2020 Blues Music Award Nominees

Acoustic Blues Album, Sponsored by Newman, DeCoster
Catfish Crawl – Catfish Keith
Confessin’ My Dues – Terry Robb
Good as Your Last Dollar – Fruteland Jackson
Solo Ride – Bruce Katz
This Guitar and Tonight – Bob Margolin     Trinidaddio Veteran

Acoustic Blues Artist, Sponsored by Folk Alliance International
Eric Bibb
Guy Davis
Rhiannon Giddens
Fruteland Jackson
Doug MacLeod

Album of the Year, Sponsored by Rum Boogie Café and Blues Hall
Church of the Blues – Watermelon Slim
Hail to The Kings! – The Cash Box Kings
Kingfish – Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
The Preacher, The Politician or The Pimp – Toronzo Cannon
Roots and Branches: The Songs of Little Walter – Billy Branch & the Sons of Blues

B.B. King Entertainer of the Year, Sponsored by B.B. King’s Blues Club
Billy Branch
Rick Estrin                                        Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Sugaray Rayford                              Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Bobby Rush
Mavis Staples

Band of the Year
The Cash Box Kings
The Nick Moss Band featuring Dennis Gruenling     Nick Moss is a Trinidaddio Veteran
Rick Estrin and the Nightcats          Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Southern Avenue
Sugaray Rayford Band                      Played Trinidaddio Last Year!

Best Emerging Artist Album
Before Me – Ben Levin
Folie a deux – Hudspeth & Taylor
Kingfish – Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Spectacular Class – Jontavious Willis
Through My Eyes – John “Blues” Boyd

Blues Rock Album
Killin’ It Live – Tommy Castro & The Painkillers       Trinidaddio Veteran
Masterpiece – Albert Castiglia
Reckless Heart – Joanne Shaw Taylor
Survivor Blues – Walter Trout
Up and Rolling – North Mississippi Allstars

Blues Rock Artist, Sponsored by Landmark Band
Albert Castiglia
Tommy Castro            Trinidaddio Veteran
Tinsley Ellis
Eric Gales
Walter Trout

Contemporary Blues Album
Contemporary – Rick Estrin and The Nightcats        Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Don’t Pass Me By: A Tribute to Sean Costello – Various Artists
Kingfish – Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
The Preacher, The Politician or The Pimp – Toronzo Cannon
Venom & Faith – Larkin Poe

Contemporary Blues Female Artist
Diane Blue
Vanessa Collier                       Played Trinidaddio in 2018 and will return for 2020!
Shemekia Copeland                Played Trinidaddio in 2016
Samantha Fish
Janiva Magness                       Played Trinidaddio in 2016

Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Toronzo Cannon
Gary Clark Jr.
Luther Dickinson
Rick Estrin                              Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Instrumentalist Bass
Willie J. Campbell
Patrick Rynn
Bill Stuve     Trinidaddio Veteran
Larry Taylor
Michael “Mudcat” Ward

Instrumentalist Drums
Tony Braunagel
Cedric Burnside
June Core
Derrick D’Mar Martin             Played Trinidaddio Last Year! (w/Rick Estrin)
Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith     Trinidaddio Veteran

Instrumentalist Guitar
Christoffer “Kid” Andersen   Played Trinidaddio Last Year! (w/Rick Estrin)
Laura Chavez
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Junior Watson     Trinidaddio Veteran
“Monster” Mike Welch

Instrumentalist Harmonica, Sponsored by Hohner Harmonica
Billy Branch                   Former Trinidaddio headliner
Rick Estrin                              Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Dennis Gruenling
Brandon Santini
Kim Wilson                             Played Trinidaddio 2017

Instrumentalist Horn
Mindi Abair
Jimmy Carpenter                     Trinidaddio Veteran
Vanessa Collier                       Played Trinidaddio in 2018 and will return for 2020!
Trombone Shorty
Nancy Wright

Instrumentalist Piano (Pinetop Perkins Piano Player)
Anthony Geraci
Bruce Katz
Dave Keyes
Jim Pugh
Victor Wainwright

Instrumentalist Vocals
Shemekia Copeland                Played Trinidaddio 2016
Sugaray Rayford                     Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Curtis Salgado
Mavis Staples
Dawn Tyler Watson

Song of the Year
“Bleach Blonde Bottle Blues,” written by Rebecca Lovell
“Lucky Guy,” written by Nick Moss  Has Played Trinidaddio
“Resentment File,” written by Rick Estrin, Joe Louis Walker, and JoJo Russo         Rick Estrin played last year, Joe Louis Walker has also played Trinidaddio
“Time To Get Movin’,” written by Eric Corne
“The Wine Talkin’,” written by Joe Nosek, John Hahn, and Oscar Wilson

Soul Blues Album
Dog Eat Dog – Billy Price
Keep On – Southern Avenue
Real Street – Tad Robinson                            Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Sitting on Top of the Blues – Bobby Rush
Somebody Save Me – Sugaray Rayford          Played Trinidaddio Last Year!

Soul Blues Female Artist
Annika Chambers
Thornetta Davis
Bettye LaVette                       Trinidaddio Veteran
Terrie Odabi
Vaneese Thomas

Soul Blues Male Artist
Billy Price
Sugaray Rayford                     Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Tad Robinson                          Played Trinidaddio Last Year!
Curtis Salgado
Wee Willie Walker

Traditional Blues Album
Church of the Blues – Watermelon Slim
Hail to the Kings! – The Cash Box Kings
Lucky Guy! – The Nick Moss Band Featuring Dennis Gruenling   Nick Moss is a Trinidaddio Veteran
Roots and Branches – The Songs of Little Walter – Billy Branch & the Sons of Blues
Spectacular Class – Jontavious Willis

Traditional Blues Female Artist  (Koko Taylor Award)
Rory Block
Sue Foley
Mary Lane
Trudy Lynn
Teeny Tucker

Traditional Blues Male Artist
Lurrie Bell
Billy Branch              Former Trinidaddio Headliner
John Primer                 Played Trinidaddio 2017
Jimmie Vaughan
Jontavious Willis