It seems completely amazing to me that 25 years have passed since the very first presentation of the Review Music Awards took place at the historic Fordney Hotel. It was a chaotic yet memorable evening, with memorable performances by The Mick Furlo Band, Romeo Ridge, The Boys of Joy, Silk (featuring the late Felton Sparks and Jerry Holmes) and one of the first performances by a then unknown Larry McCray.
A lot has changed since then. Unfortunately, the Fordney Hotel went down in a fire four years later and luminaries such as Sparks & Holmes are no longer with us; but over the years this event has traveled many halls & theatres throughout the Tri-City area, so in many ways it is entirely fitting that our Silver Anniversary Celebration will take place at the newly rebuilt Golden Glow Ballroom, which unlike the Fordney has risen like a Phoenix from the ashes of a devastating fire that occurred two summers ago, and is now a state-of-the-art facility that once again will feature live music.
This in itself is exciting, seeing as the 25th Music Awards will be the first live music showcase in this spanking new ballroom, which in prior decades showcased such notable artists as Alice Cooper, The Romantics, and The Supremes, to name but a few.
For me what remains eternally exciting is the fact that the music and artists that we value and honor with this event has reached and branched out in so many notable directions, solidifying the stature of talent that we are fortunate to have amongst us to cultivate, nurture, and support here in the Mid-Michigan area.
The Review Music Awards is is the only ceremony of its kind that connects people, audience, and artist together insofar as nominees & winners are entirely determined by the voting public at large, which this year during our final round of voting, tabulated well over 7,000 votes – nearly twice that of previous years. But more deeply, the idea of this entire event is to honor and showcase the breadth of incredible talent we are fortunate to have with us in the Great Lakes Bay, for there are certainly no losers when it comes to the gifted pursuit of creativity, and every nominated artist is worthy of recognition in their own respective right.
The Mothers of Re-Invention
For this special 25th Silver Anniversary edition of the Review Music Awards, one of my goals was to ‘re-invent’ the ceremony and give it a freshly aired structure, shape, and style. Towards that end a special RMA committee was selected consisting of Michael Brush, Chad Cunningham, Bo White, Al Limberg, Tim Boychuck, and Andrew Lay, which started meeting last Fall to figure ways we could improve upon and expand participation with this signature event.
One of the first things we decided to do was move the Ceremony from its traditional Monday night to a Thursday. Years ago it was impossible to hold this event on any night other than a Monday, but with the amount of clubs featuring live music on Thursdays down to a handful, it was felt the change would make this event more accessible to the general public.
The second thing we decided to do was streamline the event by shortening its length, combining certain individual categories into collective ones, and increasing the number of guest & featured performances by shortening the set lists from 40 minutes to 15 minutes - in this manner allowing more variety, vibrancy, and unique collaborations among musicians. We’ll also be running the performing artists from two stages this year to expedite the flow of the ceremony.
Indeed, we trust you will not be disappointed.
Program & Itinerary
What follows is a breakdown of this year’s line-up and schedule, so you can plan your evening accordingly. This year we have two ticket prices for the Awards Ceremony, one at $15.00 in advance for the Ceremony; and another at $25.00, which will include a Banquet Dinner that will be served from 5:30-9:30 PM.
Advance tickets are now on sale at all the venues noted in the display ad on Page 2. Insofar as nominated artists are invited at no charge, those interested in partaking of the Banquet dinner can do so for a nominal charge of $10.00. Please notify us in advance so we can plan accordingly; and you can also RSVP on the Golden Glow website or our Review website at goldenglow.com or newreviewsite.com. Tickets for wives, friends, fans, and supporters can also be purchased online at the Golden Glow website, or at any of the ticket venues noted earlier.
Tickets will also be available at the door the evening of the event for an additional $5.00 charge.
I would like to thank everybody in advance for helping make this a memorable evening. Please feel free to phone our offices if you have any questions, and I look forward to seeing you on the evening of Thursday, May 5th for this epochal 25th Annual Review Music Awards Ceremony & Celebration.
25th Annual Review Music Awards Program Itinerary
5:00-6:00 PM • Video Highlights of Previous Awards Ceremonies.
6:00-6:05 PM • Opening Remarks
6:05-6:20 PM • ‘Smooth Jazz’ with The Robert Lee Revue. Featuring legendary guitarist for Question Mark & the Mysterians, Bobby Balderama, joined by his ensemble of musicians that have performed in New York City and beyond, receiving international radio showcases and critical acclaim for their original forays into the arena of smooth jazz.
6:20-6:30 PM • Jazz Awards. Favorite Musician, Club, and Songwriter.
