ST. PETERSBURG \u2014 Morgan Freeman came to town Thursday night to turn the Mahaffey Theater into a juke joint. His juke joint, to be specific: Clarksdale, Mississippi\u2019s own Ground Zero Blues Club<\/a>.<\/p>\n During the local tour stop of Morgan Freeman\u2019s Symphonic Blues Experience, the Florida Orchestra teamed up with seven wickedly talented blues musicians from Ground Zero, which Freeman opened back in 2001.<\/p>\n Though the lush, swelling harmonies from the orchestra provided a cinematic layer to the performance, it was hard at times to focus on anything but Freeman\u2019s crew of Mississippi musicians as they wailed, shredded and grooved along.<\/p>\n The spectacle even drew St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch.<\/p>\n \u201cI had to leave a city council meeting,\u201d he told the crowd at the packed Mahaffey Theater before Freeman came on. \u201cBut I\u2019ll do anything for y\u2019all.\u201d<\/p>\n Here were the evening\u2019s highlights:<\/p>\n Freeman strolled onstage in blue jeans, a blazer and a Ground Zero Blues Club trucker hat. When he tipped it to the audience, everyone stood up to cheer.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you so much,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cNow sit down.\u201d<\/p>\n Eric Meier, one of Freeman\u2019s fellow Ground Zero co-owners, launched into a pre-show question and answer session. Meier referred to a printed list of facts from ChatGPT, which included that St. Petersburg is home to the world\u2019s largest shuffleboard club<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, that\u2019s something, isn\u2019t it?\u201d Freeman said with a laugh.<\/p>\n Next, the pair wanted to know about Gasparilla<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to see a show of hands. Who attends, and who gets the heck out of dodge?\u201d Meier asked. \u201cThose who attend, you\u2019re at the right place tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n We learned that Freeman\u2019s favorite Shakespearean acting experience was in the play \u201cCoriolanus,\u201d and that he actually is very good at whistling (he proved it). Then Meier pointed out Freeman\u2019s filmography had grossed about $11 billion over the years.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat? What? What?\u201d Freeman said.<\/p>\n Meier asked if he thought he\u2019d been well paid, considering the grand total.<\/p>\n \u201cAre there children here?\u201d Freeman said. \u201cF–k no!\u201d<\/p>\n Freeman left the stage to kick off the show, replaced by the musicians from Ground Zero Blues Club. The actor would reappear onstage throughout the night in a series of pre-taped videos, narrating the origin and evolution of the blues across five chapters. Archival footage rolled in the background, from workers toiling in cotton fields to late-night dance parties across time.<\/p>\n Mississippi singer and harmonica player Keith Johnson unleashed a soulful slide guitar performance as Freeman\u2019s voiceover explained the blues\u2019 role as \u201cheartache and hope tied together.\u201d From West Africa to slavery in the American south, the genre became \u201ca testament to the unbroken spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n Freeman continued on through the Great Migration in the 1920s, blues in gospel and rock and roll, and the genre\u2019s modern dominance in the Mississippi Delta. As the band and orchestra moseyed through covers of B.B. King, Sam Cooke and Robert Johnson, the crowd swayed in their chairs, singing and clapping along.<\/p>\n While most of the night was dedicated to iconic songs of the past, St. Pete was treated to a few originals from one of Clarksdale\u2019s current blues ambassadors.<\/p>\n Anthony \u201cBig A\u201d Sherrod, a firecracker of a guitarist and singer, played two of his own songs, earning some of the biggest howls and applause of the night.<\/p>\n As he danced across the stage under a spotlight, ripping rapid guitar licks the whole time, the screen behind him flashed snippets of the Sunflower River and music-themed murals in Clarksdale.<\/p>\n Ground Zero Blues Club inspired the juke joint at the center of the 2025 film \u201cSinners.\u201d In Freeman and Meier\u2019s interview with the Times last week<\/a>, they even talked about having the film\u2019s director, Ryan Coogler, and cast over at the club.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
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