Paint The White House Blue!

Blues fans, circle Monday, February 27th, 2012 on your calendars, 'cause we're going to paint the White House blue! The Emmy Award-winning PBS series In Performance At The White House is going to document a historic celebration of the blues with a taping of a February 21st concert to be held in the East Room of the White House, the event hosted by President and Mrs. Obama in recognition of Black History Month.

In Performance At The White House program host Taraji P. Henson will oversee the concert, which will feature performances by Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, blues guitar legend B.B. King, British blues-rock pioneer Jeff Beck, Chicago blues giant Buddy Guy, hot young guitarist Gary Clark, Jr., Keb' Mo', Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, singer Shemekia Copeland, blues-rock guitarist Warren Haynes, and Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. Stax Records legend Booker T. Jones will serve as the concert's music director and bandleader.

A sixty-minute television special of the concert will be produced by Washington, D.C. public broadcaster WETA, in association with The GRAMMY Museum®, AEG Ehrlich Ventures, and the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC). The concert will be streamed live on the White House, Public Broadcasting, and Black Public Media websites. The PBS broadcast will premiere on Monday, February 27th (you did circle it, didn't you?!) at 9:00 PM and will be re-broadcast at a later date by the American Forces Network for our troops around the globe. Check your local listings to be sure of the time.

"The Blues are not only the most American of art forms, but the fundamental inspiration for some of the most important artists of our generation," says Paula A. Kerger, president and CEO of PBS, in a press release for the event. "Since 1978, 'In Performance at the White House' has spotlighted some of our nation's best performers, and celebrated our nation's heritage. The upcoming special on the Blues continues in this tradition and celebrates music born out of struggle that touches the soul and inspires the mind and holds a unique place in American arts."

Shemekia Copeland photo by Philippe Noisette, courtesy Alligator Records