Willie King (March 18, 1943 – March 8, 2009) was an American

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

guitarist and singer, known for shunning fame and playing at a local bar in

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Biography

King was born in Prairie Point, a community in

Noxubee County, Mississippi Noxubee County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, its population was 11,545. Its county seat is Macon, Mississippi, Macon. The name is derived from the ...

near the Alabama border. Prior to recording, he worked as a sharecropper, moonshine maker and traveling salesman; just a few of his many occupations. Later he became active with the

civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

, which inspired him to write socially conscious blues songs. In 1983, he founded the Rural Members Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the traditional rural skills King had grown up with, which he called 'survival skills,' and helping improve his local community. In 1997, the Rural Members Association started the annual Freedom Creek blues festival, which has since received international recognition. He began recording in 1999 and his 2000 recordings ''Freedom Creek'' and ''I Am The Blues'', were the first of several acclaimed albums. King performed at national and international festivals but mostly played near his home, most notably as a regular at Bettie's

Juke joint Juke joint (also jukejoint, jook house, jook, or juke) is the vernacular term for an informal establishment featuring music, dancing, gambling, and drinking, primarily operated by African Americans in the southeastern United States. A juke joint ...

in Mississippi. He described his music as "struggling blues" because of its focus on the "injustices in life in the rural South". King died from a heart attack shortly before his 66th birthday, near his home in the rural community of Old Memphis,

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

, just a few miles from his birthplace.

Willie King on film

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

film-makers Saskia Rietmeijer and Bart Drolenga (Visible World Films) wanted to produce a documentary about African American arts and culture in the

Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...

. But they met Willie King and instead decided to devote their efforts to creating a documentary about King's life and times, titled ''Down in the Woods''. King was also featured in

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

's 2003 documentary series ''

The Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the African- ...

'' and Shout Factory's ''Blues Story'' the same year.

Discography

Albums

Videos

Awards

*Alabama Folk Heritage Award (awarded posthoumously) 2009 *Howlin' Wolf Hall of Fame Inducted September 2, 2005 *Alabama State Council on the Arts 2004 Artist Fellowship *

Living Blues ''Living Blues: The Magazine of the African American Blues Tradition'' is a bi-monthly magazine focused on blues music, and America's oldest blues periodical. The magazine was founded as a quarterly in Chicago in 1970 by Jim O'Neal and Amy van ...

2003 Blues Artist of the Year, Best Song, Best Cover Art *Living Blues 2001 Best Blues Artist *Living Blues 2000 Best Blues Album, Best Contemporary Blues Album

References

External links

Obituary which aired on Alabama Public RadioNews story at tuscaloosanews.comWillie King homepageThe Blues Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Willie 1943 births 2009 deaths American blues guitarists American male guitarists Guitarists from Mississippi 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians