UKBLUES CHALLENGE - 2019

 

Following last week's announcement of the first contestant in the 2019 UKBlues Challenge we are very pleased to announce that the second participant is Connor Selby who says of his involvement with the UKBlues Challenge:

“I am extremely grateful to be able to participate in such a prestigious challenge and am really looking forward to the chance to be able to expose my music to a wider audience”

 

Connor Selby has been a guitar and music fanatic for as long as he can remember - first picking up the instrument at around age 8. Since that day Connor has been honing and developing his craft for almost the entire duration of his life.

Musically Connor takes inspiration from most of the British players that emerged in the 1960s citing Eric Clapton as his first and current major influence, putting particular emphasis on his output with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers and Cream.

Connor has also studied the guitar playing of other players such as Paul Kossoff, Gary Moore, Joe Bonamassa and of course, BB King, Albert King and Freddie King .

Although blues based guitar music has been the most prominent style in terms of Connor's listening throughout the years, his musical taste extends much further and deeper than just the blues. Connor's listening also includes a variety of Folk, Soul, R and B, Gospel and Country and Western including the music of Ray Charles, Donny Hathaway, Nick Drake and many others.

Connor describes these artists in particular as having a huge impact on the way he listens to and thinks about music. The young British bandleader-guitarist-vocalist writes his own songs and builds on his very diverse influences. His soulful vocal style and his distinctive guitar playing evokes the British blues boom of the 1960’s.



​Connor released his acclaimed debut album 'Made Up My Mind' on 3ms Music in September of 2017.  

Recently selected to appear at Wembley Stadium supporting The Who, Kaiser Chiefs, Imelda May and Eddie Vedder in July 2019, Connor Selby is definitely a rising star. Having already played a number of iconic venues such as the 100 Club and Borderline, and having clocked up numerous festival appearances, Connor consistently captivates audiences and is making quite a name for himself.

Watch Connor Selby  in action: ​
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PvkEvhTxDI
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJVBL6fDXTQ
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a1kMQy5Oes
 
 

Kyla Brox - Winner of the European Blues Challenge 2019


  As already announced, the 2019 UKBlues Challenge will take place on Saturday 14^th September 2019 at the Bluefunk Rhythm & Blues Club, Poynton, to whom our sincerest thanks go.



At this event five bands will compete with the winner being invited to go on to represent the UK at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in January 2020 and the European Blues Challenge in Zaandam in the Netherlands in April 2020.



Four of the contestants have been selected through the recent nomination process detailed above whilst the fifth will be one of the four bands chosen by Jessica Foxley Stages to take part in the 30th Great British Rhythm & Blues Festival in Colne which takes place between 23rd & 25th August 2019 and sees some 170 acts playing on 22 stages over the three days.

We will be announcing how you can get your tickets to attend the 2019 UKBlues Challenge together with more details about the event very soon




Ashwyn Smyth
Chair
UKBlues  Federation

www.ukblues.org 


The UKBlues Federation (UKBF) is an Active Member of the European Blues Union and the sole UK Affiliate of the Blues Foundation,