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March 10, 2025
GREEN BAY – What started in 2024 as a localized way to celebrate and highlight the music scene within the Bay Area region, has expanded in categories, schedule and impact in year two.
Hosted at the Tarlton Theatre in downtown Green Bay, the Bay Area Music Awards – a.k.a. The BAMMYs – aims to recognize and celebrate the local music industry in Brown, Door, Kewaunee, Marinette and Oconto counties.
“There are a lot of folks in the Northeast Wisconsin area who may not be familiar with the thriving music scene that we have in our area,” Tarl Knight, owner of the Tarlton Theatre and an organizer of the event, said. “A lot of folks appreciate the arts and culture of our area, but may not fully realize or recognize all of the wonderful bands and other industry professionals that make Greater Green Bay a thriving music hot spot.”
Knight said the idea behind the BAMMYs – which in its own way mimics the GRAMMYs and, more locally, the Wisconsin Area Music Industry awards or WAMIs – was sparked by like-minded individuals as a way to elevate the region’s music scene and the people behind it.
“This is a way for us to recognize one another, to celebrate one another and to all be in one room for a night networking and opening up new collaborations and connections,” he said. “So, something hyper local for us to celebrate and recognize our local music industry.”
The 2025 BAMMYs are set for Wednesday, March 19, and Thursday, March 20.
Improving in year two
Knight said though the first year was a success, the BAMMY committee – which is comprised of a number of Northeast Wisconsin music industry professionals – took the feedback it received from 2024’s event to improve the event for 2025.
“We received a lot of feedback from the public, from other professionals and we also surveyed a number of other award shows or series throughout the country in order to understand how to diversify the categories and allow for a wider array of musical genres and industry professionals to be represented,” he said.
That feedback, Knight said, led to expanding the event from one day to two.
“We will have a number of live performances taking place across both days,” he said.
The list of each day’s performances, Knight said, was recently released on the BAMMYs’ Facebook page.
“There is going to be a wide variety of music genres and styles for everyone to kind of uncover (ones) that may be outside of their normal interest – all of which exist in the Bay Area,” he said.
Year two also has nearly double the amount of categories – expanding from 25 categories in 2024 to 42 in 2025.
“There was some criticism that last year we weren’t as inclusive of all genres or all parts of our music industry,” he said.
In response, Knight said the committee introduced several new categories that highlight not only different music genres, but also those who support the industry.
“A number of the big changes this year, that I think are especially relevant to the conversation, are the changes to the industry awards,” he said. “We have musical artist awards, we have instrumentalist awards and now we have more industry awards – businesses and industry professionals who help to support or elevate or amplify music.”
In addition to last year’s Live Music Venue of the Year, Radio Station of the Year or Live Studio or Studio Producer of the Year awards – “which are of course important in elevating and creating a stage or platform for music” – Knight said the committee added:
- Instrument Store or Instrument Repair Store of the Year
- Music Photographer/Videographer of the Year
- Live Sound Producer of the Year
- Musical Artist Manager or Management Company of the Year
- Music Festival of the Year
- Music Instructor of the Year
- Album Artwork and Design of the Year
“So there are a number of new ways that we’re making an effort this year to highlight the businesses and the economic participants that drive the music economy in our area forward – those that take on risk a lot of time in order to provide a space for music to exist,” he said.
Another change this year, Knight said, is the presentation of two Lifetime Achievement Awards.
“The Lifetime Achievement Award criteria that was established last year, with input from the BAMMYs committee, was to recognize a local producer, performer or music creator who has dedicated more than 25 years of their life in our community,” he said. “That could look like a number of things. It could be bands that have been very influential in that last quarter century, who have moved the needle on music, inspired other musicians or has been performing around and gigging (around the area) for years and years.”
Knight said it could also include promoters who have been organizing and marketing different musical events, concerts, venues or festivals for more than 25 years.
This wide range of criteria, and the extensive list of potential nominees, Knight said, led the committee to recognize two individuals this year with the Lifetime Achievement Award – one each day of the event.
“We had a very large number of nominations each year – last year we had a couple dozen,” he said. “There are so many deserving people who have dedicated their lives and sacrificed a lot in order to give back to the music community, to be an important part of that, to mentor people, to promote others, to create music. So, having two each year, one each night, each show, that’s going to open up the possibility for us to recognize more folks who deserve it.”
The voting process for BAMMYs winners, Knight said, also saw changes in 2025.
“We opened the voting up to the public this year, which is a new element,” he said. “We balanced the selections and the voting results with a 50% split – with the BAMMYs committee and the public in order to determine who the three finalists in each category were and who the winner was in each category,” he said.
In addition to the live performances happening throughout both days, Knight said each winner will be welcomed on stage by intro music performed live by the Standard Collective – a jazz combo based out of Green Bay led by Sam Stranz.
“The music is going to reflect a song or some kind of representative musical piece of each of the winners,” he said. “We had the same element last year, and it was so cool to see musicians walk on to (a version of) their song. It made it much more special, and for those fans and folks in the audience who recognize the music, it added so much weight to the moment.”
Knight said each night will also feature an in memoriam segment – where those in attendance will honor those who dedicated their lives to the music scene in the Bay Area who passed away in the last year.
Each night, Knight said, members of the BAMMYs committee will explain to those in attendance how the BAMMYs process works – who’s eligible, how votes are tabulated and how it’s all done.
“I think it’s good to have folks really understand how the process works,” he said. “We will also introduce the BAMMYs committee members as well.”
The why
Knight said the goal of the BAMMYs is to “expound on the impact” and raise awareness on the need to celebrate and recognize the music and arts economy in the Bay Area – “that’s what this is about.”
“Arts and culture, music specifically – those are some of the things that make life worth living for many people,” he said. “They improve quality of life, and they employ people.”
And though arts and music can often be taken for granted – “and are usually the first on the chopping block and the first to be shaved off a budget during financial hardships” – Knight said, in the end, “those are what bring people together.”
“Those are how we enjoy our life,” he said. “Songs are how we take up space, how we measure our emotions and how we create things together – memories and moments.”
For the Bay Area to continue to be a well-rounded region, Knight said the music and arts economy needs that additional boost.
“To attract really wonderful, diverse, creative people here, we want to make sure that the music industry doesn’t feel left out or overlooked,” he said. “That’s part of what the BAMMYs are all about.”
Though many artists recognized during the BAMMYs “may not be worldwide stars,” Knight said being recognized and celebrated by their peers is such a “huge thing for folks who do what they love.”
“We want to give them the spotlight and recognize them for their accomplishments,” he said. “A lot of folks really appreciated that last year.”
Some of last year’s winners, Knight said, have even integrated their BAMMYs awards into their performances.
“A number of bands over the last year have held onto their trophies and featured them on stage when they performed at a festival or a venue,” he said. “It’s fun that people carry them around with them as a source of pride.”
Knight said he believes the event had a big impact on the industry and the professionals within it last year and the BAMMYs committee hopes for the same impact this year.
“I think that folks have started to create a little bit more of a community together as we recognize each other,” he said. “There are pockets of the industry that don’t know that the others exist. The hip-hop community doesn’t always collaborate with the country community. There are a lot of different bands who, because of this, are going to be able to work together, improve their careers and continue to build momentum to put the Bay Area on the map.”
In the end, Knight said it’s not about competition, but rather about “celebrating together.”
