Good blues: Baton Rouge Blues Festival Saturday

Celebrate the weekend in the birthplace of the swamp blues with the Baton Rouge Blues Festival, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday. The event features performances across two stages and backstage interviews inside the Old State Capitol. This year’s performers include C. C. Adcock & The Lafayette Marquis, Henry Gray and guests, Robert Randolph & The Family Band and many more. The festival is free and open to the public. For more information, including a full lineup and schedule, visit batonrougebluesfestival.org.

Saturday isn’t the only day to enjoy those good blues sounds. The festival is hosting a “rent party” Friday at Iron Designs, 540 North 18th St. The event is a throwback to Harlem parties in the ’20s where musicians would host a gathering to pay that month’s rent. The show will feature an intimate performance from Blind Boy Paxton at 8 p.m. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased here.

Local duo Baby Bee will perform a free show after the festival Saturday at 9 p.m. at Hartley/Vey Studios. For more information on that show, visit Manship Theatre’s event page.

The Blues Room, 244 Lafayette St., will also host a wealth of blues shows throughout the week, starting Wednesday, with a performance from Louis Dunn and the Dunn Deal All-Stars at 9 p.m.

Thursday, 9 p.m.: Josh Garrett
Friday, 8 p.m.: Blues Box All-Stars
Saturday, 8 p.m.: John Lisi and Delta Funk
Sunday, 6 p.m.-10 p.m.: Elvin Killerbee and Friends jam session