Port City Blues Festival

MOBILE, AL (May 12, 2023) – The Blues Is Alright Tour makes its debut at Mobile Civic Center Arena with The Port City Blues Festival on Saturday, October 14 at 7 p.m. The Blues is musical storytelling filled with stark emotion and a revolving reality check. It’s authentically raw; transforming tragedy, adversity and heartache into a visceral and cathartic experience. This special night of emotive lyrics and guitar-driven accompaniment features performances by Tucka, King George, Calvin Richardson, Willie Clayton, Pokey Bear, Ronnie Bell, and J-Wonn.

Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, May 19 at 10 a.m. and start at $59, plus additional taxes and fees. Pre-sale tickets go on sale Wednesday, May 17 at 10 a.m. local time. Tickets can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com.

SHOW DETAILS:
Date: Saturday, October 14, 2023
Showtime: 7:00 p.m.
Venue: Mobile Civic Center Arena, 401 Civic Center Drive, Mobile, AL 36602
Prices: $59, $75, $99, $125, $175

ABOUT TUCKA

Equally influenced by R. Kelly and Barry White, Louisiana's Tucka James is an R&B singer who can deliver "pillow talk" songs that recall the grooves of the 70’s, 80’s, and 2010’s. He kicked off his career in 2007, singing lead vocals with Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band. He introduced his solo career in 2008, along with his nickname "the King of Swing." He soon became a regional Louisiana favorite, and opened gigs for Mystikal and Lenny Williams. His Love Rehab album landed in 2009 with songs like "Sex on My Mind" and "Myspace Love." Forever King followed in 2011, then in 2015 he released Love Rehab 2. For more information on Tucka, visit https://www.tuckajames.com/ and follow @TUCKA on Facebook and @tuckakingofswing on Instagram.

ABOUT KING GEORGE

Bursting onto the Southern Soul scene with his signature party-centric sound filled with R&B flair, King George has quickly become a fan-favorite. Based out of Hopkins, SC, King George exploded on the Southern Soul scene and rose quickly to headliner status on The Blues Is Alright Tour this past Spring 2023. His highly anticipated album, Juke Joint Music was released in 2022 after launching onto the music scene via YouTube in 2020.  For old-school music lovers, King George’s music is the perfect combination of R&B, soul, and funk that is sure to get anyone to do a little two-step. With his rich tone and satin-smooth vocals, his songs, “Keep on Rollin”, “Too Long”, “Friday Night” and “Leave & Party” are his top hits. There can only be one king: King George. For more information on King George, visit www.803kinggeorge.com and follow @King George on Facebook and @803kinggeorge on Instagram.

ABOUT CALVIN RICHARDSON

Born and raised in Monroe, North Carolina, Calvin Richardson is the fifth of nine children and the son of a Gospel singer. His life as a performer goes back to childhood: as a kid, Calvin's mother led a Gospel act called The Willing Wonders and Calvin was the group's youngest member. His first solo album, Country Boy, was released in 1999 by Universal Records and featured the singles "True Love" (featuring Chico DeBarge) and “I'll Take Her” (featuring K-Ci Hailey). After being dropped by Universal, Calvin eventually rebounded and landed another record deal, this time with Hollywood Records. In September 2003, he released his second album, 2:35 PM. The album, which was named after the time that his son Souljah was born, featured the Grammy-nominated hit "More Than a Woman," featuring Angie Stone. Other singles from the album were "You've Got Me High" (featuring Slum Village) and "Keep on Pushin'." Most recently, Calvin signed with Shanachie Records. His first Shanachie album, When Love Comes came out May 27, 2008. It was followed by the Grammy-nominated Bobby Womack tribute album Facts of Life in 2009 and an all-new album, America's Most Wanted, in 2010. For more information on Calvin Richardson, visit  www.iamcalvinrichardson.com and follow @IAmCalvinRichardson on Facebook and @iamcalvinrichardson on Instagram.

ABOUT WILLIE CLAYTON

Singer-songwriter and producer, Willie Clayton got his start in gospel music, at church, as a youngster and then moved into the secular field as a lyricist, producer, and singer. An active recording artist since the 1970s, Clayton’s career has endured almost 40 years in R&B, soul, and gospel. Clayton has crooned with the likes of Ron Isley, Bobby Womack, Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye. In 1984, Clayton’s songs “Tell Me” and “What a Way to Put It,” scored on to the R&B charts. Let’s Get Together, Clayton’s 1993 album for Johnny Vincent’s Ace record label, was a smooth soul-blues hybrid dominated by originals but titled after Al Green’s immortal hit. In 2009, Clayton made what is known as one of the all-time fan-favorites with the project entitled “Love, Romance and Respect” which featured two Top 25 Urban Adult Contemporary airplays on the Billboard charts with “Dance the Nite Away” and “We Both Grown” featuring, Dave Hollister. Willie Clayton strives to bridge the generational gap between his era and today’s music. “Mood music has no age limits, this album reminds you how good it is to be in love, or shows you how sweet it can be!” For more information on Willie Clayton, visit www.willieclayton.net and follow @OfficialWillieClayton on Facebook and @iamwillieclayton on Instagram.

