Kenny Wayne Shepherd's Backroads Blues Festival returning to Artpark

Show set for Saturday, Aug. 10, with special guests Jimmie Vaughan, Bobby Rush, Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel

Artpark & Company Press Release

As part of Artpark & Company’s 50th anniversary season, the Backroads Blues Festival – featuring blues and rock titans Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jimmie Vaughan, the legendary Bobby Rush, and Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel – will return to the Artpark Amphitheater at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 10.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, March 29, and cost $59 for reserved seats, $49 for front-of-stage (standing only), and $25 for general admission (carry-in chairs and blankets permitted). They will be available for purchase online at ticketmaster.com or over the phone by calling 716-754-4375.

The Artpark & Company box office is closed for in-person purchases until further notice due to construction on the venue grounds. Tickets will not be sold in person. They are only available online or via the phone.

This concert is presented by Artpark. Visit www.artpark.net for additional information.

More on Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Five-time Grammy-nominated blues-rock virtuoso Shepherd is celebrating both the titans and emerging stars of blues and rock with a must-attend event for enthusiasts of the genre.

Of the “Backroads Blues Festival,” he said, "I wanted to offer a traditional touring blues festival – one that will give people a chance to see the best of the best all in one place.”

Reflecting on the legacy of blues festivals and inspired by the success of similar events, Shepherd aims to fill a void in the contemporary music scene with the Backroads Blues Festival. This commitment to blues music and its community is at the heart of the festival’s mission.

More on Jimmie Vaughan

When it comes to the blues today, there are a handful of guiding lights to make sure the music stays true to its powerful source. The sound of pleasure and pain that first sparked musicians to create such a sound is a force that can never be underestimated. The mojo has to be there. For Vaughan, he's dedicated his life to making sure the blues not only stays alive, but remains full of life and an inspiration to all who listen. It's a spirit he holds close to him and, for after 50 years of holding the blues close inside him, Vaughan isn't about to stop now.

More on Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel

By the time Betts began working on “Wild & Precious Life” – his triumphant debut solo album – he'd already spent the better part of two decades creating his own version of guitar-slinging, story-driven American rock ’n’ roll.

"It felt like the right time to make something that was entirely my own vision," Betts said. "This is a record that guitar players will love, but at its core, it's really a song record. It's an album about who I am, where I come from, and what I believe in."

Betts had spent 10 years playing guitar alongside his father, legendary Allman Brothers Band guitarist/vocalist Dickey Betts. He released an EP, “Sketches of American Music,” and co-founded the Allman Betts Band.

More on Bobby Rush

Rush is a two-times-Grammy-winning legend, Blues Hall of Famer, six-time Grammy nominee, and 14-time Blues Music Award winner. During his renowned stage show, Rush frequently jumps high into the air, arms spread and legs tucked, only to land gracefully and return without a hitch to his dazzling routine. It’s a move you might expect at a contemporary R&B show, but it’s downright shocking when you realize that Rush is in his late 80s.

Artpark Event Schedule

2024 events at Artpark include: Gary Clark Jr. (May 25); Los Lonely Boys (May 31); Sarah McLachlan (June 18); Bonnie Raitt (June 21); Dispatch (June 28); Norah Jones (July 6) The opera “Tosca” (July 12, 14); Train (July 19); The Flaming Lips (July 22); Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo (July 24): Two Door Cinema Club (July 29); Slash S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Festival with Keb’ Mo’, ZZ Ward and Robert Randolph (July 30); Backroads Blues Festival featuring Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jimmie Vaughan, Bobby Rush, and Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel (Aug. 10); Gin Blossoms + Toad the Wet Sprocket and Vertical Horizon (Aug. 11); Stray Cats (Aug. 13); Blues Traveler with Big Head Todd & The Monsters (Aug. 16); Bush (Aug. 17); Tedeschi Trucks Band (Aug. 20); O.A.R. (Aug. 27); Cole Swindell (Aug. 29); and Cage The Elephant + Young The Giant (Sept. 7).

The new Artpark & Company season is sponsored and supported in part by: M&T Bank; Cullen Foundation; New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; Parks & Trails New York; Town of Lewiston; Niagara County Legislature; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; HSBC Bank; Labatt Blue Light; Bud Light; Southern Tier Brewing; Buffalocal; and Northtown Automotive Companies.