The Appalachian Arts and Entertainment Awards (APPYs) were announced at a ceremony at the Mountain Arts Center in Prestonsburg on April 9.
The APPYs are also known as “The Grammys of Appalachia” and celebrate various forms of art. Some of the categories included Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Best Country, Best Pop, DJs, Best Songwriters, photography and art.
Local media outlets were present and photography for the red-carpet event began at 6 pm
Prestonsburg’s Mayor Les Stapleton who serves on the board of Prestonsburg Tourism helped organize the event.
“(I’m) so excited to be here tonight,” he said. “The Appalachian Mountains are full of talent. This is a great event. It couldn’t get any better.”
Trey Twitty (grandson of Conway Twitty) and Tayla Lynn (granddaughter of Loretta Lynn) served as hosts for the awards show.
Twitty and Lynn closed the show with Loretta and Conway’s Louisiana Woman and Mississippi Man.
“I had a great time. I always enjoy coming to Eastern Kentucky where the kinfolk are,” Twitty said.
“We love coming to Eastern Kentucky because it’s home and we only have like 42,000 cousins here,” Lynn said.
The Appalachian Arts and Entertainment Awards are a partnership between Big Sandy Community and Technical College and the Mountain Arts Center in Prestonsburg. Together these agencies created what is now known as the APPYs where the artists and entertainers of Appalachia are celebrated and awarded for their talent and hard work.
“I am honored and humbled to have been such a small part of showcasing the amazing talent we have here in Appalachia, ” said Jill Hamlin, director of Fine Arts at BSCTC. I’m proud to be Appalachian.”
Those who won awards included:
Music Categories
Best Album of the Year
The Josephines — “Cocaine or Cowboys” (Kentucky)
Best EP of the Year
Sean Whiting (Kentucky)
Best Album Art
Melissa Abney (Kentucky)
Best Original Song
Zoe Howard and Yellow Line — “Walkin’ Each other Home” (Kentucky)
Best Female Vocalist
Hannah Bethel (TN)
Best Male Vocalist
Cole Chaney (Kentucky)
Best Songwriter
Hailey Newman (Kentucky)
Best Americana
Spooky Fox (Kentucky)
Best Bluegrass
Wolfpen Branch, Kentucky
Best Blues
Mystery Meat Blues Band (Kentucky)
Best Country
Courtney Mason (Kentucky)
Best Gospel
Awaken Worship (Kentucky)
Best Jazz/Latin/Big Band/World
Appalatin (Kentucky)
Best Hip-Hop
Carter Maynard (Kentucky)
best-pop
Phourist and the Photons (Kentucky)
Best Rock
Jordan Allen (Kentucky)
Best Cover Band/Variety Act
Eight Daze Sober (Kentucky)
Best Bassist
Brandon Johnson (Kentucky)
Best Drummer/Percussionist
Ben Caldwell (Kentucky)
Best Guitarist
Cody Lee Meece (Kentucky)
Best Keyboardist
Alex Marcum (Kentucky)
Best Strings/Non-Guitar Bass
Justin Riley (Kentucky)
Best Wind and Brass
Tommy Cate (Kentucky)
Best Live Music Venue
The Corbin Arena (Kentucky)
Best Music Festival
Manchester Music (Kentucky)
Best Radio DJ
Loretta Friend – V 99.3 The Coyote (Kentucky)
Best Recording Studio/Engineer/Producer
Dwayne King (Kentucky)
Best High School Band
Boyd County High School Band (Kentucky)
Best High School Choir
Johnson Central High School Choir (Kentucky)
Best Music Educator
Clyde Porter (Kentucky)
Art Categories
Best Art Educator
Tammy Clemmons (Kentucky)
Best Digital Mixed Media Artist
Jerielle Hanlon/KY Pop Art (Kentucky)
Best Cartoonist/Illustrator
Shawn Wallace (Virginia)
Best Photographer
Greg Davis (Kentucky)
Best Logo Design/Graphic Designer
Chris Burkhardt (Kentucky)
Best Painting
Lena Marie Auxier (Kentucky)
Best Sculpture
Payton Martin (Kentucky)
Best Tattoo Artist
John Haywood (Kentucky)
Other Entertainment Categories
Best TV Personality
Lacey Roberts—InFocUS (Ohio)
Best Podcast
Jamey Johnson – “Sound of Sports” (Kentucky)
Best Acting/Drama/Speech Educator
Artist Collaborative Theater (Kentucky)
Best Dance Educator
Michelle Barbee-Smith (Kentucky)
Best Original Movie/Short Film/Documentary
Grayson Gallery (Kentucky)
Best Vlogger
Tipper Presley (Kentucky)
Best Author
Lindsay Gargotto — “When the Poppy Sheds” (Kentucky)
best poet
Khalisa Rae — “Ghost in a Black Girls” (North Carolina)
Best Blog
Lyssa Culbertson — Hillbilly Hippie Music Review” (Alabam)
Community Arts & Entertainment Award
Jonathan Webb of AppHarvest
Star City Award
Loretta Lynn
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