Hall of Fame gives recognition to music mainstays

This year marks the 8th annual Lowcountry Music Hall of Fame, honoring 15 new inductees ranging from singer-songwriters, old school bands and radio personalities to the Charleston City Paper.

Organizer Michael Davis, who owns Ye Olde Music Shop in Hanahan, said while the event hasn’t changed much since its inauguration in 2015, it remains just as important as ever.

“There’s so many people who have not received the recognition they should have that have been very influential in creating the music scene here,” he said. “There are a lot of unsung heroes. Every year, we try to hit on some of those people who were so instrumental in trying to make this a great scene.”

This year’s event will induct 15 new members into the Hall of Fame, including three bands, nine songwriters, a business owner, a radio personality and Andy Brack, editor and publisher of the City Paper. And while everyone on this year’s list has contributed greatly to the Lowcountry’s music scene, Davis said there are a handful of standouts.

Singer-songwriter John Brannen has written or co-written songs that have been recorded by the Eagles, Tom Jones, Reba McEntire, Richie Havens, Johnny Rivers, Billy Ray Cyrus and Randall Bramblett, just to name a few.

Charleston-born funk-punk band Uncle Mingo has been a mainstay in the scene since it was formed in 1989. After building a local following, the band’s second album, Fatty Mookie Mo’ Booty, became a word-of-mouth hit, and after a few years, the group had developed a strong fan base across the Southeast, as well as Colorado.

Local blues/rock singer and harmonica player Andy “Smoky” Weiner stepped into the Charleston blues scene in the 90s and quickly became known as a wild-eyed character on stage and off. He has since established himself as a versatile and entertaining blues-rock staple in Charleston.

Brack emphasized that he was no unsung standout in the music scene — but the City Paper is.

“For years, the Charleston City Paper has shined lights on local music and talented musicians and continues to do so,” he said. “The array of high-quality writers and their insights over more than 20 years have kept readers informed, engaged and hip.”

Under the radar

Why do so many great artists fly under the radar? Davis said it has a lot to do with tunnel vision throughout Charleston’s communities and media industry.

“It tends to focus on two or three people when there’s a hundred folks out there,” he said. “How can you live in Charleston and not have heard of Fox Music? How can you listen to the radio and not know who T.J. Phillips is? It just amazes me that all these names — people haven’t heard of any of them.”

Davis, who has also been playing music himself since 1984, said that’s why this Hall of Fame was created. And, he added, it’s been bittersweet to go through the list of past year’s inductees and learn how many have died since their induction.

“It amazes me when I look down the list — we’ve probably inducted a hundred people now — how many have died. I go down that list and it’s like, ‘Holy shit.’ I’m just so proud of the fact that before these people passed, we were able to give them the recognition they deserved.”