Diunna Greenleaf: News

The 33rd Blues Music Awards will be Thursday May 10, 2012 at the Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee.

Once again Diunna has been honored as a nominee in two categories at the 33rd Blues Music Awards.

The 33rd Blues Music Awards are sponsored by Blue Mountain Artists, BMI, Catfood Records, Eagle Rock Entertainment, FedEx, First Tennessee Foundation, Gibson Foundation, Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company and Sony/Legacy Records.

The Blues Music Awards will be broadcast live in their entirety on Sirius XM's B.B. King's Bluesville. The next best thing to being there. They will be broadcast on public television later in the year.

The 2012 show will follow the format of the critically-acclaimed shows of recent years. Close to 100 nominees attend and the night is filled with their appearances and performances in a cabaret/dinner setting in the Convention Center's ballroom.

The event brings together Blues performers, industry representatives and fans from all over the world to celebrate the best in Blues recordings and performances from the previous year. Each year, the Foundation presents The Blues Music Awards to the artists selected by its members. They are universally recognized as the highest honor given to Blues artists. As always, a pre-party will immediately precede the Awards.

The Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Charter Members' Dinner will be held the night before on Wednesday, May 9. Contact The Blues Foundation about becoming a Charter Member in order to attend this star-studded event.

Diunna releases her third CD titled "Trying To Hold On" on July 19th at The Horn Bar & Grill in Houston.

Join Diunna and her friends for the CD release party. The Horn Bar & Grille is located at 6025 Richmond Ave (Richmond Ave. at Fountain View Dr.) in Houston. Party starts at 8:00 pm and rocks until midnight. Entry tickets are $10 per person and VIP entry tickets are $30 (includes entry fee and autographed CD). 

Blue Mercy will be in the house along with a special guest appearance by 'Steady Rollin Bob Margolin.'

 

Diunna was recently interviewed in the April 2011 issue of BLUES BLAST magazine for her new CD Tryin' To Hold On. Interviewer Terry Mullins catches up with Diunna to discuss her new CD. Diunna tells Terry that her new CD is filled not with a sense of finality, but rather with a sense of strength and resolve. Tryin' To Hold On is stocked with reasons to believe everything will turn out OK, despite how grey things may seem at times.

See the full interview at: 

http://www.thebluesblast.com/Archive/BluesBlasts/2011/BluesBlast4_21_11.htm

Saturday morning a crowd that overflowed the tent showed up to witness the dedication of a state historical marker honoring Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins, the legendary bluesman who lived in Third Ward from the late 1940s until his death in January 1982. Local blues artists Diunna Greenleaf & Blue Mercy, Milton Hopkins (Lightnin's cousin) and Texas Johnny Brown performed at the dedication.

'Screamin' sisters of soul with Diunna Greenleaf and The Wanda King Blues Band with special guest Faye Robinson'

Purchase advance tickets now!

Doors open at 7:00 pm.

House of Blues Houston
1204 caroline Street
Houston, TX
888-402-5837

Aykroyd "Elwood Blues" dons his signature suit ‘n’ shades to emcee the Houston Heart & Soul Blues Benefit Concert, a mouthful of a title for a show featuring four of the Bayou City’s top homegrown talents. Headlining is the unpredictable but predictably funky Little Joe Washington, with Lightnin’ Hopkins’ guitar-picking cousin Milton, harmonica smoothie Texas Johnny Boy and vocal powerhouse Diunna Greenleaf along for the smooth, smooth ride. Proceeds benefit the International House of Blues Foundation, which sponsors various school and community programs dedicated to raising awareness of the blues and other forms of African-American culture.

For the second year in a row Diunna has been nominated by her fans for the 2009 Blues Blast Music Awards Best Female Artist. Voting begins July 1st. Visit Illinois Blues to place your vote for Diunna.

Our deepest sympathy goes out to the family and friends of the "Queen of the Blues" Koko Taylor. Koko died June 3rd from complications following her May 19th surgery in her hometown of Chicago. Funeral arrangements and condolences to the Taylor family can be found at her website http://www.kokotaylor.com/news.html.

Congratulations go out to Diunna for her recent nomination "Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year" at the 2009 Blues Music Awards to be held in Memphis on May 7th. This is the second year Diunna has been honored as a nominee in this prestigious category. Last year Diunna took home the 2008 Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut "Cotton Field to Coffee House."

In July the Blues Blast Magazine staff, music writers, managers, musicians and other industry professionals nominated the Blues best of 2008. Diunna was
nominated in two categories, Best Female Blues Artist and Best New Artist Debut Recording.
These awards truly are the “Peoples Choice" without any filter. The voting was absolutely FREE and more than 2000 fans from all over the globe voted their choices. The categories: Best Contemporary Blues Recording, Best Traditional Blues Recording, Best Blues Song, Best Blues Band, Best Male Blues Artist, Best Female Blues Artist, Best New Artist Debut Recording, and The Sean Costello Rising Star Award.

The 2008 Blues Blast Music Awards are brought to you by Blues Blast Magazine from IllinoisBlues.com. Blues Blast Magazine is the fastest growing FREE weekly internet Blues magazine read by over 11,000 Blues fans in all 50 states and in more than 40 countries. The awards ceremony will take place on November 2nd, at
Buddy Guy's Legends in Chicago, IL.

I know that many of you have heard that Koko Taylor's band, The Blues Machine, was in a serious accident on Saturday, August 23rd. Their van hit an embankment and threw all the passengers out of the vehicle. Ms. Taylor was not in the van at the time. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

A fund has been set up for The Blues Machine band members. If you would like to make a donation please go to Blues.org. Some of the band members will have a long recovery period.

Diunna and her band Blue Mercy are dazzling fans overseas. They will be performing in Portugal, Italy and Norway.

Diunna Greenleaf, the leader of Blue Mercy, is a native Texan (Houston) who has a background steeped in gospel music. Influenced by the likes of Koko Taylor, Aretha Franklin, Rosetta Thorpe, Sam Cooke, Charles Brown and her own parents Ben & Mary Ella Greenleaf (Gospel), she has developed "Diunna's style of Blues" in the same tradition as so many other great Texas blues men and women. She combines intricate patches of jazz, gospel and heartfelt soul to create a kind of blues that takes one on an emotional roller coaster ride.

Congratulations to Diunna Greenleaf and Blue Mercy for their win at the 2008 Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut "Cotton Field to Coffee House." The kudos are beginning to pour in from fans and musicians alike after May 8th's Blues Music Awards ceremony held at Harrah's Grand Casino Event Center in Tunica, MS.

The most highly regarded award ceremony in the Blues industry for performers, the Blues Music Awards Awards are considered the "Blues Grammys¹." Blues Music Awards are the premier event for Blues professionals, musicians and fans. Held in Memphis, the focus of this celebration is to recognize superior achievements in Blues performances while honoring a cultural tradition.

Each year, in conjunction with the Blues Music Awards, the Foundation also presents the Blues Hall of Fame induction ceremony.