The 31st annual Sunflower River Blues and Gospel Festival paid homage to the Delta Blues Museum with its scheduling Friday night.
The festival, which was Thursday night through Saturday in downtown Clarksdale, had a lineup of artists affiliated with the museum at the main stage on Friday. The Delta Blues Museum band opened things and Heather Crosse: Heavy Suga & The SweetTones followed. Anthony “Big A” Sherrod was next followed by James “Super Chikan” Johnson and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram concluded the evening.
Johnson was a mentor to Ingram, Crosse and Sherrod in blues classes at the museum.
“What makes this one unique is that we went back to our roots where we’re actually showcasing our local artists,” said festival chairperson Melvita Tillis. “If you noticed on Friday night, all of our artists were affiliated with the Blues Museum. They were either students or someone who once taught at the Blues Museum.”
All of the local artists played at previous festivals, but not one after another on the same night and stage as they did on Friday.
Johnson was a fan of the new format.
“I loved the lineup because ‘Big A’ and ‘Kingfish’ and Heather as well, I’m one of their mentors,” he said. “They kind of come up under me. I was pretty much like a teacher to them, especially Anthony ‘Big A.’ I call him my step-grandchild.”
Tillis’ father, the late Melville Tillis, was one of the festival’s founders. He played the trumpet and had the opportunity to perform with Ike Turner several years ago. He taught math and industrial arts at Friars Point Elementary School and owned the River Mount Lodge club.
Tillis herself played the flute and piano several years ago and understands the value of the festival.
“The whole purpose of the festival is to showcase our local artists and bring tourists in to see what we have to offer in the Mississippi Delta,” she said. “We went back to those roots and it looks like it’s going to be pretty successful for us.”
O.B. Buchana, who is also a local blues artist, was the headliner at the main stage Saturday night.
Johnson believed the festival will thrive for years to come.
“I don’t think it’s going to be a problem being alive because the Delta Blues Museum is here,” he said. “It will help keep it alive, so there won’t be no problem keeping the blues alive as long as I’m around.”
Tourists found their way to the festival through many different avenues.
One boy and girlfriend, Jorge Pinilla and Danielle Beben, have been a couple for two years after meeting in India and lived together for three months in Beben’s hometown Cleveland, Ohio, and made the festival part of a vacation lasting the entire month of August.
Pinilla is from Bogotá, Colombia in South America, but attended school at the University of California Berkley, moved to New York and recently took the bar exam.
The young couple attended the festival Saturday, stayed at a Bed and Breakfast and left town Sunday.
“The festival was actually an accident,” Pinilla said. “We just wanted to come to the Delta and explore the blues and, by mere coincidence, I found out that the blues festival was going on. Then, I kept it as a surprise for my girlfriend. She didn’t know. I was so silly that I was talking about it all the time and she discovered.”
He added it is not the last time they will be back.
“This is quite the little hidden gem,” Beben said. “We were just kind of taking a road trip cross country and happened to be here during the blues festival. I’m so glad because we couldn’t have picked a better time to come.”
Pinilla said Clarksdale has gone through an economic depression, but his goal is to make it one of the top destinations in the United States and start a business that will boost tourism.
“You will remember these words,” he said. “We’re going to bring business to Clarksdale, Miss. We’re going to set up headquarters here and we’re going to bring employment here.”
Wrapper Terell Mitchell is from Clarskdale, moved to Ohio, but came home because he missed the southern way of life. This was his first time attending the Sunflower River Blues and Gospel Festival in many years.
“I like how people are producing themselves,” he said. “I like how the blues and everything are getting down. I how the children are here for a time. They’ve got to go home, but everybody is having a good time.”
Tillis was pleased with the way the festival turned out.
“It’s going great,” she said. “All of the visitors I spoke with are having a great time. I went to a couple of the drop in spots that we have artists performing. A lot of them said this was a great addition. Last night (Friday) was really nice as well. We got a lot of compliments about the lineup and how satisfied they were with the artists.”
