Nas will be honored at the upcoming Amy Winehouse Inspiration Awards & Gala, taking place on October 11, in New York City at the famed Waldorf Astoria hotel.  He’ll also perform during the Amy Winehouse Foundation’s black-tie event, which will also recognize Amy collaborators Tony Bennett and Salaam Remi.

Salaam is credited with producing Nas’ Life is Good song “Cherry Wine,” featuring the late Amy.  He also crafted the track “Like Smoke,” featuring Nas, from Amy’s Lioness: Hidden Treasures album.  “She was really inspired by him,” Salaam says of Amy, whose music he introduced to Nas in 2004.

In addition to sharing a love of music, Amy and Nas also shared a birthday, Sept. 14.  “Amy was an amazing talent and a special artist.  She was like a little sister to me,” Nas says.  “I’m happy to be involved with a foundation that not only keeps her memory alive but helps support those things she cared most about — kids and music.”

Tickets for the Amy Winehouse Foundation gala are $1,000 each, with money benefiting U.S. charities.  One of the foundation’s projects in the U.S. is to lend a hand to the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra in its efforts to provide after-school music programs for children living in districts still struggling after Hurricane Katrina.  Amy’s father, Mitch Winehouse, recently visited the 9th Ward in New Orleans and delivered a $10,000 pledge to the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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