January 29, 2022:

2021 WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

DADDY B. NICE’S 15th Annual SOUTHERN SOUL MUSIC AWARDS.

WINNERS are posted at the end of each list of finalists.

 

Best Mid-Tempo Song Finalists:

“That Bomb Love” —– J. Red The Nephew
“Love You Down” —– Jeter Jones feat. JD

“Come See About Me”—– Jaye Hammer

“For Your Love” —– Hisyde

“Dukes And Boots” —– Avail Hollywood

“Drink Of You” —– The Night Affair Band

“City Country Boo Thang” —– Mr. Lyve

“Take Your Time” —– Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby

“Supa Woman” —– Volton Wright feat. JD & Jeter Jones

Best Mid-Tempo Song:

“Dukes And Boots” by Avail Hollywood

Listen to Avail Hollywood singing “Dukes And Boots” on YouTube.
See Avail Hollywood #9 The New Generation.

 

Best Club Song Finalists:

“Southern Soul Cowboy” —– King South feat. Jeter Jones
“Good Booty Judy” —– Arthur Young

“Chicken Wang” —– Klay Redd

“Ride It” —– Ra’Shad The Blues Kid

“We Rollin'” —– Unkle Phunk feat. Big Poppa

“I’m Not Going Nowhere” —– M.P. Soul

“Mr. Hide And Go Get It” —– Arthur Young

“Down In The Kountry” —– Stan Butler feat. West Love

“Pay To Ride” —– Lady Q

“Giddy Up And Let’s Ride” —– Tasha Mac

“Push It Up” —– Radio Rasheed feat. Poo Coo

Best Club Song:

“Chicken Wang” by Klay Redd

Listen to Klay Redd singing “Chicken Wang” on YouTube.
See Klay Redd #1 Single 1st Time Out 

Best Ballad:

“Grown Man Shhh” —– Bigg Robb

“Plain Ole Country Boy” —– Jeter Jones

“Just Love Me” —– DeMond Crump

“My Baby Don’t Love Me No More” —– Jay Morris Group

“Eternity” —– Sir Charles Jones

“Knee Deep Part II” —– Jay Morris Group

“Rush” —– Mississippi Hummin’ Boy

“On My Way Home” —– Jeter Jones

“Bone Of My Bone” —– James Bryant

“How Can You Love Me” —– Jay Morris Group

“Just Right Girl” —– Montrell

“Boots Knockin'” —– Jeter Jones feat. Urban Mystic

“Knee Deep Part II” —– The Jay Morris Group

“How Can You Love Me” —– The Jay Morris Group

“Supa Woman” —– Volton Wright feat. JD & Jeter Jones

“Come And Go With Me” —– T-Lyons feat. Tanji Emmeni

Best Ballad:

“Knee Deep Part II” / “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More” by The Jay Morris Group (Jay Morris, Zee Brownlow & K-Monique)

Listen to The Jay Morris Group singing “Knee Deep Part II” on YouTube.
Listen to The Jay Morris Group singing “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More” on YouTube.
Read Jay Morris Group: 5-star CD Review.

 

Best Female Vocalist

Miss Portia —– “Now You Wanna Come Back”

Karen Wolfe —– “I’ll Leave The Light On,” “Stay Together (Remix)”

J’Cenae —– “I Ain’t No Sidepiece Lover”

DeShay —– “Tank On E,” “Lay With Me Tonight,” “Cowboy Ride”

Nadia Thee Primadonna —– “Can I Ride?”

Nore Cross —– “I Don’t Play Them Games”

K-Monique (of Jay Morris Group) —– “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More,” “How Can You Love Me”

West Love —– “Down In The Kountry,” “Put It On Me”

Nellie “Tiger” Travis —– “My Baby”

Rosalyn Candy —– “If They Only Knew,” “Nobody Said It Was Going To Be Easy”

Duchess Jureesa McBride —– “All Men Ain’t Bad,” “Single Husband”

Best Female Vocalist:

K-Monique (of Jay Morris Group) —– “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More,” “How Can You Love Me”

Listen to K-Monique singing “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More” on YouTube.
Listen to K-Monique singing “How Can You Love Me” on YouTube.

