Grammy Award winning performers Gladys Knight and the Original Manhattans will headline the 11th Annual Bermuda Music Festival tonight.

Comedian Steve Harvey will be on hand as host for a smashing evening also featuring Steve Darrell and Wanda Ray Willis, African Dance Productions, Robert Symons and the Warwick Gombeys.

Ms Knight is expected to perform many of her memorable and enduring hits ? "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", "Midnight Train To Georgia", "Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me" and "Letter Full Of Tears".

Ms Knight has been sharing her musical gifts with the world for over 50 years.

She began performing gospel music at age four and by the age of seven, had won Ted Mack's Amateur Hour, which was the 1950s version of today's Star Search.

She won a what would have been an enormous grand prize at the time ? $2,000.

By the time she was eight, she and her brother Bubba, sister Brenda, and cousins William and Elenor Guest formed a little group ? The Pips.

The quartet later became Gladys Knight & The Pips and performed together until 1989, when they decided to pursue different career paths.

Over the span of her career, Ms Knight has produced a staggering 36 albums.

She will be sharing the spotlight tonight with R&B Hall of Famers, the Original Manhattans, featuring Gerald Alston and Blue Lovett.

The Manhattans were originally comprised of Blue Lovett, Richard Taylor, Kenny Kelley, George (Smitty) Smith and Sonny Bivins.

Blue and Smitty were out front as the group's strong lead singers. Blue was also the group leader and an outstanding songwriter whose compositions with producer Joe Evans gave the group a string of hits on Carnival Records during the mid 1960s.

The Manhattans plan to perform from their hit ballads which include "There's No Me Without You", "We Never Danced To A Love Song", "Feels so Good" and "Kiss And Say Goodbye", which was a platinum selling number one pop and R&B hit in 1976.

At the height of their popularity, the group performed at Jimmy Carter's Presidential Inaugural Ball in 1977, but by the late 1980s, they were pursuing individual interests within the industry.

As their 30th anniversary approached in 1994, however, the group decided it was the perfect time to reunite and in 2003, released their first studio album in 15 years. It featured the ballad "Turn Out The Stars", which became one of the year's best songs.

In addition to the acts on the main stage, there will also be local performers featured on the 'Onion Stage' in the Victualling Yard tonight including Hugh Murray, Next Level, U-Fonics and Jazz 4.

Doors open at 6 p.m. and showtime is at 7.30 p.m.

Tickets are $60 for general admission, $85 for reserved seating and $100 for premium reserved seating.

Tickets are available at Soundstage, Washington Mall. 292 0811. Or visit www.ticketweb.com.