Namm: She Rock Awards to honor songwriter Holly Knight, guitarist Orianthi

The first annual She Rocks Awards kicks off at the Women in Music Network breakfast at the January NAMM show.  The January 25th event will be co-hosted by NewBay Media and the Women in Music Network. The She Rocks Awards honors women who stand out in their field. Awards will be for musicians, producers, manufacturers, retailers, educators, and more.

2013 She Rocks Awards will honor songwriter, producer and Songwriter Hall of Fame nominee, Holly Knight. Knight has be voted as Best Songwriter in Rolling Stone’s 11th annual poll along with Phil Collins, Paul Simon, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen.

Knight is a triple-time Grammy award winner. She has written hits for Pat Benetar, Tina Turner, Heart, Aerosmith, Bonnie Tyler, Rod Stewart, and more, while having her songs featured in countless movies and television shows.

Recently Knight has written with or for Zander Bleck, Antonia Bennett, Cherie Currie, Rev Theory, Hawk Nelson, The Donnas, Katy Perry, Otep, Sick Puppies, Hunter Valentine, Meatloaf, Paul Stanley, Leigh Nash, Less Than Jake, Fefe Dobson, and Sugababes, to name a few. In addition to writing, Holly has been actively pursuing her production career full time. She coproduced tracks for Otep, Porcelain and Fefe Dobson. Recently she finished producing the debut pop record for Antonia Bennett, daughter of legendary singer, Tony Bennett, as well as Antonia’s first jazz EP, Natural, and the eagerly awaited follow-up jazz record of American standards on Universal Records.

The first annual She Rocks awards will also recognize industry leaders Orianthi, guitarist for Michael Jackson & Alice Cooper. At 27 years old, guitarist prodigy Orianthi has already shared the stage with some of the world’s most iconic artists. Orianthi began playing guitar at age 6 in her hometown of Adelaide, Australia, and got her first taste of fame after jamming on stage with Carlos Santana when she was 18. While performing at the 2009 Grammy Awards with country superstar Carrie Underwood, Orianthi caught the eye of Michael Jackson, and was asked to be a part of his ill-fated This Is It tour. In addition to sharing the stage with Steve Vai and Prince, Orianthi is also an artist and songwriter in her own right, having released her most recent EPFire in 2011. Orianthi is currently on touring as the lead guitarist in Alice Cooper’s band.

Other honorees include Mary Peavey, President of Peavey Electronics, Tish Ciravolo, President of Daisy Rock Girl Guitars and Laura Taylor, Guitar Center Senior Vice President of Operations.

The awards will also feature a performance from Ali Handal, author of Guitar For Girls. More award honorees will be announced soon.

Please note that this is an invite only event.