Bluesfest 2021 Bobby Rush (photo: Dianne Bruce Dunklau), George Freeman, Jontavious Willis, Melody Angel, avery r young, Sons & Daughters of the Blues w/ Shemekia Copeland, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Lurrie Bell, Steve Bell, Demetria Taylor. Interviews, Podcasts, Book Signings, Photo Exhibit & more.
Logan Center, University of Chicago
Daughters and Sons of the Blues: Shemekia Copeland & Ronnie Baker Brooks with Special Guests, Lurrie Bell & Steve Bell, and Demetria Taylor, Friday, October 15, at 7:30pm Blues music has been handed down from generation to generation since its inception, and Chicago has the largest concentration of Blues families in the world. This concert hosts the most celebrated and successful heirs of the Blues.
I Been Studdin’ Ya! Bobby Rush with Jontavious Willis opening, Saturday, October 16, at 7:30pm
87-year -old Blues legend Bobby Rush performs a solo acoustic set, followed by a set with his electric band. Opening for Rush will be 24-year-old Acoustic Blues phenom, Georgia native Jontavious Willis. The pair will perform together during Rush’s solo set as two extraordinary artists, with six and a half decades separating their births, speak the language handed down to them from their ancestors.
Avery r. young: a strange bitter, and film premiere with Amir George, Sunday, October 17 at 7pm
Through film, musical composition, and poetry, artists avery r. young & Amir George confront the racial demographics of a modern Blues audience. Referencing The Howlin’ Wolf Album (1969—Cadet Concept) & Warrington Hudlin’s 1979 film, Street Corner Stories, young & George will push boundaries in the presentation of live Blues music through this commissioned work for the Logan Center Bluesfest. Opening will be Melody Angel, a native South Sider and versatile vocalist, guitarist, and actress.