ABOUT POKEY BEAR

Wardell “Pokey Bear” Brown was born on February 2, 1970 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is known for his soulful sound of music in the Blues/Southern Soul genre; however, he did not start out that way. Pokey Bear began his career as a rap music artist, but after doing it for a while decided to try other styles. His venture off into other styles of music would lead him to be the soulful singer that he is today. He was first recognized in music for his first two projects produced by Beat Flippa. Particularly his songs entitled “They Call me Pokey” and “Side Piece,” The song “Side Piece” happened as a result of a hook that was written by Heavy in which he asked Pokey to write lyrics to. He has worked with artists such as Tyree Neal, Adrian Bagher, Ms. Pat, Veronica Raelle, and Cupid. For more information on Pokey Bear, follow @Big Pokey Bear-JSP on Facebook and @bigpokeybearjsp on Instagram.

ABOUT RONNIE BELL

Ronnie "RnB" Bell is a church-reared independent R&B singer whose voice recalls the likes of Brian McKnight, Tank, and Jaheim. His material has alternated between contemporary commercial sounds and slower numbers more in line with deeply Southern soul-blues. Raised in Walker, Louisiana, roughly 20 miles east of Baton Rouge, Bell started singing in choirs as a youngster. During his teenage years, he performed with the family group George Perkins & the Voice of Harmony, and then with Kenneth Mitchell & the Voices of Praise. After two years of attending Delta State University, during which he played on the school's Division II championship-winning football team, he transferred to Southern University and joined the Southern University Concert Choir. Bell also opened on-campus gigs headlined by the likes of 112 and Erykah Badu. A self-titled three-song EP was released in 2012 as Bell's recorded solo debut. Several singles such as "Cotton Candy" followed during the next few years, and led to a longer EP, #BBMyself, in 2015. "I'll Pay the Shipping Cost" arrived in 2016. For more information on Ronnie Bell, follow @RonnieBell225 on Facebook and   @RonnieBellMusic on Instagram.

ABOUT J-WONN

​Jawonn Smith, better known by his stage name J-Wonn, is a soul singer that hails from Jackson, MS and has built a name for himself following the release of his hit single “I Got This Record”. His love of Blues came from growing up around his mother and grandmother, who would often sing around the house. At the age of 13, J-Wonn began writing music of his own and went on to write for many Blues and Soul singers. One of his proudest writing credits came from penning a track for the legendary soul artist Lenny Williams. During high school, he was a member of a hip hop group that also included elements of R&B. The group gained an artist development deal and it helped Smith to learn a lot about navigating the music industry. It also gave him an opportunity to grow as an artist. J-Wonn's latest single entitled "Move On" is available on all digital & video platforms.” J-Wonn followed up “I Got This Record” with several other hits that were in continuous rotation on Southern Soul radio stations across the Southeast region. He has also won several awards from various outlets including Best Entertainer, Artist of the Year, and Best New Single. He finished working on his second full-length album The Legacy which had led to collaborations with a wide range of different artists and an expansion of his brand of J-Wonn’s world to new ears. His latest single entitled "Move On" is doing great J-Wonn also released the video on his VEVO channel. For more information on J-Wonn, please visit www.J-WONN.com and follow @jwonn on Facebook.                                                                                        

This performance is produced by North American Entertainment Group Inc., one of the leading independent promoters of entertainment tours and live events in the United States, in conjunction with Heritage Entertainment Group.

 

ABOUT NORTH AMERICAN ENTERTAINMENT GROUP:
North American Entertainment Group, Inc. is one of the largest independent promoters of entertainment tours and live events in the United States. With more than 25 years in the industry and an extensive history in venue management, NAEG has consistently delivered the hottest concerts, comedy shows and theatrical entertainment to venues in more than 100 markets. Beyond the stage, NAEG has produced television specials, concert DVD’s, online content and branded merchandise. A company distinguished by creativity in tour packaging and marketing strategy, NAEG’s success resounds in the memories of those who have attended their events. North American Entertainment Group is an umbrella company of several popular, hit subdivisions. With experience in all types of entertainment (comedy, hip hop, jazz and more), North American Entertainment Group is always searching the horizon for pinnacles of new entertainment to deliver to cities around the country. For more information, visit northamericanentertainment.com