Happy Birthday B.B. King! To mark his 100th birthday celebration, The B.B. King Blues Band will hit the road on 'The Thrill Lives On' Tour 2025. The B.B. King Blues Band's extensive tour will wind its way across the country in Spring 2025 to coincide with the release of a new album.
B.B. King became one of the most important names in R&B music in the 1950s, amassing an impressive list of hits. He received 15 Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. B.B. is one of the most influential blues musicians of all time, earning the nickname "The King of the Blues", throughout his musical career, appearing on average at more than 200 concerts per year into his 70s.
Some great names and special guests will be joining the tour and recording the forthcoming album. They are:
CLAUDETTE KING
Dubbed "The Bluz Queen," is B.B.'s youngest daughter. She has a natural ease in shifting the mood of each word. However, the power of Claudette's enthusiasm for the beautiful genre-blending music on her debut, "We're Onto Something," merits ample notice. Claudette King can be described as dynamic, amplified, and downright sassy. She exudes a confidence that was born of her struggle to prove who she is while carving out her own identity.
SHIRLEY KING
Nicknamed "The Daughter of the Blues,/" Shirley shares her father's love of the blues, but she's developed a sound and a style that sets her apart from her dad. A vocalist, Shirley has a big, bold style influenced by the likes of Etta James, Ruth Brown, and Koko Taylor, and her music brings classic blues styles into the present, with a dash of modern-day funk incorporated into numbers rooted in '50s and '60s blues archetypes. Her second album, 1999's Daughter of the Blues, gave her a chance to show off the range of her voice and personality, while 2020's Blues for a King saw her performing alongside Junior Wells, Elvin Bishop, Joe Louis Walker, Steve Cropper, and other legendary artists.
GRADY CHAMPION
Mississippi-based, Grammy Award-winning songwriter, entertainer/musician Grady Champion has been captivating audiences for more than two decades. The singer/harp player/guitarist/songwriter/producer signed to Malaco Records, headquartered in nearby Jackson, MS, in 2013; his first full-length release with the legendary blues label was released the following year. His album, Bootleg Whiskey, named for the George Jackson song that is one of the album highlights, establishes Champion as a torch carrier for authentic Mississippi blues.
TONY T.C. COLEMAN
Tony Coleman has had an illustrious career touring the world for 25 years as B.B. King's drummer. He's performed with other Blues giants, including Otis Clay, Bobby Blue Bland, Johnnie Taylor, Albert King, Albert Collins, Etta James, James Cotton, Katie Webster, and Z.Z. Hill, O.V. Wright, and Buddy Guy. In recent years, Tony’s friend Willie Nelson introduced him to one-of-a-kind mega country star Jamey Johnson who he played drums and percussion for over two and a half years.
WILBERT A. CROSBY
Wilbert A. Crosby is a guitarist, producer, and music instructor. Currently based in Chicago, Crosby has had the opportunity to perform and record with various artists like Pops Staples, Mavis Staples, Aretha Franklin, Charlélie Couture, and Carey Bell. Accolades have adorned Crosby’s career. He won the Albert King Award in 1996 and performed at the White House during the Clinton and Bush administrations. He performed the Grammy-awarded song “Have A Little Faith” with Mavis Staples at the 2005 Grammy Awards. Additionally, he played with Pops Staples at the 1995 Grammy Awards in an all-star jam with Bonnie Raitt, Phil Upchurch, WahWah Watson, Isaac Hayes, and Maria Muldaur.
DARRELL LAVIGNE
New Orleans-based musician Darrell Lavigne began his musical excursions at ten, first on guitar, then trumpet. It wasn’t until his junior year that he finally decided piano would be the instrument of choice. “I wanted to explore harmony and the colors of music, and the piano represented that vehicle for me.” As a pianist, his influences came from the usual jazz sources such as Monk, Bud Powell, Ahmad Jamal, Hancock, Corea, Tyner, and Jarrett. “My father was responsible for my appetite for jazz. “He used to put on Charlie Parker, Coltrane, and Miles Davis records so that music was assimilated aurally.
JOSH HARNER
Discovering Doc Severinsen & the Tonight Show Band at the young age of three, Joshua immediately fell in love with not only the trumpet but awakened a smoldering passion for music. From thousands of live performances to studio sessions, Joshua thrived as a well-sought-after musician, performing with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Keb Mo, Jackie Greene, Trisha Yearwood, Garth Brooks, Mercy Me, Lady Antebellum, Kid ‘n Play, Montell Jordan, Nicole C Mullen, BB King, Donna Summer, Gloria Gaynor, The Jacksons, among many others.
RONNIE BALFOUR
Adept percussionist with a proven track record of enhancing live performances and studio recordings, notably with BB King Blues Band. In addition to working with the B.B. King Blues Band, Ronnie has worked extensively with the Gap Band. He excels in versatility, showcasing adaptability across genres and innovative electronic percussion techniques. He's mentored emerging talent, demonstrating exceptional collaboration skills and hand-eye coordination, and achieved significant improvements in ensemble cohesiveness and performance quality through effective communication and technical proficiency.
Other musicians performing with the band are bassist Barry Jackson and Roderick Allen on Saxophone.
Since the passing of the great B.B. King, his towering influence over the blues world remains undimmed and will never be forgotten.
