New York, NY (Top40 Chart/ Rogers & Cowan) The United States
Postal Service and France's La Poste will honor renowned music icons Miles Davis and Edith Piaf on Forever Stamps on June 12 with First-Day-Of-Issue Ceremony taking place at the Rubin Museum of Art - The Theater from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.Deputy Postmaster General Ronald Stroman will be the dedicating official. Sirius/XM Program
Director Mark Ruffin will emcee. This dedication is unique in that these commemorative stamps will be launched on the same day in both France and the United States.
The Tribute to Miles will include participation from Cheryl Davis, daughter of Miles, Erin Davis, son of Miles and Vince Wilburn, Jr. nephew of Miles. Additionally, legendary jazz bassist Ron Carter and musician/producer Don Was, currently Chief Creative Officer ofBlue Note Records, will speak. A musical tribute is also planned by trumpeters from the Julliard School of Music, the alma mater of Miles Davis.
The Miles Davis family comments: "It is an extremely high honor to have the legacy of Sir. Miles Dewey Davis be recognized with a commemorative stamp. We thank the U.S. Postal Service, along with all of the fans and well-wishers worldwide, who voiced their support for this initiative."
Miles Davis is one of the most innovative, influential and respected figures in the history of music. He is credited with changing the course of music four-to-five times and has been at the forefront of jazz for decades, setting trends and exploring musical styles from bebop through cool jazz, fusion and funk. He is a timeless genius whose restless musical exploration made him a hero to many. His landmark album Kind Of Blue remains the most significant and greatest selling jazz album of all time. Congress unanimously honored Kind Of Blue by the passing of H. Con. Res. 894, reaffirming the work as a national treasure.
Davis remains the sole ambassador of the trumpet and still represents all that is cool in music, art, fashion and style. His wide appeal also continues to cross all musical genres, demographics and socio-economic boundaries, as he defies category. A major motion picture is in the works starring Don Cheadle, with musical score by multiple GRAMMY-Award winning artist Herbie Hancock.
A second Miles Davisstamp dedication is scheduled in Los Angeles on June 27 at the Hollywood Bowl's Museum Terrace from 7 p.m. - 8 p.m.The event is free and open tothe public. The dedication will be followed by the
Herbie Hancock hosted "Miles DavisCelebration" concert at the Hollywood Bowl featuring Marcus Miller "Tutu Revisited," the Miles Electric Band (featuring Vince Wilburn, Jr. on drums) and Kind of Blue: Jimmy Cobb's "
So What" Band. For ticket information please visit hollywoodbowl.com.
Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamps using an undated, black-and-white photo of Piaf made by Studio Harcourt Paris and a black-and-white photo of Davis, from 1970, by
David Gahr.
The Edith Piaf and Miles Davis stamps are being issued as Forever stamps in self-adhesive sheets of 20 (10 of each design). Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate. At the time of issuance, the Edith Piaf and Miles Davis stamps are being sold at a price of 45 cents each, or $9 per sheet.
Customers may view the Edith Piaf and Miles Davis Forever stamps, as well as many of this year's other stamps, on Facebook at facebook.com/USPSStamps, through Twitter at twitter.com/USPSstamps or on the website Beyond the Perf at beyondtheperf.com/2012-preview.
The Miles Davis family is available for advance and onsite press. For more information on Miles, please visit milesdavis.com.
