Wammies Not Quite the Smash
by Grant Moser
March 1998
DCMusicwwweb
The Wammies, at Lisner Auditorium the night of January 27th, were held to honor and bring prestige to the Washington DC music scene and community.
They sort of did.
The first hint of something amiss occurred even before the show began. Downstairs was a reception for musicians and the industry. Centered around a table of appetizers they gathered, a usual social crowd; meeting, talking, exchanging business cards.
A Wammie-nominated band that night was playing for everyone's enjoyment. But no one seemed to notice. I caught about four people clapping for this talented band after each song. For a room full of musicians here to honor Washington music, they didn't appear to be in the mood right then.
Then WAMA (Washington Area Music Association) proceeded to induct Ruth Brown, Sonny Stitt and Donald Byrd (all talented pioneers in early music) into the WAMA Hall of Fame. The respect and admiration these greats deserved obviously was lost on half the downstairs crowd. The back part of the room continued to talk amongst themselves, impairing the ability of the front to hear these musicians' accomplishments and careers.
However, this was just a mere pre-show festivity. The Wammies were about to begin upstairs. Taking my seat, I looked through the program at the nominees. Everything was covered, from Classical Vocalist Solo to Latino Instrumentalist to Manager of the Year. There were so many categories in fact, that WAMA only awards a random selection of them each year at the show to keep the ceremony under 3 hours.
Not that it mattered. Hardly any of the winners were even there. For that fact, some presenters choose not to show up either.
But let me backtrack a little here. WAMA isn't all bad. They do try to create a system to bring attention to the local music scene. And we have a heck of a local music scene. It deserves to be heard and honored.
I had some trouble doing that though. The crowd constantly was murmuring and coming and going.
The lobby was packed during the show with musicians blabbing away, all the while their contemporaries inside were being awarded a Wammie.
The bands that played during the show were great though. The Rumba Club, 3LG, and The Michael Sheppard Group put on wonderful and entertaining shows. I was privileged to see and hear some good DC music and enjoy it.
But overall, I didn't enjoy the Wammies. It should have been better organized. It should have been televised (That would have raised the standard of conduct at the show, caused more attention to be given to the local music scene. Maybe if it was a more highly publicized and promoted event, nominees like Toni Braxton and Dave Matthews would show up and more attention would be focused on Washington).
The nominees and winners should be there. (Heck - the presenters should be there). The audience should respect the process and the artists themselves. Music is some people's lives and dreams and should be treated as such. A feeling of community should exist, not a disjointed feeling of "What is happening here?"
Talking to Everett Silver, a local artist and volunteer for the Wammies that night, about why he had come, he said, "To see what Washington has to offer. To see the Wammies. To see the organization that brings music to your front porch."
I hope he got an eyeful. I did.