The 28th annual Wisconsin Area Music Industry (WAMI) Awards Show takes place Monday, April 28, at Turner Hall, 1034 N. 4th St., in Milwaukee, the WAMI board annouced today. Tickets are $40.
A post-show party follows the 7 p.m. event, being held at Turner Hall for the first time after a number of years at the Northern Lights Theater at Potawatomi Bingo Casino. The event has also been held at The Rave and the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts in the past.
"We are honored to be able to hold our annual Awards Show at Turner Hall in its historic ballroom," said Lance Shellman, WAMI president, in a statement. "The facility has always been dedicated to supporting and strengthening Milwaukee arts. It's going to be a great show and we are excited to be a part of Turner Hall's resurgence."
WAMI nomination ballots -- which allow the public to vote in 40 categories -- are due to the association by Jan 30.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
