For Koray Broussard, Zydeco is a family affair. The Opelousas, LA native is a third generation Zydeco musician; his father John, uncle Jeffrey and grandfather Delton are all noted players in Southern Louisiana and beyond. And by tracing the youngest Broussard’s family lineage it’s easy to see the route Zydeco music has taken over the last several decades. Read more.
Louisiana supergroup Creole United stopped by the Swamp ‘n’ Roll studio last April to record an hour-long TV concert special. Read more.
Leon Chavis came out of nowhere. A former trumpet player in Southern University’s famous marching band, the Louisiana native and accordian player found a break-out hit with his 2008 song “Holla @ Me” and now has several records under his belt. Read more.
While many young Zydeco musicians are blending contemporary sounds like R&B and hip hop with the old school style of the genre, bandleader Lil Wayne Singleton stands proudly on the side of tradition. In addition to being the bandleader of busy Southwest Louisiana group Same Ol’ 2 Step, Singleton is an enthusiastic advocate for the culture’s heritage and importance. Read more.
Zydeco Crossroads officially kicks off this week. On Wednesday, October 29th at 8PM ET, it’s the debut of the Zydeco Crossroads Radio Hour, a monthly zydeco music show hosted by Herman Fuselier, a contributor to Zydeco Crossroads, hosts Zydeco Stomp on KRVS in Lafayette, Louisiana. Read More
Tune in Thursday evening, October 30th to KRVS in Lafayette, Louisiana and WXPN in Philadelphia, when Zydeco Crossroads presents the zydeco all-star group Creole United live in concert from the Blue Moon Saloon in Lafayette. Creole United features Andre Thierry, Sean Ardoin, Edward Poullard, Rusty Metoyer, Jeffery Broussard and Lawrence Ardoin. The show is the first of many live Zydeco Crossroads broadcasts happening in the upcoming year, and will be filmed for a documentary by filmmaker Robert Mugge. Read more
Nicknamed “The Zydeco Sweetheart,” Rosie Ledet is the foremost female Zydeco musician to come out of Louisiana. Her decade-long career has included the release of ten records (most recently 2012’s Slap Your Mama) as well as numerous awards from The Black Heritage Association of Louisiana and others. Read more.
Houston native Ruben Moreno sits at the joint of Zydeco and R&B, using his band Zydeco Re-Evolution to connect the traditions he was surrounded by while growing up with the constantly changing modern trends of the music’s culture. Read more.
Nathan Williams began his music career in the 80s as a kind of therapy following a serious illness. After mastering the accordion, the South Louisiana native and Creole-speaker gathered his family around him and formed the Zydeco Cha Chas – a band that has carried on the Zydeco traditional for three decades now. Read more.
Jazz has Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington, rock has Lynyrd Skynyrd and Zydeco has Canray Fontenot. The Creole fiddler was an award-winning Louisiana musician whose original compositions withstood the test of time to become standards in traditional Zydeco and Cajun music. Read more.