On January 18, 2018, OffBeat presented its 2017 Best of the Beat Awards in business and lifetime achievement. There, industry members gathered at the Orpheum Theater to celebrate those working endlessly in music education, music law, recording studios, classrooms and elsewhere. The crowning event was Big Chief Monk Boudreaux’s tribute as the recipient of our Lifetime Achievement Award in Music. Below, check out a photo gallery plus a video in honor of the Big Chief produced exclusively for OffBeat. All photography provided by Willow Haley.

Lifetime Achievement Awards were presented to the following:

Mike Pellera, Music Education
Steve & Cezanne Nails (Dockside Studio), Music Business
Anders Osborne, Positive Vibrations HeartBeat Award (Musician)
Clarence Johnson, III, Positive Vibrations HeartBeat Award (Culture Bearer)

Click on the photo below to see the gallery:

The Best of the Beat Awards ceremony for musicians takes place this Thursday, January 25, at Generations Hall. Performers include The Soul Rebels, Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers, Lost Bayou Ramblers, Alfred Banks with CoolNasty, Muevelo! and more, including a musical tribute to Monk courtesy of Johnny Sandsone, Anders Osborne and others. Tickets are still available here.