Mid-Michigan's ‘MLK Day of Celebration’ earns an Emmy

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The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan has won an Emmy® Award for the broadcast of its 2021 “MLK Day of Celebration” honoring Dr. King’s legacy.

The award is for excellence for broadcast production in the historical/cultural category from the Michigan Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. It was presented at the chapter’s Emmy Award Show in Detroit.

Necessitated by the pandemic, the January 2021 broadcast was the first time in 36 years the commission transformed the annual event for television. Previously it was staged before a sold-out audience of up to 2,200 at the Lansing Center, Lansing.

“Producing this show was a labor of love,” said Elaine Hardy, commission chair. “The replacement of our annual luncheon couldn’t just be a Zoom video conference — it had to be inspirational. And it had to amplify the message of our keynote guest, Dr. Bernice King. We’re honored and proud the quality and spirit of the program are recognized by others.”

Hardy worked closely with Kevin Meyer, in developing the program. He’s a concert producer who has partnered with the commission on events for about a decade.

Over 100 people are listed in the show’s credits. The program was executive produced by the commission. The production team was led by MiEntertainment Group, Grand Rapids. Producers in addition to Meyer were Marshall Yoder and Dyan Yoder; Eric Nacke was video director, and Allen McAvoy was the audio engineer.

The hour-long broadcast included segments that producers recorded in the Grand Rapids Captus Creative studios and Van Andel Arena; musical performers filmed at their locations; and elected officials submitted. Interwoven were iconic civil rights photographs.

Featured were Grammy award winners hip hop soul singer Musiq Soulchild and gospel artist Tasha Cobbs-Leonard; Michigan artists Rodney Page, Larry Trice Jr., Sharon Lawrence, Phil Denny, Larry Trice III; and Lansing’s Music of a Dream Orchestra. There was a salute to the commission’s sponsors.

The program aired on WILX TV 10-NBC, Lansing. It can be viewed at https://bit.ly/MLKCom-2021.

More information is at https://mlkmidmichigan.com or follow the commission on Facebook, @MLKCommOfMidMI, and Twitter, @MLKCommOfMidMI.