Submitted photos The 2019 inductees to the Hall of Fame at The Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience include Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Tammy Wynette, Margaret Walker Alexander and  John Lee Hooker.

The 2019 inductees to the Hall of Fame at The Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience were announced Thursday afternoon at The MAX. They include:

Jerry Lee Lewis of Nesbit, is a singer-songwriter, musician and pianist and known as a pioneer of rock ’n’ roll and rockabilly music. He developed his signature musical style during his younger years in Mississippi as part of the new and emerging rock and roll movement. His most iconic hits include “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” and “Great Balls of Fire.” Lewis began his career at Sun Records in Memphis and became one of Rolling Stone Magazine’s “100 Greatest Artists of All Time.” He is a Grammy winner, recipient of the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Rockabilly Hall of Fame, and Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

Tammy Wynette (1942-1998) of Tremont was a country singer and songwriter. Called the “First Lady of Country Music,” she is among country music’s best-known and best-selling female singer-songwriters. Her iconic hit “Stand By Your Man” is one of the best-selling singles in the history of country music. She was named by CMT as one of the three Greatest Women of Country Music (with Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn). For nearly two decades, Wynette held the record for winning consecutive awards from the Country Music Association (CMA). She was the first female country artist to sell a million albums and is in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Bo Diddley (1928-2008) of McComb was a singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. His signature rhythms became the cornerstone of modern hip-hop, rock and pop music. Many artists have named him as a musical inspiration, including Elvis Presley, The Beatles and the Rolling Stones. He is a Grammy winner, member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Blues Hall of Fame. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. One of Diddley’s musical inspirations was John Lee Hooker, also a 2019 honoree.

Margaret Walker Alexander ( 1915-1998) of Jackson was a poet and author. She is best known for her 1966 novel Jubilee and her award-winning poem “For My People,” written as part of her involvement in the Chicago Black Renaissance, an African-American literary movement. For 30 years, she served as a literature professor at Jackson State University where she founded the Institute for the Study of History, Life, and Culture of Black People (now the Margaret Walker Center) and served as the institute’s director. She is also the namesake for the Hinds County system’s Margaret Walker Alexander Library. Her works are considered among the most influential and important in African-American literature. She received a Candace Award from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women in 1989.

John Lee Hooker (1917-2001) of Clarksdale was a blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. The son of a Delta sharecropper, Hooker developed a unique style of guitar playing prominently featured in some of his best-known songs such as “One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer” and “Boom Boom.” Hooker is a five-time Grammy Award winner and an inductee in both the Blues Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.