The Mississippi Delta Blues Festival is the king of blues festivals. Founded in 1978, the Greenville-based blues festival is the second oldest continuously operating festival of its kind in the country. The festival is Mississippi's largest single-day event. Perhaps it has earned its regal status because of the way it was born -- from the heart and passion of the state's civil rights and anti-poverty movements.
The blues were born out of a folk culture context drawing elements from work songs, love songs, slow drags, rags, and spirituals. The Mississippi Delta Blues Festival is the flagship of the Delta Arts Project, founded by the Mississippi Action for Community Education Incorporated (MACE). Its mission is to confront the human rights issues that gave birth to the blues and empower African-Americans.
Advertisement
The festival began as a community gathering where locals played traditional blues on acoustic instruments. While it's still seen as a community event, the festival has drawn top-notch blues artists such as B. B. King, Bobby Rush, Albert King, Bobby Blue Bland, John Lee Hooker, Johnny Winter, Muddy Waters, Furry Lewis and Big Joe Williams.