6:30-6:50 PM • Brush Street. The award-winning sounds of Michael Brush, Jim Fulkerson, Roland Wallace and Julie Mulady. Also joined by the acclaimed work of guitarist Bryan Rombalsky.
6:50-6:55 PM • Jazz Awards. Small Combo, Male & Female Vocalist, Favorite Big Band.
6:55-7:05 PM • Paul Vanston. One of our most gifted pianists, composers, and creative talents, who’s career has spanned five decades of excellence.
7:05-7:10 PM • Misc. Awards. Favorite Solo artist, Favorite Duo, Favorite Folk, Favorite Tejano Band.
7:10-7:25 PM • Noel Howland & Mel Curry. Performing with special guests.
7:25-7:35 PM • Misc. Awards. Misc. Awards. Best Soundman, Best website, Favorite Radio Station, Favorite New Artist.
7:35-7:50 PM • Stewart Francke. Fresh from opening for the legendary Bob Seger, this Saginaw born & Detroit based artist returns for a set of new original compositions.
7:50-7:55 • Country Awards. Songwriter, Favorite Club, Male Vocalist.
7:55-8:10 PM • Laurie Middlebrook. One of our most talented original artists performs with Bob Hausler, Tom Dolson, Duane Miller and Robert Gunther.
8:10-8:15 PM • Country Awards. Female Vocalist, Country Musician, Favorite Band.
8:15-8:30 PM • Steven Armstrong & the 25 Cent Beer Band. Last year’s winners for Favorite Country Band take to the stage for a rip-roaring set of vibrant country music.
8:30-8:40 PM • Misc. Awards. Best Concert/Album, Favorite Waitress & Bartender, Most Innovative Artist.
8:40-8:55 PM • Seth Patrick. A fresh set from 2010’s RMA winner for New Rap & Hip Hop Artist of the Year and Mixtape of the Year.
8:55-9:00 PM • Hip Hop Awards. Best Performer, Producer.
9:00-9:15 PM • Rustbucket with special guest John Vasquez. A new convergence from veteran rockers John Krogman, Jim Davenport, Scott Causely and John VanBenschoten.
9:15-9:25 PM • Misc. Awards. Favorite Variety Band, CD Release, Favorite Alternative Band.
9:25-9:45 PM • Thick as Thieves. An amazing blend of rhythm, jazz, spoken, work, Hip-Hop, and Blues, this collective of cogent creativity give fresh force to the notion of a musical melting pot.
9:45-9:55 PM • Misc. Awards. Favorite Metal Band, Favorite Original Band, Favorite Rock Band.
9:55-10:10 PM • Astray. New sounds from a legendary performer on the local Hip-Hop scene.
10:10-10:15 PM • Blues Awards. Instrumentalist, Songwriter, Favorite Club.
10:15-10:30 PM • The Fabulous Retreads. Fresh R&B with Mike Brush, Tom Dolson, Duane Miller, and special guests Ron Tucker and guitarist Drew Pentkowski.
10:30-10:45 PM • Sharrie Williams. The one-and-only First Lady of the Gospel Blues and an International recording star and musical force lays it all down with a rare local performance, backed with the Fabulous Retreads and keyboardist Dan ‘Swivel’ Sliwinski.
10:45-10:50 PM • Blues Awards. Male & Female Vocalists, Favorite Funk Band, Favorite Blues Band.
10:50-11:05. Finding Clyde. This rock ‘n roll outfit from Bay City has been storming the national charts with their unique original sound, and opening for major artists nationwide.
11:05-11:15 • Rock Awards. Rock guitarist, drummer, Female & Male vocalists.
11:15-11:30 PM • Silverspork with special guest Melissa May. A unique collaboration from one of the most dynamic bands on the local rock scene.
11:30-11:35 PM • Rock Awards. Favorite Keyboardist, Songwriter, Club, Bassist.
11:35-11:50 PM • Ske3m. Innovative & original Hip Hop from one of the area’s vital voices.
11:50-12:05 PM • 2nd System. Winners of numerous past Review Music Awards, this creative group goes beyond Metal with their musical expression and will also do a special collaboration with hip-hop artists Ske3m.
12:05-12:10 PM • Hip Hop Awards. Promoter, Mixtape, Artist of the Year, Favorite DJ.
12:05 -12:20 PM • DJ Snakes. Last year’s winner for ‘Best DJ’ closes out the evening with a special segment of audio talent.
12:20 PM • Closing remarks.
info@review-mag.com
989-780-4162
Apr 14, 2011
Comments (0)