"Emotional intelligence work was key to whether I was living life well as a human being, in respect to specifically doing no harm to others, or to myself. So, from my perspective, a “life well lived” isn’t a matter of amassing wealth, fame, notoriety, power, 40 acres and a mule, a carbon-negative energy producing self-driving car or smart home, or having a few shelves, an entire library, devoted to your archives. A life well lived is one paying down…

"I miss the rawness and soulfulness of the old records, the way they were recorded, the musicianship of the day… And the stories that were told. I fear that people will lose sight of what truly is traditional blues, and the lasting impact it’s had on music made around the world, and how relevant it can still be today."

Yates McKendree: Music City Blues…

"Lots of regular life lessons that we should all adhere to be kind, don’t speak badly of others, and one of the most important lessons that I’ve learned is this: there is really more good in the world than bad."

Mark Telesca: Love Music-Hate Cancer

Mark Telesca is an American songwriter, singer, guitarist, bassist, band leader and author.…

"The balance between technique and soul is an important component of the blues. You have to have technique to execute the performance and you have to have soul for the music to be felt. So, in a strange way you only want to get so proficient on your instrument. Too much technique will take away from the music. Soul comes from experience and the more you have the more soulful your sound will be."…

"Always keep the listener in mind when you write and most importantly, don’t take yourself too seriously. Know what you are and what you are not."

Pat Liston: A Musical Journey of Life

Pat Liston first gained widespread recognition as one of the founding members of Mama's Pride...a band known, with great affection as "The Pride Of St.…

"Life is the meaning of life, we can meditate but we have to eat and shit sometimes, so keep it simple."

Nicko Christiansen: Yin- Yang Blues

Nicko Christiansen was born in 1950 in the Hague at the seaside of West Holland. He started to accompany himself on the guitar, mainly songs of Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Bill Haley when he was eleven.…

"Music is the best communication method there is. As James Taylor would sing, "You've Got A Friend" and that friend is a musician."

Beautiful Bobby Blackmon:

Contemporary Soul Blues

Beautiful Bobby Blackmon appears with his B3 Blues Band and as a Solo artist at venues throughout the…

"The impact of music, no matter what, will always be stronger than the impact of anything else. Music breaks down walls. The same two groups hating each other today, will be singing in unison and laughing together at some concert somewhere tomorrow."

Dyer Davis: Dog Bites Back

Dyer Davis is an American singer / guitarist, who is currently working…

"My choice is to make it happy & kind with a one day atta time attitude. There is no guarantee of tomorrow ... I don't believe we are in charge here ... LOVE is the key to life now and later. LOVE Is the only thing that lasts beyond death, LOVE is the only thing you can take with you from this world to the next."

Barbara Blue: From The Shoals With Love…

"Keep dreaming the big dreams, but don't forget to take out the garbage."

George Wallace: A Rebel With A Cause

George Wallace is writer in residence at the Walt Whitman Birthplace, author of two dozen chapbooks of poems, editor of Poetrybay and associate editor of Great Weather For Media. A New York City poet, he travels throughout…

"Music is an incredibly powerful force, I think it is the most immediate vessel for expressing emotions, it is made entirely of vibrations and we are all standing bodies of water ready to receive those vibrations."

Gordon Ashworth: The Spirit of Music

Gordon Ashworth is an American musician and visual artist whose primary field is experimental…

"I think that people who realize the power of rock and blues and have felt all this energy inside them, are bound to have a serious addiction!!! I believe that there is a strong community that supports this kind of music, and I also feel that when people start choosing based on their souls and bodies, rock and blues will rise again. Living with the blues and rock is a way of life, a different kind of awareness, a different mode of thinking, a different…

"...the shamanic components of blues. This music is deep. I'm hoping that people continue to feel it from their souls to their feet."

Kim Lembo: Shamanic Blues Bay

Kim Lembo is a Bay Area Blues Singer, Songwriter and Producer. After recording 4 albums in the 90's and early 2000's with indie label Blue Wave Records, as well as French label Sky…

"I can’t imagine a society without music. Through music you can create emotion, tell a story and even communicate with another person who does not speak you own language. Through our music I want to take the listener on an enjoyable journey. If we can’t do that we have failed."

53 Across: New Mexico High Desert Blues

High Desert Blues. The cold…

"Blues music is about humanity. This music helps us get through the highs, the lows, the joy and the pain. I believe we need good blues music like we need good Healthcare."

Larry Lampkin: Funky Blues Man

Larry Lampkin is an American blues musician from Fort Worth, Texas. He is a passionate singer and unique guitarist who writes and performs songs…

"The blues has always in my experience been about bringing people together for a good time. The older generation remember this, and appreciate it for what it is and continue to keep enjoying the music and festivals, but if a little excitement is not brought back into this genre, then will loose the younger audience, and risk fading into the sunset."

Mitch Grainger: Down Under Blues &…

"I certainly agree with Coltrane: I define my life experience best through my painting, and I feel it's a gift I have an obligation to. As for the meaning of life, I think we all spend ours' considering that question, and I doubt anyone has come up with a wholly satisfying answer. But making art is the closest I've come to fulfilling what I think I'm here to do."

Marc Burckhardt:…

"I think it is too hard for a human to understand who they are. Maybe somebody outside of them can look at you and maybe they understand who you are. But I think it’s very hard for us to have that kind of perspective ourselves. So, he had it right because that would be the way that you can express it, for example in my case blues music does reveal who I am, even to me."

Angela Strehli: The…

"Think of all the music you listen to nowadays, you wouldn’t have it without the blues. Blues is the foundation of music. Those people needed an outlet to let out the extreme emotion they were feeling and the result was the Blues. It’s so important in history and touches the soul. It’ll fall thin but it’ll never truly die."

The International Crossroads Project:…