originally published: 04/07/2025
(STANHOPE, NJ) -- The North Jersey Blues Society presents its Annual Blues Competition on Sunday, April 27, 2025 at The Stanhope House. This lively event will showcase the incredible talents of local musicians in two categories: Band and Solo/Duo. Doors open at noon.
Each act will have the chance to compete in a judged 20‐minute set, providing a platform for emerging artists to demonstrate their skills and passion for the blues. The winners from both categories will earn the prestigious opportunity to represent the North Jersey Blues Society at The Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN, scheduled for January 2026.
The esteemed panel of judges includes renowned blues photographer and fan Kirk Hansen, industry professional Andy Fuchs, media expert Jay Lustig, and accomplished blues artist Bev Conklin. Together, they will evaluate the performances and decide who takes home the top honors.
Tickets are $10 and available for purchase online or at the door. The Stanhope House, 45 Main Street in Stanhope, New Jersey.
Bring your friends and family to cheer for your favorite acts and support the vibrant local blues scene!
The North Jersey Blues Society (NJBS) is a volunteer-based, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to celebrating the heritage and preservation of blues music as a valued Indigenous American art form. Their mission is to unite the blues community in Northern New Jersey to collaborate and promote blues performances and educational programs. NJBS's goals and priorities include:
* Promoting the performance of local, regional, and national artists who are passionate about American roots and blues music in Northern New Jersey. They achieve this by offering artistic programming and performance opportunities for the blues community.
* Preserving and increasing awareness of the blues by providing educational opportunities that focus on the history of the blues and its artistic impact worldwide.
COLUMNS
Rock On! This Week's Sound Bites...7/10/25
"Well, I certainly hope so, it seems like it is," laughed Blues Traveler bassist Ben Wilson as he discussed what the band has been up to and their preparations before they hit the road once again for a Summer tour. "The band has been quite active over the years through touring and we managed to continue to record some records. We've done two kinds of covers records, the first one was a blues record which actually got nominated for a Grammy which was pretty cool and the next one, we did some soul covers. That one wasn't quite as well received but it was sure fun to make. So, it's been really cool; you have this massive success for a decade or so and then you kind of dip below that cultural Gestalt line where you're just kind of bubbling below the surface and you can do just fine there even though you're not on the cover of "The Rolling Stone" and that's kind of what we've been doing. We've had a good run, it has been fantastic and these summer tours where we get together with these other kind of bands of similar eras with similar kinds of hits; we're very fortunate as kind of a neo-hippie jam band from that era that kind of bucked some of the trends that were going on at the time but we were lucky enough to have a couple of hits and that has allowed us to have kind of a different career than just the straight jam bands do; not that that wouldn't be awesome as well because obviously many of them are doing just fine but it's just a slightly different road but it has been wonderful. We didn't rehearse a whole lot because we've been playing together for 38 years but things are good and we're stoked for this upcoming tour."
