Buffett inducted into Mississippi Songwriters Hall of Fame

PASCAGOULA, Miss. — Jimmy Buffett, Mac McAnally and the late B.B. King are among the latest inductees to the Mississippi Songwriters Hall of Fame.

This year’s ceremony was held online instead of in-person because of concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, WLOX-TV reported.

During the Thursday event, Pascagoula Mayor Steve Demetropoulos congratulated Buffett, who was born in the city on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

“It’s been said that Mississippi is the birth place of America’s music. Well, Jimmy Buffett is America’s music,” Demetropoulos said.

Buffett is famous for hits including “Margaritaville” and “Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes.”

In a recorded message, Buffett said: “It’s a long way from the Pascagoula run and my early days growing up in Mississippi certainly had an impact on the way I wrote songs and what I wrote about. So, thank you Mississippi for that.”

The Mississippi Songwriters Alliance sponsors the Hall of Fame.

The Associated Press