Live Music in Mississippi
If music is your passion, then you will love Mississippi. You can hear great blues at clubs along Highway 61 "The Blues Highway" or, if you're feeling adventurous, you can travel along the back roads of the Mississippi Delta in search of juke joints.
Live music in Clarksdale, Mississippi
Visit the Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, MS and celebrate the areas great blues heritage. Located at Blues Alley, next door to the Delta Blues Museum, Ground Zero Clarksdale is the place for anyone looking for the original Delta Blues experience. Clarksdale blues showcases the best of today’s Delta Blues musicians. National acts do perform here on occasion, but you are more likely to find authentic Mississippi blues from musicians who live in the Mississippi Delta. Wednesday through to Saturday, and the occasional Sunday, there is always live blues music.
Co-owned by Morgan Freeman, a Clarksdale native who also co-owns Madidi Restaurant in Clarksdale, Ground Zero Blues Club also serves traditional Southern cuisine. A night’s lodging in one of the Delta Cotton Company apartments above Ground Zero Blues Club is something not to be missed.
Reds Juke Joint is a small real-deal Mississippi juke joint in downtown Clarksdale where you can hear real juke joint blues, playing live blues since the 1970s. You will find live music here almost every weekend from James ‘Super Chikan’ Johnson to Wesley ‘Junebug’ Jefferson, you never know; you may even come away with your own nickname at the place where tourists can party with the locals!
Clarksdale is also home to the Juke Joint Festival held in April every year. The festival is held on the Saturday with related events taking place all weekend including Cathead Mini Blues Festival on the Sunday.
The Riverside Hotel in Clarksdale is a highly recommended stay for blues fans.
Live music in Merigold, Mississippi
Po Monkeys (pronounced Poor Monkeys) in Merigold, MS is one of the last original Mississippi Delta juke joints located on an unmarked gravel track off Highway 61. Whilst visiting Delta landmarks this place can be hard to find but ask any local and you will be pointed in the right direction. Willie Seaberry, aka Po’ Monkey a nickname since childhood, is a farm worker by day and grew up in a local shack. He has been playing the rhythm & blues since 1961 at this patched up shack. Mr Seaberry changes his colourful suits several times throughout the evening to parade for customers. This club is not open on weekends and only opens on Thursday nights, with live music on special occasions.
Live music in Indianola, Mississippi
Indianola is located about halfway between Memphis and Jackson, not far from the famous blues crossroads at Clarksdale. Indianola is BB King’s MS Delta hometown, where he used to sing for tips on the corner of Church Street, located on the Mississippi Blues Trail. In 2008 BB King became the owner of Club Ebony. Many famous blues musicians have played here since 1945, Count Basie, Ray Charles, James Brown, Ike Turner and BB King to name a few; and they still play live music every Sunday. Indianola is also home to the BB King Museum and Interpretive Centre. The museums exhibits are based on the life of BB King and the rich musical heritage of the Mississippi Delta.
Live music in Jackson, Mississippi
The 930 Blues Club Café is a historic landmark venue in Jackson, MS. This bar, although you would be forgiven for thinking it is someone’s house, has a laid back, friendly and fun atmosphere and has many famous and rising blues & jazz musicians booked to grace you with their live musical talents every week.
A popular destination for locals and tourists is Jackson’s Hal & Mal's bar and restaurant. Hal & Mal’s opened in 1986 and is located in the old train depot on Commerce Street. The establishment's namesake is its owners, brothers Malcolm and Hal White. Malcolm White, has been a long time supporter of live music and the arts in Jackson and is responsible for the Mal's St. Paddy's Day Parade which is now one of the city's premier annual events, and one of the largest St. Patrick's Day parades in the country. Hal White is the head chef of the restaurant, and his culinary creations combine the best of the South from cajun food to good old fashioned home cooking. Hal & Mal's Red Room, a secondary music venue, has a full service bar and a stage; a venue for local acts as well as touring acts and private parties.
