Fifteen Alligator Artists Receive 27 Blues Music Award Nominations

Rick Estrin & The Nightcats Lead With Seven Nominations

Shemekia Copeland Follows With Five

 
Thursday, January 28, 2021 -- Today the Blues Foundation announced the nominees for the 42nd Annual Blues Music Awards, the blues world's highest honors. A total of 15 Alligator recording artists received a remarkable 27 nominations. Rick Estrin & The Nightcats lead all artists with seven nominations (including one each for guitarist Christoffer "Kid" Andersen and drummer Derrick "D'Mar" Martin). Shemekia Copeland received five nominations, while Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite, Tinsley Ellis, Chris Cain, Billy Branch and Christone "Kingfish" Ingram each received two. Curtis Salgado, Lil' Ed Williams (leader of Lil' Ed & The Blues Imperials), Selwyn Birchwood, Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith (drummer with The Cash Box Kings) and Dennis Gruenling (harmonica player with The Nick Moss Band Featuring Dennis Gruenling), each received one nomination.

 
According to Alligator president Bruce Iglauer, "I’m very proud of so many Alligator artists getting the recognition they so richly deserve. This is a great emotional boost for them in this tough year. This is a time we need the healing power of the blues more than ever, and these wonderful bluesmen and women have delivered that healing on recordings even though they haven’t been able to deliver it in person.”
 
The Contemporary Blues Artist Of The Year category includes four Alligator artists of the five nominees: Rick Estrin, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Selwyn Birchwood and Chris Cain (whose Alligator debut Raisin' Cain will be released on April 9, 2021).
 
The highly coveted B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year Award nominees list includes three Alligator artists: Rick Estrin, Shemekia Copeland and Lil' Ed Williams.
 
Both the Instrumentalist -- Guitarist (Christone "Kingfish," Ingram, Chris Cain and Kid Andersen) and Instrumentalist -- Harmonica (Rick Estrin, Billy Branch and Dennis Gruenling) nominees lists also include three out of five Alligator artists.
 
The 42nd Annual Blues Music Awards will be presented as a virtual event on Sunday, June 6, 2021. It will be live-streamed on the Blues Foundation's Facebook page as well as on its YouTube channel.

Alligator artists and awards are as follows:

RICK ESTRIN & THE NIGHTCATS:
B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year
Band Of The Year
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Song of the Year: All My Dues Are Paid (by Kathy Murray, Rick Estrin, Frank Bey and Kid Andersen -- performed by Frank Bey)
Instrumentalist - Harmonica
Instrumentalist - Guitar (Christoffer "Kid" Andersen)
Instrumentalist - Drums (Derrick "D'Mar" Martin)

SHEMEKIA COPELAND:
B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year
Album Of The Year: Uncivil War
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year: Uncivil War
Song Of The Year: Uncivil War (by John Hahn and Will Kimbrough)
Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year
 
ELVIN BISHOP & CHARLIE MUSSELWHITE:
Album Of The Year: 100 Years Of Blues
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year: 100 Years Of Blues

BILLY BRANCH & THE SONS OF BLUES:
Traditional Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Harmonica

CHRISTONE "KINGFISH" INGRAM:
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist -- Guitar

TINSLEY ELLIS:
Blues Rock Album Of The Year: Ice Cream In Hell
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year

CHRIS CAIN:
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist -- Guitar

LIL' ED & THE BLUES IMPERIALS:
B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year

CURTIS SALGADO:
Soul Blues Male Artist Of The Year

SELWYN BIRCHWOOD:
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year

KENNY "BEEDY EYES" SMITH (THE CASH BOX KINGS):
Instrumentalist - Drums (Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith)
 
DENNIS GRUENLING (THE NICK MOSS BAND FEATURING DENNIS GRUENLING:
Instrumentalist - Harmonica (Dennis Gruenling)