March 10, 2009


CAIRO – The U.S. Embassy’s Cultural Office, in cooperation with the Cairo Opera House, is pleased to present BLUZAPALOOZA, a blues concert created by blues producers Steve Simon and John Hahn at an historic performance in Egypt on Friday, March 27, 2009, at 8:00 pm, at the Open Theater of the Cairo Opera House. The concert is free and open to the public. Invited by the U.S. Ambassador to Egypt and native of Memphis, Tennessee, Margaret Scobey, BLUZAPALOOZA will bring to Cairo the music of Memphis and its famous Beale Street, a place synonymous with the blues tradition in the United States. Headlining the tour will be the “Prince of Beale Street,” Billy Gibson, Eden Brent, and the Memphis-based blues band Delta Highway.

Mr. Gibson was named the Beale Street Entertainer of the Year, and is a multiple Blues Music Award nominee. Ms. Brent is a four-time Blues Music Award nominee. She is known for her piano playing and strong voice. With a vast repertoire of original and standard blues songs, Ms. Brent is one of the busiest blues artists in the country today performing throughout the United States and around the globe. Delta Highway breathes youth and energy back into the blues. With strong guitar sounds, combined with a progressive harmonica sound, this Memphis band has developed a style that is all their own and is sure to please new and veteran blues fans alike.