Look Who’s Coming To Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo For Great Music!

Where Will You Be On January 5 & 6, 2018?  Are You Ready For An Explosion Of Blues?

The 1st Annual Tequila Blues Explosion Festival International is happening near the beach in warm sunny Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Mexico, Friday and Saturday, January 5 & 6, 2018

The 4 hr plus main Festival Concert will be on Saturday, January 6 at the Ixtapa Event Centre (next to Frank’s Restaurant in Ixtapa) with various events held in the two communities on January 5 & 6, with. The final jam of all performers on stage will be a “we can’t miss that” highlight that can only be felt and heard live, organizers promise. 

An AfterParty ticket will be your entrance into more all night jamming.   Advance Festival Tickets are available now by clicking the link.

Coming from the west coast of Canada are Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne, and David Gogo, both known worldwide as blues and blues-rock masters, and Lisa Rae Simons, long time blues performer, whose guitar work and voice will remind you of Bonnie Raitt. 

Coming from central Canada are well-known blues singer Cheryl Lescom and drummer Joey Dimarco.  Joining them will be Mexico City’s Los Mind Lagunas who recently were featured performers on the Big Stage at the Guadalajara Blues Festival along with John Mayall and Charlie Musselwhite.

Here’s our Tequila Blues Explosion YouTube music channel to listen to samples of all the performer’s music.

The full list of headliners and performers includes:  

Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne, the zoot suited dressed master of the boppin boogie-woogie blues style on the piano, who has performed on over 100 big stages worldwide; recently received a lifetime achievement award at the Cincinnati Blues Festival, putting him in the same category as performers such as Ray Charles and Fats Domino and other greats. http://www.kennybluesboss.com

 

David Gogo, a blues and blues rock master with over 14 albums.  Nominated as Best Blues Guitarist in Canada 9 times, and winning three times, most recently in 2017, David has played Montreal Jazz Festival among many others, just recently performed at the Calgary Blues Festival, and shared the stage with BB King, Buddy Guy and more, http://www.davidgogo.com

 

Cheryl Lescom who sings the blues, r&b, and soul with a powerful voice in the style of Etta James and Janis Joplin. With 5 albums to her credit, she has toured and performed with the likes of Jeff Healey, Matt Minglewood, Dutch Mason, Downchild Blues Band, Jack Dekeyser, Del Shannon & David Wilcox http://www.cheryllescom.com

Lisa Rae Simons   Edmonton native, Lisa Rae Simons, singer and bassist, has been playing the blues for 25 years.  Often compared to her main influence Bonnie Raitt, she has forged a history with dozens of the best including blues hotshots, Ana Popovic, Powder Blues, Kenny Neal, Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne, Brandon Isaak, and friend, Jeff Healey who said “In all my travels, Lisa is one of the finest bass players I’ve ever come across.”

and

Joey “Drums” Dimarco, a professional session and performances drummer who has played with Kenny Wayne and many more top blues players over the years all over the world, and just recently this past year, performed at both Salmon Arms and Edmonton Blues Festivals in Canada as well.  http://www.joeydrumsdimarco.com/

International performers will bring their versions of culturally influenced Mexican blues music to the Blues & Blues Rock Stage.  We are pleased to feature Los Mind Lagunas from Mexico City featuring Emiliano Juarez & Alfonso Robledo  They are well known throughout Latin America for their Latin and funky blues stylings. Los Mind Lagunas music: https://youtu.be/KjYFr0CHBrA  Los Mind Lagunas website: http://www.losmindlagunas.com

Check out the Tequila Blues Explosion YouTube music channel to listen to samples of all the performer’s music.

Also Featuring Present & Future Local Stars from Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo:  It was an excellent group of performers at the December 1 & 2 Mexico’s Got Talent Showcase.  Currently, the Festival is still evaluating the performances and how to feature as many as possible at the Tequila Blues Festival.  It is the Festival’s approach to feature local talent during the 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm period as much as possible. Some interesting collaborations are still being discussed. To date we have invited:  Michelle Lavallee, Minuto 59, One Blood Duo, Diego Garcia, and Schan Magnolia, to perform at the Festival.

Other Festival events include an opening day Welcome to the Blues at the Beach Pool Party starting at 3:00 pm on Friday, January 5 at Villas Paraiso in Ixtapa, with Los Mind Lagunas and Special Guests for music and a meet and greet.  Get more details on all Festival events here.

Advance Tickets Are Available Now.  Ticket prices for the whole concert start at 250 pesos per person for advance purchases with reserved seating available.  It will be a nite out to remember and a highlight of the tourist season in Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo.

The Front Row Reserved Seat, with Backstage and After Party Privileges, Have Been Our Most Popular Ticket Purchase So Far.   Get Yours Here. Please Act Soon. There Are Only So Many Front Row Seats We Can Offer Obviously Before You Get Into Rows 2 & 3.

Group purchases of 10 or more tickets in the same area purchased at the same time are also available with a 20% discount.  AfterParty tickets are available separately.    A Mexico Student rate will be available as well.

Tickets can be purchased in person at Frank’s Restaurant (ask for Frank) and Captain Daniel’s (ask for Daniel) in Ixtapa, and at the Inn at Manzanillo Bay in Troncones (ask for Mike).  Tickets can also be ordered for delivery by calling 755 101 5989.

The Tequila Blues Explosion Festival Int. is a community fundraising project raising funds to create a Youth Foundation in the community.  Projects that we hope to support include providing musical instruments and education, better technology such as laptops and tablets for deserving students and their classroom and others that are brought to us.  Programs that we are interested in helping, for example, are the La Escuela de Musica school and the Colegio de Bachilleres music program, both in Zihuatanejo.  The Festival has partnered with Rotary International and other community leaders to ensure it helps where most needed.

The Festival has partnered with Big BoyTequila as a major sponsor for 2017-2018 and is currently negotiating further long-term sponsorships and partnerships. The Festival is estimated to attract 300-500 new and past visitors and local and in-country residents to their events with widespread communication to USA, Canada, Mexico and Latin America.  Please contact the Festival office at 755 101 5989 to discuss sponsorships with the Festival.

For more information about the Festival, please contact Festival Director, Bob Rempel at 755 101 5989 or by email to: tequilabluesfest@gmail.com    Twitter: @ixtapabluesfest   Facebook: @ixtapabluesfest  Website:  https://tequilabluesrock.com/