DUCK HILL – The town of Duck Hill in Montgomery County may be a small municipality, but every year it brings in a record number of tourists who gather to enjoy good music and good food. This year is no exception as they prepare for their 9th Annual Grassroots Blues Festival on July 9.
The Grassroots Blues Festival is an annual event that takes place on the second Saturday in July and it is a united effort to educate, preserve, and celebrate blues music as an art form.
The blues festival is sponsored by Action Communication and Education Reform, Inc. (ACER) and will be held at Elliot Field on Highway 404, between I-55 (exit 195) and Highway 51. The first act, Bud “Leo” Welch, will take the stage at 12 p.m.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the gate. Tickets for teens and young children are available at a reduced rate.
The festival’s big headliner is award-winning artist and Clarksdale native O.B. Buchana, and the event will be emceed by WABG Delta Renaissance host C. Sade Turnipseed.
ACER’s director and the festival’s organizer, Al White, said the Grassroots Blues Festival is a celebration of the rich cultural heritage of blues music and of the artists who have demonstrated “mastery of their artistic discipline and the quality of their work.”
White said they’ve added a new activity to the festival this year in an effort to promote a healthier lifestyle. The first Grassroots Blues Festival 5K Walk will precede the entertainment on Saturday, starting at the Duck Hill Gymnasium at 7 a.m.
Through Project CAM (Cultural Arts and Multi-media), ACER began the Annual Grassroots Blues Festival in 2001 to help support its operation of implementing community development initiatives and programs while simultaneously providing a platform to present traditional blues musicians and other artists in celebrating this unique American art form born in Mississippi.
ACER has also organized and sponsored numerous workshop and activities for local and area youths.
Also scheduled to perform Saturday is local favorite and native son Little Willie Farmer along with Bill “Howl-N-Madd” Perry, Alphonzo Sanders, Big Joe Shelton, Train Wreck Willy, Pat Brown of Jackson and many others.
White said the Grassroots Blues Festival continues to have a positive impact on the community as people from diverse backgrounds visit the community, before, during and after the festival. At previous festivals, people from Chicago, Memphis and other countries have hit the road to take part in what always proves to be a day of wholesome entertainment, plenty of fun for the children and local hospitality.
For more information about the Grassroots Blues Festival, contact Al White at (662)565-2478 or visit their website at www.grassrootsblues.com. Fore more information about the Grassroots Blues Festival 5K Walk, contact Angela Cooley at (662)565-2776.
Be the first to comment