Tom Petty & Heartbreakers Honored in Nashville

Spring Hill music fans can celebrate the enduring legacy of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. The iconic rock band received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 25th annual Americana Honors & Awards ceremony on Sept. 16 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium. The award recognized the band's half-century of musical influence.

Surviving members Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench, Stan Lynch and Ron Blair reunited onstage for a special performance, joined by Chris Stapleton to honor the late Tom Petty. Later members Steve Ferrone and Scott Thurston also participated in the tribute. The band formed in 1976.

The Americana Honors & Awards event also featured performances by other nominees and fellow Lifetime Achievement recipient Robert Plant. The recognition coincides with the upcoming release of “Origins 1971-1978,” an archival collection from the Tom Petty estate scheduled for November. The project will feature remastered albums, rare recordings and previously unreleased material.

Members of the band are also slated to participate in a panel discussion titled “Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: 50 Years” during the AMERICANAFEST business conference in Nashville.