HAMPTON, Va. – Five remarkable musicians will soon make the trip from the Heart of Dixie to Coastal Virginia.
The legendary, Grammy Award-winning group The Blind Boys of Alabama will perform a one-night-only concert on Saturday, February 17 at 8 p.m. at The American Theatre. Although they are primarily considered to be a gospel group, they draw from a variety of musical genres such as gospel, jazz, blues as well as the music of Tom Waits and the Rolling Stones.
Celebrating more than 70 years of success, the group’s original members first sang together as kids in the school chorus at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind in 1939, and the rest is history.
“These men were raised as blind, African American males in the Deep South during the Jim Crow years, and they were sent to a school where the expectation for them was to one day make brooms or mops for a living,” said Blind Boys manager Charles Driebe. “But they’ve transcended all that. The arc of their lives and of the band reflects the arc of a lot of changes in American society.”
The group has won five Grammy awards out of 10 nominations. They were last nominated for Best American Roots Performance for “Let My Mother Live” at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards (2017). They received the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.
“Beyond their exceptional musicality, The Blind Boys of Alabama represent exceptional character,” said Hampton Arts Artistic Director Richard M. Parison, Jr. “I am honored to welcome them to The American Theatre and to share their story of resilience with our Coastal Virginia community.”
Tickets are $45/$40 and may be purchased in person at The American Theatre Box Office or the Hampton Coliseum Box Office, online at Ticketmaster.com or by phone at 1 (800) 745-3000.
The American Theatre is located at 125 East Mellen Street in Hampton.
