"The Queen Of The Blues "
It’s May, that means…Blues Week? Ah – you might be thinking, wait a minute, this usually happens when the temperature is going down, not the other way around, isn’t this festival in September? Now in its third year, Blues Week has moved to Memorial Day at Soldier’s Memorial Park downtown.
Highlights of the weekend include Harlem native, Shemekia Copeland. The newly crowned “Queen Of The Blues” is a force to be reckoned with. Her powerful voice has gained her national recognition. Her royal highness will be performing from 9:30 – 11:00pm on Friday night.
Headlining on Saturday is the legendary Bobby Rush. Originally from Louisiana, Bobby Rush has been producing music since the early 70s with multiple songs achieving recognition on the Billboard R&B Top 100. Since then, he has released more than twenty-two records and has been awarded “Best Male Soul Blues Artist”, “Best Acoustic Artist”, and “Best Acoustic Album” at the Blues Music Awards; not to mention his Grammy nomination in 2000.
The most enticing set of the weekend may just be Cedric Burnside. The grandson of Mississippi blues legend R.L. Burnside will be headlining the 13th & Pine Stage on Saturday at 7:30 with his band including his brother Cody Burnside and Trenton Ayers.
Cedric Burnside
On a more somber note, appearing on the main stage Friday is Marquise Knox, who will be leading a tribute to Michael “Iron Man” Burks, who passed away earlier this month and was scheduled to headline with Knox. It will surely be a wonderful celebration of Burks’ life.
All that and more with lots of national acts and tons of local flavor.
Check out the full line up at the festivals official website: http://stlbluesweek.com/
