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Fresh off their win at the 2024 International Blues Challenge, Piper & The Hard Times are on the rise! Core band members Steve Eagon, Dave Colella, and Al 'Piper' Green sit down to chat about coming together as a band nearly 20 years ago and their journey to one of blues music's top honors. https://www.piperandthehardtimes.com

On March 31st, 2024, one of our favorite music venues, Twin Kegs II, closed its doors. The owner, Todd Rossbach, was not just a great supporter of blues music, but of many creative pursuits, hosting spoken word evenings, comedy nights, and songwriter's open mics along with the historic Sunday blues jam. At the last jam at Twin Kegs II, we sat down with several regulars to talk about what made this place so special. Thank you, Todd.

Clenching a red Gibson SG, Grace Bowers expresses emotion through fluid fretwork and raw riff-craft. Instead of resorting to mere words, chords, and leads evoke feelings for the 17-year-old guitarist and band leader. It's why she's quietly emerged as not only a phenomenon on her instrument of choice but also as an enigmatic musical presence. It's why she's been sought after by everyone from Dolly Parton, Lainey Wilson, Devon Allman, Margo Price, Tyler Childers, Kingfish, Susan Tedeschi, and earned acclaim courtesy of Rolling Stone and more. It's why she's about to leave her own mark on music as well. https://www.gracebowers.com https://www.instagram.com/grace__bowers https://www.youtube.com/@UCKQ4QhP2JbpVneGFTX3mDXQ https://www.tiktok.com/@grace__bowers1 Tommy Norman is the Vice President for the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance, a business leader, as well as a guitarist who has played the clubs on Beale Street and the dive bars in Nashville. You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynorman/ and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tommynorman. Become a member and support the blues with the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org.

At 22 years old, Sean “Mack” McDonald is one of the younger faces of the blues. He grew up in Augusta, GA where he was introduced to various forms of music through church, relatives, and family friends. After starting out on drums at age 2, he started playing piano at 3 after hearing Ray Charles. 4 years later, he started teaching himself guitar. His influences range from popular musicians such as B.B. King, Muddy Waters, and Louis Jordan to more obscure ones like Bill Jennings, Pete “Guitar” Lewis, and others. https://www.facebook.com/MackTheMusician Tommy Norman is the Vice President for the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance, a business leader, as well as a guitarist who has played the clubs on Beale Street and the dive bars in Nashville. You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynorman/ and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tommynorman. Become a member and support the blues with the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org.

Jackie Venson is a multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter known far and wide for her beautifully complex music and blazing guitar skills. Born and raised in Austin, Texas, Jackie has traveled the world playing to crowds both as a headliner and as support for major acts such as Keb' Mo', Gary Clark Jr, Aloe Blacc, Melissa Etheridge, and Citizen Cope, to name a few. In 2020, Jackie released her studio album Vintage Machine, her first studio follow up to 2019's Joy. Music from Vintage Machine was featured heavily on Jackie's taping for Austin City Limits' 46th season, and she released the full set on "Live at Austin City Limits" that year. In 2021, she released Love Transcends, her first studio album centered around the blues and at the start of 2023 she released Evolution of Joy, a reimagining of her breakout album Joy, with producer Frenchie Smith (Jet, Toadies, Wild Child.) With the uncertainty of the times we're living in, one thing holds true for Jackie Venson-she's going to play her music, speak her truth, and spread as much joy as she can doing it. Connect with Jackie at: https://jackievenson.com https://www.youtube.com/user/jackievenson https://www.facebook.com/jackievenson https://www.instagram.com/jackievenson https://www.patreon.com/JackieVenson Tommy Norman is the 2023 Vice President for the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance, a business leader, as well as a guitarist who has played the clubs on Beale Street and the dive bars in Nashville. You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynorman/ and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tommynorman. Become a member and support the blues with the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org.

Johnny Burgin cut his teeth in Chicago, gigging and recording with blues veterans like Tail Dragger, Sam Lay, Billy Boy Arnold, Charlie Musselwhite, and Pinetop Perkins. He's put out 10 albums on his own and toured the world. We caught up with Johnny when he headlined at Papa Turney's BBQ. Connect with Johnny at: https://johnnyburgin.com https://www.facebook.com/JohnnyBurginII https://www.instagram.com/johnnyburgin https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEBHvKSv_hMbkfXjyWPlTgQ Tommy Norman is the 2023 Vice President for the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance, a business leader, as well as a guitarist who has played the clubs on Beale Street and the dive bars in Nashville. You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynorman/ and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tommynorman. Special thanks to Michael Turney at Papa Turney's BBQ for letting us use his stage.https://papaturneysbbq.com Become a member and support the blues with the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org.

Ram Prakash Pokharel, aka "Prakash Slim", is an international artist/performer and educator of the blues from a small village called Lamatar, in the Lalitpur district, of Nepal. He recently traveled to the US for the first time to perform his country style blues for audiences across the continent. We sat down with Prakash before his show at Papa Turney's BBQ to chat about how he got into the blues. Follow Prakash at: https://www.prakashslim.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/PrakashSlim https://www.facebook.com/PrakashSlimPokharel https://open.spotify.com/artist/6BUyesUy4Av5E5AzkqE4gk Tommy Norman is the 2023 Vice President for the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance, a business leader, as well as a guitarist who has played the clubs on Beale Street and the dive bars in Nashville. You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynorman/ and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tommynorman. Special thanks to Michael Turney at Papa Turney's BBQ for letting us use his stage.https://papaturneysbbq.com Become a member and support the blues with the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org.

Danny "Guitarwood" Garwood is a young up and coming blues musician who is taking Nashville by storm. Check out our interview with this amazing new artist. Find Danny online at: https://dannyguitarwoodgarwood.com/ https://www.facebook.com/dannyguitarwood https://www.instagram.com/danny_guitarwood/ https://www.youtube.com/@UCnATqp_ZFreV0CQt5Fj-U9g Support the Nashville Blues And Roots Alliance at http://www.bluesandroots.org Special thanks to the Underdog for letting us use their venue. https://www.facebook.com/theunderdognashville Also a shout out to Guthrie Trapp for letting us film after his East Nashville Guitar Club jam. https://guthrietrapp.com https://www.instagram.com/eastnashvilleguitarclub