Memphis, Tennessee is known as the Home of the Blues, and there was no bigger or brighter ambassador for this Blues City than the King of Blues himself, B. B. King. In his lifetime, King won 17 Grammy awards, including a Lifetime Achievement award and a Hall of Fame award, and his single-string guitar style shaped how Memphis music and blues tunes in general are made. And now a decade after his death at age 89, it’s clear that in the town that made him, the thrill is hardly gone.
That’s why, to honor what would have been B.B. King’s 100th birthday, Memphis is throwing a 2-day celebration and all are invited. Sara Fay Egan, President and CEO of Beale Street Blues Company and a Memphis native said in a statement, “B.B. King’s music echoes far beyond the blues—it’s the heartbeat of American cultural heritage. At B.B. King’s Blues Club, we celebrate not just his sound, but the legacy of storytelling, soul and Southern roots that shaped generations. We invite everyone—from Memphis to the coasts—to witness where history still plays live.”
Egan sat down with Southern Living ahead of this momentous occasion to tell us all about it. First, on Sunday September 14, there will be a free, family-friendly concert and festival at the corner of 2nd Ave and Beale St. “We want people to bring their kids and learn about the guitar and learn how a lot of the genres that they listen to across the board really,[that] the roots are in blues and soul and gospel, and they all tie together,” Egan said.
The festival will include live performances by DJ Stan Bell, Stax Music Academy, Grizzline, Corey Lou & DaVillage Band, Beale Street Flippers, Rodd Bland & Friends, and Whitehaven High School. It will be hosted by Kontji Anthony with DJ Stan Bell.
Beale Street Blues Company
Next, on Tuesday, September 16, B.B.’s actual birthday, B.B. King’s Blues Club on Beale Street will host a once-in-a-lifetime, three course dinner and an all-star concert featuring music legends like Bobby Rush, Boo Mitchell, Carla Thomas & Hi Rhythm, D.K. Harrell, and a jam session by the B.B. King’s All Stars, hosted by Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, and Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time” list member, David Porter.
Beale Street Blues Company
This concert will also include a performance by B.B. King’s daughter, Shirley King and the B.B. King All-Star Legends. Ahead of this jubilant celebration of her father’s legacy, Shirley said, “I am deeply honored to celebrate my father at the club that proudly bears his name. While we mourn the passing of the club’s owner, Mr. Peters, I am profoundly grateful to be working alongside his daughter, Sara Fay, as we come together to honor and preserve the beautiful legacies of our fathers. Their music, vision, and spirit continue to inspire us, and it is a blessing to share this moment in their memory.”
As King mentioned in her statement, Egan, who grew up in Memphis, following the loss of her father, she stepped in to run the company he created, the restaurant group that owns both B.B. King’s and the hidden gem above the world famous blues club, Itta Bena.
Egan built her own career in hospitality and lives in Dallas but preserving the history, culture, and music of, and building the best possible future for her hometown remain paramount for the native Memphian.
“Having been away from Memphis. I’m really passionate about [wanting] people to know, what we have right there… a lot of times Memphis is overlooked [for] larger music towns like Nashville. And the authenticity of Beale Street, the heart and soul of the musicians that get on the stage every night, is really unparalleled.”
Grab your tickets to the celebration on the 16th here.
Read the original article on Southern Living
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