Memphis in May

Memphis in May International Festival is a month-long festival held in Memphis, Tennessee. The festival, which is saluting Ghana in 2022, honors a specific foreign country every year and features many events. The ''Beale Street Music Festival'' takes place the first weekend in May and showcases an eclectic lineup of national and local musical talent. ''International Week'' is a series of exhibits, screenings, arts and performances dedicated to each year's honored country. The ''World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest'' has become one of the most popular barbecue contests in the country and has been observed for years. The ''Great American River Run Half Marathon & 5K'' welcomes runners of all experience levels through the streets of Memphis and along the banks of the Mississippi River, while ''901Fest'' includes a salute to all things Memphis.

Beale Street Music Festival (BSMF)

About

The Beale Street Music Festival is a three-day music festival that has both a mix of big-name stars and local musical acts. Held during the first weekend of May in the city's Tom Lee Park at the foot of Beale Street, it is considered to be the kick-off event of the entire Memphis in May International Festival celebration. It typically hosts over 100,000 people during the weekend. The Beale Street Music Festival is the only program that has been held every year since the inception of Memphis in May in 1977. Its history can be traced back to the 1800s, when African-American musicians throughout the South would come to Beale Street and perform.

Past Performers

The Beale Street Music Festival is known for featuring an eclectic mix of genres on its lineup every year, from blues and rock 'n roll to rap and pop. The list of bands and musicians that have performed at the festival continue to grow each year, but the list includes Stevie Ray Vaughan, Ray Charles, B.B. King in '91 (d.2015, lived in Memphis), John Lee Hooker in '91, Booker T. and the M.G.'s in '99, Jerry Lee Lewis from Memphis in '03, Box Tops from Memphis in '97, Big Star in '99, Fuel from the Jackson, TN area in '04, Saliva from Memphis in '04, Willie Nelson, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Al Green in '09 (now a preacher in Memphis), Isaac Hayes from Memphis in '00 (d.2008), John Prine, James Brown, Bob Dylan, Black Crowes, Van Morrison, Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, Foo Fighters, The Killers, Snoop Dogg, Kid Rock, John Mayer, Journey, Nelly, Steely Dan, Allman Brothers, Santana, James Taylor, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Korn, The Avett Brothers, Mumford & Sons, Kings of Leon from Nashville in '17, Paramore from Nashville in '15, 10 Years from Knoxville in '06, Soundgarden, Wiz Khalifa, Jane's Addiction, Chuck Berry, The Black Keys, Avenged Sevenfold, Alabama Shakes, Lenny Kravitz, Ed Sheeran, Neil Young, Beck, Paul Simon, Ziggy Marley, Sturgill Simpson, Aretha Franklin in '09 (d.2018, born in Memphis), Earth, Wind & Fire in '10 (Maurice White was born in Memphis and d.2016), Yo Gotti in '16, Three 6 Mafia (from Memphis) in '06, Weezer, and many more.

International Week

Every year the festival recognizes a different country, most recently saluting the Czech Republic in 2018. A week of events that typically begin the day after the Beale Street Music Fest, International Week is dedicated to a country and showcases the foods and culture of that nation. While International Week provides a learning experience for the community at large, the core is a comprehensive educational program for area youth in public and private schools throughout Memphis and Shelby County. The goal of International Week is for area students, by the time they graduate from high school, to have had the opportunity to experience the customs and cultures of 12 countries. The festival's first two honored countries — Japan and Canada – have been featured twice.
Perhaps most important are the trade delegates that visit Memphis and have introductions to suitable, high-level trade partners.

Honored countries

Through the years, the Memphis in May International Festival has played host to ambassadors, exhibits and performance troupes from 38 countries. The milestone twentieth annual event in 1996 honored all previous selected countries. The 2019 event honored the bicentennials of the founding of the city of Memphis and of the establishment of Shelby County. The West African nation of Ghana, originally selected for honor in 2020, is slated for focus during festivities in 2022 due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

1977: Japan

1978: Canada

1979: Germany

1980: Venezuela

1981: Egypt

1982: Netherlands

1983: Israel

1984: Mexico

1985: Australia

1986: Japan

1987: China

1988: United Kingdom

1989: Kenya

1990: France

1991: New Zealand

1992: Italy

1993: Russia

1994: Côte d’Ivoire

1995: Thailand

1996: ''All previous countries''

1997: Brazil

1998: Portugal

1999: Morocco

2000: India

2001: Netherlands

2002: Argentina

2003: South Korea

2004: South Africa

2005: Ireland

2006: Costa Rica

2007: Spain

2008: Turkey

2009: Chile

2010: Tunisia

2011: Belgium

2012: Philippines

2013: Sweden

2014: Panama

2015: Poland

2016: Canada

2017: Colombia

2018: Czech Republic

2019: ''City of Memphis & Shelby County''

2020: ''Festivities cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic''

2021: International salute to Ghana postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic

2022: Ghana

World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest (WCBCC)

History

The WCBCC started in 1978 with 26 teams. The contest drew 50 teams in 1979, 80 in 1980, and 180 teams from nine states in 1981. It has now grown to be the largest pork barbecue competition in the world.

