip , Pinetop Perkins and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year Charlie Musselwhite
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References [ edit ] ^ "BMI Ain't Singin' the Blues with Sweep of Handys" . BMI.com . 2002-06-02. Retrieved 2021-03-04 . ^ "2013 Blues Awards Nominees Announced" . Offbeat.com . December 10, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2014 . ^ [1] Archived September 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine ^ [2] Archived June 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine ^ "2018 Blues Music Award nominees announced: Taj Mahal, Mavis Staples, Keb' Mo', N. Mississippi Allstars among nominees" . Blues Foundation . Retrieved 17 April 2018 . ^ "2019 Blues Music Awards: Memphis: May 9, 2019 – Calendar" . Bmi.com . Retrieved 22 April 2019 . ^ "The 2020 Blues Music Awards in Memphis, TN are canceled" . Blues.org . Retrieved March 29, 2020 . ^ McKay, Robin. "Blues Music Awards" . Blues.org . Retrieved January 29, 2020 . ^ a b McKay, Robin. "BLUES MUSIC AWARDS" . Blues.org . Retrieved May 4, 2020 . ^ McKay, Robin. "BLUES MUSIC AWARDS" . Blues.org . Retrieved April 14, 2021 . ^ a b "2022 Blues Music Awards Winners" . Blues.org . May 6, 2022. Retrieved May 29, 2022 . ^ Ehrenclou, Martine (January 10, 2023). "2023 Blues Music Award Nominees Announced" . Rockandbluesmuse.com . Retrieved April 19, 2023 . ^ Dickerson, Candace. "Blue Music Awards - Home Page & Nominations" . Blues.org . Retrieved February 23, 2024 . ^ Grein, Paul (May 12, 2023). "Tommy Castro Repeats as Entertainer of the Year at 2023 Blues Music Awards: Full Winners List" . Billboard.com . Retrieved May 12, 2023 . ^ Ehrenclou, Martine (June 7, 2021). "2021 Blues Music Award Winners Announced By The Blues Foundation" . Rockandbluesmuse.com . Retrieved June 9, 2021 . ^ "2019 Blues Music Awards Winners Announced" . Antimusic.com . Retrieved 11 May 2019 . ^ "Blues Music Awards winners announced; Taj Mahal & Keb' Mo's 'TajMo' wins seven awards" . Blues Foundation . Retrieved 15 May 2018 . ^ "2017 Blues Music Awards Winner List" . Americanbluesscene.com . Archived from the original on 2017-05-12. Retrieved 2017-05-24 . ^ "2016 Blues Music Awards Winner List" . Blues411.com . Archived from the original on 2016-05-06. Retrieved 2016-05-23 . ^ "2015 Blues Music Awards Winners" . Americanbluesscene.com . Archived from the original on 2015-05-19. Retrieved 2015-05-18 . ^ "Blues Music Awards 2011 – A Delta Bohemian Perspective" . Deltabohemian.com . 2011-05-26. Retrieved 2014-08-03 . External links [ edit ]