Calgary Bluesfest: Walk Through Blues History

A Walk Through Blues History is an interview-style event that tells the story of the origins of the blues, how it made its way north, and how it informs the music we listen to today. This year’s event features Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne, who has been performing around the globe for more than 60 years.

Wayne was born in Spokane, Washington, and raised in New Orleans, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. He started playing piano at 13 and has been performing for over 50 years.

Over the years he has performed with and shared the stage with a great many of the world’s most influential blues and rock pioneers, including Jimmy Reed, Pinetop Perkins, Johnnie Johnson, Big Joe Duskin, Joe Louis Walker, and Floyd Dixon, and as a guest performer with well- known rock and soul artists that have included Ike Turner, Sly and the Family Stone, Delaney and Bonnie and members of Santana and the Doobie Brothers. As a touring performer, he has played to knowledgeable and appreciative blues audiences on four continents and has been profiled by music journalists in Europe and North America.