Beale Street Music Festival 2008

During the postwar boom years of the blues, Beale Street in Memphis was a customary stop for any touring blues artist. Lined with clubs and a thriving street scene, artists like B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Albert King, and Roscoe Gordon, among others, all performed, or got their start, in Beale Street clubs. In 1977, an act of Congress officially recognized Beale Street as the "Home of the Blues."

Today, clubs such as B.B. King's Blues Club, The Black Diamond, and Mr. Handy's Blues Hall thrive where local bluesman Furry Lewis once swept the street for the city of Memphis. Each year, the Beale Street Music Festival is held in the 33-acre Tom Lee Park on the banks of the Mississippi River at the end of Beale Street. This year's festival will be held from Friday, May 2nd through Sunday, May 4th as part of the city's "Memphis In May" celebration. See who will be performing on the Beale Street Music Festival stage this year.