A Shreveport native and Centenary College graduate won a Grammy for the Best Regional Roots Music Album category for her work on one of the songs on a Clifton Chenier tribute album.
A.J. Haynes, a 2011 graduate of Centenary College, won a Grammy for “A Tribute to the King of Zydeco” for Best Regional Roots Music Album. Haynes is recognized for contributions to the song “Why Did You Go Last Night.”
Haynes moved to Shreveport from Columbia, Louisiana, when she was about 16, now lives in New Orleans, and grew up listening to Clifton Chenier, a pioneer of zydeco music. She is the leader of Seratones, an American soul rock band formed in Shreveport, and recorded her part for the tribute album at Dial Back Sound in Water Valley, Mississippi.
She recorded her part before attending the Grammys in 2024 as an attendee, and was happy to attend this year as a nominee.
When Haynes was in Shreveport she worked at Campus Collectibles, a vintage store by Centenary College, where she was “paid in records.”
“One of the first records that I got for my labor was a Clifton Chenier album, so it was a nice full circle moment to be able to honor him,” Haynes said.
Haynes said winning the Grammy “felt surreal, beautiful and like a homecoming of sorts.”
She said being in a category with other nominees that she admires was an honor in itself, and that any of them winning would have been a win for the region.
Haynes said the fact that the funds were going back to art programs and pouring into the youth also aligned with her values.
According to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, all proceeds from the album will go directly to funding the Clifton Chenier Memorial Scholarship, which supports students studying zydeco accordion in the Dr. Tommy Comeaux Endowed Chair in Traditional Music. The fund was created by Valcour Records in collaboration with C.J. Chenier and the Chenier family estate.
“I’m so proud of the community that has supported me for all of these years,” Haynes said of Shreveport.
She said there was a lot of local support for Seratones when they formed in 2013 and that there is something special coming up to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their first album, “Get Gone.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.shreveportbossieradvocate.com ’
