JAMAL EDWARDS TO BE HONORED  

The late Jamal Edwards will be honored with the prestigious Music Industry Trusts Award in November in recognition of his contributions to the U.K. music industry.

Edwards is best known for founding youth platform SBTV, which helped kick-start the careers of Ed Sheeran, Dave, Jessie J and J Hus, among others. In 2014 he was awarded an MBE for his service to music. He died at 31 in February.

The award will be presented to Edwards’ family on 11/7 at a gala ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel. The event will be held with the aid of the BRIT Trust, Nordoff Robbins and The Jamal Edwards Self Belief Trust.

Little Simz, Jorja Smith, Mahalia and Max Cyrus will be among the performers.

“He was one of the first people to truly believe in me and give me a platform and I will always feel indebted to him for that,” said Mahalia. “His impact on popular music and where the industry is today really can't be overstated.”