"Music has no ethnicity…we are all black, white, purple or whatever when we listen and play it…there is nothing else in the world that can cause all of those emotions to be FELT by pretty much EVERY human on the planet…You can’t have a greater impact than that."

Bobby Messano: The Top of…

"Most of what’s considered blues today, I don’t regard as blues. It’s mostly blues-rock, or just rock, as far as I see. Blues followers generally seem to like it though so I try to keep opinions to myself, unless it pertains to festival line-ups that repeatedly book electric guitar and harmonica show-boaters."…

"Blues and Jazz were always the voices of the downtrodden. The slaves created it as a rebellious statement. They could be chained and whipped but no one could take their voices, their rhythms."

Dana Colley: Vapors of Art-o-phone…

"Music is something that easily can unite people no matter what religion, nationality, gender; it is an important universal language."

Lighthouse Sweden: Navigation On The Roots…

"Blues and Soul music is the theme song for a lot of what’s going on in the world; just watch a documentary of movie, you’ll hear a Blues or Soul song conveying the mood."

Vintage#18: Movin’ & Groovin’

D.C.-based Soul-Blues band…

"The socio-cultural implications must be seen firsthand in this inexhaustible collection of work, in the messages of our artists. You won’t see narrow themes; you’ll see bursts of color, a wide spectrum of shadow, a deep ocean of nuance and symbolism."

Hilary Krzywkowski: The Art of…

"Blues brings people together and it always will."

Gary "Gator" Millhollon: Real Blues

Ray Reed & Gator are two world-class blues musicians living and playing in the DFW area of Texas. Between the…

"Well Blues and Jazz has always been pretty influential when it comes to race, politics, and socio-culture. I mean just the creation of this genre alone was an act of defiance and rebellion from the old plantation workers in the cotton fields."

Chris Canas: The Soldier For The…

"I think the biggest change vis-à-vis women in the music scene, and in the blues scene, is that that people really and genuinely want to see us excel at things that are not traditional for us."

Polly O'Keary: Blues Fusion Callin'…

"The music of my father’s era was foundational – a Renaissance age that will never be repeated again. Of course, great music continues to be made. But I fear that the attention to craft and commitment to art have been diminished by technology, and it’s going to get worse before it ever gets better."

Brett Berns:…

"I think the impact of rock and roll and blues music had on the culture are, the music brought blacks and whites together through their music in a way that had never happened before. Jazz music started it in the 40s' but it really changed in a bigger way when kids discovered all of the great blues artists for the first time. It was a revelation!!"…

"I miss the raw sound and emotion of old blues records the new blues today lacks the feeling to me there are a few acts that can pull it off nut not many..."

Brody Buster: Kansas City Blues

Brody Buster…

"To me the blues has always been about commentary and story telling. Speaking up and speaking out. Truthfully. It was a force in reporting on social, personal and political situations and still can be. Times have changed, so the blues specifically, has a greatly reduced impact compared to what it was."…

"The musical ramifications of said implications are subjective to the listener. I am only the humble messenger- my mission as a performing musician is, communicate to the listener, encourage them to take flight in their own mind, while they are experiencing my improvisations."…

"The Blues and the socio-racial-politico ramifications....the Blues is first and foremost the ORIGINAL protest music against a corrupt racist system in North America since at least 1619. It is and will always be Black History regardless of commercialism and/or appropriation."

Hugh…

"Music has no color and I as stated previously, music is universal."

Mr. Sipp: Living Loving Bluesman

Castro Coleman, a.k.a. Mr. Sipp “Mississippi Blues Child” was born August…

"My hope for the genre is that artists will continue to innovate. You can only play 1,4,5 blues so many times. I think there is an unnecessary pressure on artists from the blues establishment to remain traditional."

Chris Antonik: Blues Monarch…

"The wonderful thing about the blues is it transcends race, gender, age and other social barriers. It brings people together."

Lazy Eye Band: Midnight Crossroads 

Lazy Eye is an Australian band full of…

"Music has a very special way to get directly in peoples’ hearts. In the racial, political and social areas though, there is still much work to be done, that goes over the impact that music can have on our lives."

Eva Atmatzidou: No Limits, One Music…

"A lot of blues today is basically a rhythm section backing a screaming guitar. The dynamics have been lost. I’m not saying every modern blues player is like that, but the ones that move me are few and far between."

Sunny Lowdown: The Blues Volume Low…