This episode of The Christie Taylor Show features A-List Promoter and Founder of The Southern Heritage Classic Cultural Experience, Fred Jones, Jr, a lifelong Memphian committed to sports and entertainment promotion.
Bio: Fred Jones Jr., a lifelong Memphian, has devoted his life to entertaining others. Fred’s activities in high school as a sportsman (football, baseball and basketball) and as a trombone player in the band influenced his love of sports and entertainment. Following graduation from Memphis State (now University of Memphis), he moved into the entertainment industry, working at STAX Records as a tour manager for the Soul Children and the Isaac Hayes Movement until 1975. For over a decade he connected with major agencies and produced concert series at the Hilton Hotel featuring world-renowned artists such as Lou Rawls, Nancy Wilson, Count Basie, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Eckstine, Emerson Able, Bill Cosby, Ray Charles, Tony Bennett, Jerry Butler, B.B. King, Tina Turner, Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr., Phyllis Diller and John Davidson; beyond the hotel he also produced shows featuring The Isley Brothers, The O’Jays, The Jacksons, Prince, Rick James, Stevie Wonder, The Commodores, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Parliament-Funkadelic, The Gap Band, Stephanie Mills, LTD featuring Jeffrey Osborne, Luther Vandross, and hundreds more. Even now, Fred continues to promote some of the top acts in entertainment, most recently Charlie Wilson, Fantasia, Anthony Hamilton, Babyface, Xscape and the theatrical productions of Tyler Perry.
n 1986, he founded Summitt Management Corporation, the two Ts emblematic of reaching a higher-than-usual peak. Four years later, he brought his vision of bringing entertainment and sports together and founded the Southern Heritage Classic. The event has evolved into a weekend celebration of cultural pride with the Jackson State vs. Tennessee State football game, tailgating festivities, the Classic Parade in Orange Mound, concerts featuring both classic and contemporary entertainers and much more. The Southern Heritage Classic presented by FedEx has proven to be a driving force for increasing revenue to participating universities collectively earning over $12 million since 1990, and adding over $25 million annually to the local Memphis economy. Fred expanded into the professional sports arena in 2001. He was an original owner/limited partner of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies. Fred has blended his talent of sports entertainment with his love for education and the Memphis community with the formation of the Southern Heritage Foundation, which supports many local organizations, schools, and community groups. He is active in a number of civic organizations, including the NAACP as a lifetime member and spends most of his leisure time on the golf course.
Website: www.southernheritageclassic.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/SouthernHeritageClassic
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SouthernHeritageClassic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com /classicmemphis
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/classicmemphis
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