More than 250 teams from 20+ states and several countries compete, and an estimated 100,000 people attend the competition. Media from around the world, including BBC and The Food Network, come to the city to cover the event.

Credit for the original idea of a barbecue contest goes to Rodney Baber, chairman of the Memphis in May events committee in 1977, and his co-worker Jack Powell, Tennessee's reigning chili champ at the time.

The original champion at the first competition was Bessie Louise Cathey, who won a $500 prize, a sizable return for her $12 entry fee. Today, the prizes for each event range from $300 to $15,000 for the main cooking competition, and from $250 to $2,500 for the ancillary contests. Today's entry fees range from $700 to $2,600 just for renting the necessary booth space, and an extra $60 per competition entry. Some teams regularly budget amounts in excess of $15,000 just for the competition and booth.

In 1989, when MIM officials discovered that there was a feast in Honolulu which earned the title of "largest barbecue" in the Guinness Book of Records, they calculated the amount of food prepared at the WCBCC. The total was 55,297 pounds of pork, and thus earned the WCBCC a record in the 1990 edition.
Over 16 tons of pork were smoked at the 2016 WCBCC.

The 2017 World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest was the first time the event spanned four days instead of three. In addition, the Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q team became the first five-time champion of the event (2017, '14, '11, '03, '00).

No contests were held in 2020-21.

Food events

The competition has three official meat categories: rib, shoulder and whole hog. There is also the Patio Porkers division, which encourages up to 40 amateur teams (who have not previously won the Patio Porker division in the WCBCC) to enter.
Only wood and charcoal cooking is allowed at the event, no gas or any other sort of heat system is allowed to be used.

Beyond those main categories, teams also compete in several other ancillary contests over the four-day event, including: Best Sauce (Tomato/Mustard/Vinegar), Frank's Red Hot Hot Wings, Kingsford Tour of Champions and Anything But (Exotic/Beef/Seafood/Poultry).

Special events

* Ms. Piggie - Teams dress up contestants as pigs, and then perform songs or skits on stage.
* Best Booth - Booths are judged on design, originality and connection with the honored country.
* T-Shirt Design - Shirts are judged on design, originality and connection with the honored country.
* Sauce Wrestling - Things get a little messy with this one as teams send a representative to the wrestling ring filled with over 40 gallons of barbecue sauce.
* Big Hog Run - Coined as "America's most prestigious .2K race," the Big Hog Run is a thrilling 656-foot sprint down Beale Street. Only WCBCC team members and judges are allowed to compete.
* Cooker Caravan - The Cooker Caravan provides the public a behind-the-scenes look at competition barbecue by offering guided tours to teams in each championship category.

Great American River Run Half-Marathon & 5K

The Great American River Run made its Memphis in May debut in 2016. The race attracts runners of all experience level, featuring half marathon and 5K distances. The race course takes runners through downtown Memphis and along the banks of the Mississippi River.

The inaugural race drew over 2,000 runners from more than 30 states. Every registrant is given a race t-shirt and every finisher is awarded a medal.

The races went virtual in 2020-21.

901Fest

901Fest made its inaugural appearance at the 2016 Memphis in May International Festival. The programming for the event is centered around local musicians, artists, vendors and includes an air show and fireworks display.

References

External links

Official website
* Results
World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest 2016

Results: World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest 2015



* ttp://www.grillingwithrich.com/the-results-of-memphis-in-may-2012 Results: World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest 2012br>2018 WCBCC dates: May 16 - 19, 20182018 MIMGARR race: May 26, 20182018 901Fest: May 26, 2018

{{DEFAULTSORT:Memphis In May
Music festivals in Tennessee
Culture of Memphis, Tennessee
Food and drink festivals in the United States
Barbecue
Rock festivals in the United States
Tourist attractions in Memphis, Tennessee
Music festivals established in 1977
Classical music festivals in the United States