The Ozone Awards and Tastemaker’s Only Conference are moving out of Florida for the first time in it’s three year history.
Organizers Julia Beverly, publisher of Ozone Magazine, and Thomas “TJ” Chapman, founder of TJ’s DJ’s, have selected Houston, TX to host the four-day event, set for August 8-11th.
“We always planned to move the show to different cities to expand our audience. Since we held the awards in our home state of Florida the past two years [Orlando and Miami], we decided to switch it up for the 3rd Annual Awards and scouted out several locations before choosing Houston,” Ozone founder and publisher Julia Beverly told AllHipHop.com. “Houston is a great market for Ozone and has one of the most successful independent Hip-Hop scenes in the country, and their own distinctive sound. Whether Houston is in the national spotlight or not, there are dozens of artists who sell records and have built a fan base right in their own backyard. At this year’s Ozone Awards, we definitely plan to show some love to the city and honor some of Texas’ fallen legends.”
The Ozone Awards weekend consists of two days of artist-driven speaking panels and one-on-one workshops via the TJ’s DJ’s Tastemakers Conference, which brings together aspiring artists, DJs, and music professionals with some of the best in their respective fields.
“Just like the past two years, the Ozone Awards weekend is a collaboration with TJ’s DJ’s Tastemakers Music Conference,” Beverly explained. “It is the best place for networking and building relationships with key DJs, artists, music executives, and all-around hustlers. The conference is going to be informative, the parties are going to be crazy, and the award show will feature some classics as well as some new breaking music.”
The weekend also includes a sponsored fashion and invite-only events, culminating in the Awards show itself, which recognizes the top Southern Artists in the game in 20 categories.
The 3rd Annual OZONE Awards, will take place on Monday, August 11 at 7 pm at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston.
“Our event has played a key role in introducing acts like Plies, T-Pain, Rick Ross, Lil Boosie & Webbie, Soulja Boy, and Flo Rida to the world,” Beverly stated. The Ozone Awards has also featured established artists like Lil Wayne and Ludacris and classic moments like UGK on stage together after Pimp C’s release [from prison]. With the support that we continue to receive from artists, record labels, and the industry in general, one day the Ozone Awards could be bigger than the Grammys, the BET Awards, and the MTV VMAs combined. No matter how big the show gets our goal is always to be on the cutting edge featuring the hottest new acts & records.”