Rosie Ledet has released a much-anticipated new record called RAW! this week, following up 2013’s Slap Your Mama with a brand new collection of original material. Read more
RSVP for the next free Zydeco Crossroads concert with Nathan & The Zydeco Cha-Chas
Listen to Buckwheat Zydeco on NPR’s Mountain Stage
Buckwheat Zydeco appeared on West Virginia Public Radio and NPR’s Mountain Stage program a few weeks ago, marking his second visit to the show’s Charleston, WV venue. Read more
Jeffery Broussard: Pound for pound, the best accordion player around
Pound for pound is an old term used in boxing. It often refers to a fighter who may not be the biggest, tallest, fastest and strongest.
But judging his overall skills and abilities, he is the best boxer around – regardless of weight class.
In the world of zydeco accordion players, Jeffery Broussard doesn’t have the biggest name. He doesn’t draw the biggest crowds (at least, not at home) or have the most girlfriends.
But pound for pound, Jeffery Broussard is the best accordion player around. Read more
June is National Accordion Awareness Month!
Credit: Alphonse “Bois Sec” Ardoin plays the accordion for the Duralde Mardi Gras in 1977. Photo: Nicholas R. Spitzer via Louisiana Folklife It’s true, June is National Accordion Awareness Month, a designation made in 1989 to introduce the instrument to a wider audience. Zydeco Crossroads was lucky enough to tour the Martin Accordions workshop and showroom in Scott,…
WXPN brings Geno Delafose to the Commodore Barry Club on Friday
WXPN and Allons Danser are excited to welcome Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie to the Commodore Barry Club in Mount Airy, Philadelphia this Friday, May 29th. Read more
Watch the Trey Anastasio Band cover “Acting the Devil” by Chris Ardoin
While Zydeco musicians have a lot of fun putting their Creole flair on mainstream pop and rock songs (just ask Sean Ardoin, Buckwheat Zydeco or Clifton Chenier) it’s less often that a band outside of Southwest Louisiana covers a zydeco tune. But not only has Phish frontman Trey Anastasio covered Chris Ardoin and Double Clutchin‘s “Acting the Devil,” he and his solo band have played the song in concert thirty times between 2001 and 2014. Read more
Dwayne Dopsie carries on a Lafayette tradition
Dwayne Dopsie remembers that fateful day in 1999. Dospie, then 16, told his mom he was quitting school to play zydeco.
His father, zydeco legend Rockin’ Dopsie, had died six years earlier. Dwayne had a burning desire to follow in his footsteps.
“After he passed away, it seemed like everything changed,” said Dopsie, 36. “My interest for school went out the door. I told my mom that I wanted to play. She said ‘You’re going to need that schooling to fall back on.’ Read more
The Advertiser reports on El Sido’s 30th anniversary
Sid Williams has been running his Lafayette club El Sido’s for thirty years now. The venue has been an integral and joyful part of the town over the last few decades, launching zydeco careers, offering a place for friends and family to gather and lending a hand to the community. But as Herman Fuselier discusses in his profile of the venue for The Advertiser, El Sido’s isn’t experiencing the level of success it once was. Read more
Watch: WURD host Stephanie Renee on zydeco, highlights of Marcus Ardoin and Rockin’ Dopsie in concert
Marcus Ardoin & Da Zydeco Legends traveled to Philadelphia with Rockin’ Dopsie Jr & The Zydeco Twisters last month for another outstanding evening of music and dance. For this event, WXPN partnered with local community radio station WURD to bring the music to a larger audience and introduce XPN’s listeners to another perspective of zydeco’s importance. Watch highlights of the concert below, along with interviews with WURD radio host Stephanie Renee and WURD listener Rob Carter. Listen back to the full audio archive of the concert here. Read more