Bobby Rush - Photograph by Rick Olivier
GRAMMY Museum® Mississippi‘s 2020 Gala will be hosted virtually and livestreamed from the Museum in Cleveland, Mississippi, on Thursday, November 12, 2020. This year’s Gala will honor GRAMMY®-winning blues artist Bobby Rush with the second annual Crossroads of American Music Award. Rush will appear at the Museum’s virtual ceremony to accept the award and perform. Additional performers include country music singer/songwriter Steve Azar and GRAMMY-nominated blues musician Cedric Burnside. This year’s virtual Gala will also recognize Amy Killebrew, a teacher at Grenada Elementary School in Grenada, Mississippi, with the inaugural L.U.C.Y. Award.
“We’re looking forward to an incredibly inspiring night of celebrating music—those who make it and those who teach it,” said Emily Havens, Executive Director of GRAMMY Museum Mississippi.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to honor a legendary artist such as Bobby Rush with our second annual Crossroads of American Music Award, and we are excited to celebrate Mrs. Amy Killebrew as the first-ever recipient of our L.U.C.Y. Award. With an amazing performance lineup, it’s going to be a night to remember, and one that will help us continue to provide music education experiences and opportunities for the young people of Mississippi and beyond.”
“It’s such an honor to receive the Crossroads of American Music Award from the GRAMMY Museum Mississippi,” said Bobby Rush.
“I can’t thank them enough and can’t find words to say how much I appreciate the recognition for me as a bluesman and a Black bluesman. I‘m so thankful to have someone recognize what I have done and am doing, and during my lifetime while I can still enjoy it, am able to go out and perform, and am still mentally and physically with it. Most of the time people get recognized when they can’t do anything. It’s not a past tense for me. I’m still doing what I do and loving what I do.”
“I am extremely honored to be this year’s recipient of the inaugural L.U.C.Y. Award,” said Killebrew.
“This means so much to me. I want to thank the Janoush family for this award and for supporting music education in our schools. Music has always been a huge part of my life. I believe that every child should have access to music education. Music has been proven to increase a child’s performance in academics. It is our job as music educators to allow students to explore their creativity in music. We teach fundamentals of music such as rhythm and notation but music is also about creativity. I hope that I always instill a love of music in each of my students that I teach.”
In conjunction with the 2020 Virtual Gala, GRAMMY Museum Mississippi also kicked off its first-ever online auction on October 23 at biddingforgood.com/GRAMMYmuseumMS. Presented by Bidding for Good, the online auction will give individuals the opportunity to bid on unique music experiences, travel opportunities, autographed items from award-winning artists and much more.
Established by the Museum’s Board of Directors, the Crossroads of American Music Award honors an artist who has made significant musical contributions influenced by the creativity born in the cradle of American music. The inaugural recipient of the Crossroads of American Music Award was three-time GRAMMY Award winner Charley Pride.
Named after devoted Mississippian and community advocate, Lucy Janoush, who was instrumental in securing funding for the development of the Mississippi Museum, the L.U.C.Y. Award, which stands for Lifting Up Children And Youth, celebrates K-12 educators from the state of Mississippi who embody the educational mission of GRAMMY Museum Mississippi.
Tickets to the virtual gala are currently on sale and can be purchased at live.grammymuseumms.org. Guests can also purchase a ticket to a watch party, which will be held at unique homes across the Delta in Cleveland, Miss.; Greenville, Miss.; and Louisiana.
The annual GRAMMY Museum Mississippi Gala is the Museum’s signature fundraising event. Proceeds from this year’s virtual gala will benefit the Museum’s education program, which seeks to use music as a gateway to learning by inspiring and cultivating creativity, critical thinking and self-expression.
