Music Walk of Fame founder Lee Bennet reveals next icons to be honoured with a stone

Virgin Radio

23 Sep 2022, 14:15

Camden’s Music Walk of Fame founder Lee Bennett reveals the next music icons getting their own stone.

Yesterday, David Bowie was honoured with a stone on the Music of Walk of Fame, which already includes the likes of The Who, Amy Winehouse and Madness.

It has always been founder Lee Bennett’s dream to create an area in Camden, not too dissimilar from the Hollywood Boulevard, that champions people who changed the face of music. The unveiling of Bowie’s stone was his comeback following the pandemic, and Lee has big plans for who to include next.

Speaking exclusively to virginradio.co.uk, he explained the process behind picking music icons to be on the Walk of Fame.

He said: “We have different categories. Next year, everything will be voted for and there'll be an internal voting committee and then a public vote on Artist of the Year, which makes us relevant to a younger audience.

“So, this year, we’re back and Bowie has sort of brought us back to life.”

He added: “We're looking at including Blondie and The Cure, The Damned, Paul Oakenfold the first superstar DJ, and we’re having Slade to turn on the Christmas lights.

“I will reiterate Slade are not known just for that Christmas song. They've been covered so many times, and they were one of the biggest bands in the 70s. So this will tell their story without them just being a gimmicky Christmas band that the younger generation think they are.”

Lee said he first came up with the idea for the Music Walk of Fame after being inspired by the infamous Hollywood Boulevard.

He explained: “I was walking down Hollywood Boulevard with my son and you know, I’ve been in the industry a long time, I’ve worked with many artists and I thought, ‘this should happen here for music and it should happen in Camden and we should be the global epicentre of music.’

“And it’s not just me saying it, even American artists have a rite of passage here and they keep coming back. I’m thinking about the Red Hot Chilli Peppers in 1986, Nirvana played here, Rage Against the Machine, Bowie launched glam rock in the Roundhouse. It’s had a varied array of artists over the years.

“So, I decided to do it and where else but Camden?”.

Virginradio.co.uk also spoke to former Spider from Mars and Bowie’s band member, Mick ‘Woody’ Woodmansey at the event yesterday and he told the thing he remembers most about the music icon, which you can read here.