Journey To Memphis Finalists To Move On To The Waterfront

On May 10 and 11, the Cascade Blues Association hosted its first round of Journey To Memphis contestants vying to travel to Memphis to participate in the International Blues Challenge. Sixteen acts played twenty minutes each before three judges who scored the acts on their blues content, vocals, instrumentation, originality, and stage presence. The top two scoring acts from each night move on to the finals at the Waterfront Blues Festival. This year’s top scoring acts were Fenix Rising, Johnny Wheels & The Swamp Donkeys, Nikki Jones Band, and Louis Creed & The Geezer. Being the only solo/duo act scoring high enough, Louis Creed & The Geezer will automatically be our entry in Memphis in that category, and as the only under-age act in our competition this year, Generation Headstrong will also be headed to Memphis for the Youth Showcase.

Make your plans to attend the finals on July 4, on the Front Porch Stage at the Waterfront Blues Festival to start out the day. Come cheer on your favorites and see who will also be going to Memphis. Congratulations and good luck to all. And thank you to all of the participants as you brought a splendid two nights of entertainment.

Thanks also to all of our volunteers; our judges for this round of Journey To Memphis Mark Young, Mark Bittler and Tom Wendt; Coach, Jay & Mike from JBL Sound, and The East Portland Eagles Lodge. None of this could’ve happened without you all.