Who do I have to see about this?
Published 10:19 am Thursday, February 26, 2026
Let me ask a question that most Mississippians understand immediately.
Who do I have to see about this?
Because Paul Davis, born in Meridian, Mississippi, is still not in the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Hall of Fame, and at this point it is not simply surprising. It’s downright ridiculous.
This has gone past oversight and wandered into the territory of how on earth is this still unfinished business. One begins to assume the nomination paperwork must have gotten lost somewhere between common sense and a committee meeting, which, if we are honest, is not the first time that has happened.
Paul Davis isn’t a regional footnote. He was not a one hit wonder. He wasn’t some obscure name that requires a long explanation. He was a nationally successful singer songwriter with a catalog that helped define an era of American music that’s played globally.
This isn’t complicated, it’s a slam dunk. A no brainer.
This should have been handled a long time ago.
His breakout hit “I Go Crazy” reached the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed on the charts for 40 weeks, setting a record at the time. That is not trivia. That is music history. Then came “65 Love Affair,” which climbed to number six nationally. “Cool Night” followed, becoming a classic that reached number 11 and rose to number two on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Paul Davis placed 14 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, with multiple Top 10 and Top 40 successes. That’s not luck, it’s a career of sustained national impact.
And he was not only a performer.
Paul Davis was a songwriter’s songwriter, the kind of craftsman whose work crossed genres and generations. He co-wrote “Bop,” which became a number one country hit for Dan Seals. He wrote “Meet Me in Montana,” recorded by Dan Seals and Marie Osmond. His music traveled far beyond Meridian, far beyond Mississippi, and into homes all across America.
So again, the question remains. Who looks at that body of work and says, not yet? Who decides that Mississippi has room for celebration but somehow not for Paul Davis?
What exactly are we waiting for? Perhaps a handwritten invitation delivered by a mule, carried down from the clouds by Jimmie Rodgers himself?
Are we waiting on Elvis Presley to lean over the gates of music history and say, Y’all might want to go ahead and fix this? Do we need B.B. King to fire a blues riff from somewhere above and remind us that Mississippi does not exactly suffer from a shortage of legends, only an occasional shortage of follow through?
Because you can almost imagine a whole choir of Mississippi greats, the ones we proudly celebrate, looking around and asking the obvious question.
How is Paul Davis still not in the Hall of Fame?
At some point, the silence stops being polite and starts being strange.
Mississippi rightly prides itself on its musical legacy. We tell the world that our state is the birthplace of American music. We celebrate every music form including blues, gospel, soul, country, rock, and the legends who carried those sounds forward.
Paul Davis belongs in that story as clearly as anyone.
And beyond the charts and awards, there was something else that mattered.
Paul Davis carried success with humility. He was gracious. He was the kind of artist who did not need spectacle to prove his worth. Those who knew his work often speak not only of his talent, but of his character. He represented the best of Mississippi in both artistry and decency.
Meridian, Mississippi, has been patient long enough.
Now, Mississippians are good at patience. We wait in church lines without complaining too loudly. We wait through long football seasons with hope in our hearts. We wait behind tractors on two lane roads as if we have nowhere else to be. Waiting is practically a Southern tradition.
But patience is not the same thing as silence.
At some point, you stop waiting politely and you start asking plainly.
How has this gone on this long? How has this not already been corrected?
What exactly are we waiting for? Who do we need to see about this?
Paul Davis belongs in the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Hall of Fame because the record is undeniable. National success. Timeless songwriting. A Mississippi artist who helped write the soundtrack of a generation.
This is overdue.
Embarrassingly overdue.
The good news is that the public can help fix it right now.
The Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Hall of Fame is open for public participation and candidate recommendations for the 2027 Hall of Fame inductees are being taken through March 1.
Here is the official link.
Take a moment and vote please.
Paul Davis belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Not someday, right now.
The music is already immortal, the legacy is already proven, and the only thing missing is Mississippi finally doing what it should have done years ago.
Al Brown is director of communications for the city of Meridian
