Gulf Coast Artists

Mojo and the Bayou Gypsies

MOJO has been performing for nearly forty years across America and Canada, and from the way he moves, it's obvious that he's still excited about what he's doing. MOJO is the vocalist, accordion player, and songwriter of MOJO & the Bayou Gypsies, delivering original red hot music in the Zydeco and Mardi Gras tradition. Their eighth and latest album is “Madame Magique”. www.redhotmojo.com

Maurice Brown

New Orleans resident and Chicago native Maurice Brown is a trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.  He is the winner of New Orleans' 2005 Big Easy Awards for Contemporary Jazz, and the 2004/2005 ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer Awards for his composition, "Anazao.".  In August of 2004, at age 23, Maurice released his first album as a leader, entitled "Hip To Bop". www.mauricebrown.net

David "Honeyboy" Edwards

David “Honeyboy” Edwards is one of the last authentic performers of the Blues idiom that developed in Central Mississippi during the 1920's and '30s, and has worked with such Delta legends as Tommy McClennan, Charley Patton, Big Walter Horton, Robert Johnson, and Little Walter. He has two Earwig Music CDs, “Delta Bluesman” and “The World Don’t Owe Me Nothing”. www.earwigmusic.com

JackRabbit Slim

JackRabbit Slim’s signature sound is a blend of New Orleans inspired funk with a lot of rock n’ roll energy.  They have played at both the Maple Leaf and Tipitina’s Uptown in New Orleans.  Left without a home in the wake of Katrina, four of them have reunited in Chicago to pursue their aspirations as a band. Their first CD, “Sweet Nectar”, is produced by legendary jazz producer John Snyder. www.jrslim.com

Angela Rucker

Angela Rucker is a gospel and R&B singer and Chicago native who moved to New Orleans two years ago to further her career.   Displaced by Katrina, she is now living in Dolton, Illinois.

Chicago Artists

BS Brass Band

The B.S. Brass Band was formed in 2000 by sousaphonist Mike Hogg and trombonist Jason Thor.  Playing everything from traditional Dixieland to funky James Brown grooves, BS Brass Band has appeared with Dr. John, the Wild Magnolias, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Re-Birth Brass Band, and Nathan & the Zydeco Cha-Chas. Their first CD is “Two for the Show”.  www.bsbrassband.com

Bradley Young

Bradley Young takes the standard definition of "virtuoso" to unique and promising new places. Drawing upon a remarkably diverse series of historical and modern piano influences, Bradley has established himself as a dynamic player, composer and band leader in every genre from blues, soul, and boogie woogie to traditional and contemporary jazz.  His first CD is “Midnight Rhapsody”.
www.bradleyyoung.com

Highwood's Midwest Young Artists

Founded in 1995 by well known guitarist and educator Frank Portolese, Midwest Young Artists’ Jazz Program has grown into a comprehensive youth jazz program.  Under the direction of Nic Meyer, the program includes Big Bands, Combos, and Music Theory and History Classes. www.mya.org

Take One Vocal Jazz Ensemble

Niles North High School’s Take One Vocal Jazz Ensemble is the winner of several DownBeat Magazine student awards and a veteran of several national and international stages, including the Montreaux Jazz Festival.  www.niles-hs.k12.il.us/northFineArts/choir/jazz.html

Master of Ceremonies

Dave Hoekstra   Dave Hoekstra has been a Chicago Sun-Times staff writer since 1985. His work has also appeared in Playboy, the Chicago Reader, Chicago Magazine and the Journal of Country Music. "Ticket To Everywhere", his collection of travel essays, was honored in 2005 by the Illinois Center for the Book. He is a contributing writer to "Farm Aid: A Song for America (Foreword by Willie Nelson)." Hoekstra wrote and co produced the PBS special "The Staple Singers and the Civil Rights Movement," nominated for a 2001-2002 Chicago Emmy for Outstanding Achievement for Documentary Program - Cultural Significance.