Blues Foundation
Encyclopedia
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 twenty-five person Board of Directors governs the foundation whose stated mission is to preserve Blues
music history. On its formation, the Foundation organized the annual W.C. Handy awards to "give recognition of the finest in blues performances and recordings."
The award has since been re-named "The Blues Music Awards".
The Blues Foundation is also responsible for the Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, International Blues Challenge Competition, Keeping the Blues Alive Awards, Blues In The Schools programs. "The Blues Foundation has established the HART Fund (Handy Artists Relief Trust) for Blues musicians and their families in financial need due to a broad range of health concerns. The Fund provides for acute, chronic and preventive medical and dental care as well as funeral expenses."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, that is affiliated with more than 175 Blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
organizations from various parts of the world.
Founded in 1980, a twenty-five person Board of Directors governs the foundation whose stated mission is to preserve Blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
music history. On its formation, the Foundation organized the annual W.C. Handy awards to "give recognition of the finest in blues performances and recordings."
The award has since been re-named "The Blues Music Awards".
The Blues Foundation is also responsible for the Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, International Blues Challenge Competition, Keeping the Blues Alive Awards, Blues In The Schools programs. "The Blues Foundation has established the HART Fund (Handy Artists Relief Trust) for Blues musicians and their families in financial need due to a broad range of health concerns. The Fund provides for acute, chronic and preventive medical and dental care as well as funeral expenses."
Affiliated members
- Block MagazineBlock MagazineBLOCK Magazine is a quarterly magazine about the African-American blues tradition. It is Holland's oldest blues periodical. The magazine has been founded in Almelo, in the east of The Netherlands in 1975, by Rien and Marion Wisse. They frequently tour the United States and visit record companies...
- Delta Cultural CenterDelta Cultural CenterThe Delta Cultural Center in downtown Helena, Arkansas, is a cultural center and museum of the Department of Arkansas Heritage. It is dedicated to preserving and interpreting the culture of the Arkansas Delta.The center consists of three buildings:...
- Ground Zero (blues club)Ground Zero (blues club)Ground Zero is a blues club in Clarksdale, Mississippi that is co-owned by Morgan Freeman, attorney Bill Luckett, and Memphis entertainment executive Howard Stovall. It got its name from the fact that Clarksdale has been historically referred to as "Ground Zero" for the blues. It opened in May...
- Inland Empire Blues SocietyInland Empire Blues SocietyThe Inland Empire Blues Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting, preserving and promoting the blues through social events, such as concerts, festivals, and a newsletter. IEBS is a member of the Blues Foundation...
- Kentuckiana Blues SocietyKentuckiana Blues SocietyThe Kentuckiana Blues Society , founded in 1988 and based in Louisville, Kentucky is a non-profit 501 organization dedicated to the preservation, promotion, and perpetuation of the blues tradition in all of its forms. The KBS is an affiliate member of the Blues Foundation. The Blues Foundation is a...
- National Endowment for the HumanitiesNational Endowment for the HumanitiesThe National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
- Knuckleheads SaloonKnuckleheads SaloonKnuckleheads Saloon is a music venue in Kansas City, Missouri. The facility is a complex of three stages - a large outdoor stage featuring a converted caboose to one side as a VIP seating area, a 220 seat indoor stage and a 50 seat lounge known as the "Retro Room". The last doubles as a blues music...