Seven new names are joining Philly’s Walk of Fame this year

Seven new names will be added to Philadelphia’s Walk of Fame this fall. Their plaques will join the sidewalk on South Broad Street that showcases impressive musicians and singers with local ties.

Here’s a look at the 2019 inductees, announced by the Philadelphia Music Alliance on Wednesday.

Evelyn King

King was a disco star whose big hit in 1982 was “Love Come Down.” Growing up in Philadelphia, she was discovered as a teenager singing in the bathroom of a recording studio where her mother worked as a cleaning woman.

The Hooters

Best known for “And We Danced” and “All You Zombies,” this 1908s Philly rock band derived their name from an unusual instrument called the melodica, which is like a cross between an organ and a harmonica.

The Philadelphia Orchestra

Now in its 119th year, the city’s most prominent classical music company will likely get a sidewalk plaque right in front of its home venue, the Kimmel Center.

Pierre Robert

Robert has been a common voice on rock station WMMR since 1981. Does a DJ deserve a plaque? Without a doubt, says Alan Rubens, the CEO of Philadelphia Music Alliance.

“Philadelphia is one of the few cities where you can say so many of these disc jockeys and radio people have been on the air for such an extended period of time,” Rubens said, citing former inductees Jerry Blavat and Bob Pantano as examples.

The O’Jays

This R&B group is best known for “For the Love of Money,” with its iconic bass line and reverse-echo vocals. Although they’re closely associated with Philadelphia International Records, they’re originally from Canton, Ohio. Rubens said the group will be there as honorary Philadelphians for the official ceremony at the Bellevue on Oct. 22.

Jody Gerson

One of the lesser-known figures to join the lineup this year is this CEO of Universal Music Publishing Group. Gerson is a native Philadelphian, and was the first woman to head a major music publisher.

Dorrance Hamilton

Hamilton was heir to the Campbell Soup fortune and one of the richest women in America. By the time she died in 2017, she had given tens of millions of dollars to music-related projects in Philadelphia.

“She’s donated over $47 million to a diverse group of organizations,” said Rubens. “The Orchestra, Curtis Institute of Music, Rock to the Future, Opera Philadelphia, The Chamber Orchestra, Philadelphia Pops, and Strings for Schools – which is all about music and all about the next generation of musicians that come from the city.”