Read Jay Morris Group #12 The New Generation.

 

Best Male Vocalist

Vick Allen —– “Time To Let Go”

Avail Hollywood —– “Dukes & Boots”

Sir Charles Jones —– “Eternity,” “The Chosen One”

Klay Redd —– “Chicken Wang”

Jay Morris —– “My Baby Don’t Love Me No More,” “How Can You Love Me”

Bigg Robb —– “Grown Man Shhh,” “Evidence”

T.K. Soul —– “I’m Gonna Win”

O.B. Buchana —– “Drinking My Problems Away,” “My Baby”

Cadillac Man —– “Southern Soul Woman”

Sean Dolby —– “Take Your Time”

Stan Butler —– “Down In The Kountry,” “Push To The Side”

JD —– “Love You Down,” “Supa Woman”

Zee Brownlow (of Jay Morris Group) —– “Knee Deep Part II”

Mr. Sipp —– “Real Man”

James Bryant —– “Bone Of My Bone”

Jeter Jones —– “Plain Ole Country Boy”

Hisyde —– “For Your Love”

Best Male Vocalist:

Jeter Jones —– “Plain Ole Country Boy”

Listen to Jeter Jones singing “Plain Ole Country Boy” on YouTube.
Read Jeter Jones #8 The New Generation: 5-Star CD Review.

 

Best Song By Longtime Veteran

“Cowboy Style” —– Ms. Jody

“Kush Kush” —– Lacee

“Somebody’s Been Talking Too Much” —– Gerod Rayborn

“Tonight” —– Lenny Williams

“Don’t Want To Be Alone” —– Willie Clayton

“Freight Train” —– B. Dupree

“Grown Man Shhh” —– Bigg Robb

“Slow Jam” —– Andre’ Lee

“Put A Claim On That Thang” —– Jesse James

“I’m Gonna Win” —– T.K. Soul

“The Chosen One” —– Sir Charles Jones

“Just Love Me” —– DeMond Crump

“Drinking My Problems Away” —– O.B. Buchana

Best Song By Longtime Veteran:

“Grown Man Shhh” by Bigg Robb

Listen to Bigg Robb singing “Grown Man Shhh” on YouTube.
Read Bigg Robb #11 The New Generation: New Album Alert.

 

Best Debut

Mrs. Sham —– “The Best Of Me”

JD —– “Love You Down,” “Supa Woman”

Joe D. —– “Loving Me”

Portia P. —– “Mr. Good Time,” “Jill Of All Skills,” “Mr. Good Time

Shell-B —– “Come On In,” “Outside Woman”

“Chicken Wang” —– Klay Redd

Denzel Dente —– “Wash My Hands”

James Bryant —– “Bone Of My Bone”

Night Affair Band —– “Drink Of You,” “Take You Home

T-Lyons —– “Come And Go With Me,” “I Might Be A Young Man”

Nadia Thee Primadonna —– “Can I Ride?”

Mr. Fredlo —– “Kick Out,” “Duck Off Inn”

Bridget Shield —– “Let Me See It”

Tip The Singer —– “Stuck Between The Two”

Sheila B. Sexi —– “I’m In Love With A Married Man”

Sweet P —– “Pacifier”

Best Debut:

JD —– “Love You Down,” “SupaWoman”

Listen to JD singing “Supa Woman” on YouTube.
Listen to JD singing “(Let Me) Love You Down” on YouTube.

 

Best Collaboration

Love You Down” —– JD feat. Jeter Jones

“I Don’t Play Them Games” —– Mister Cotton feat. Nore Cross

“Take Your Time” —– Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby

“My Baby” —– Nellie “Tiger” Travis feat. O.B. Buchana

“Down In The Country” —– Stan Butler feat. West Love

“I Ain’t Giving Up My Love” —– Mizz Lowe feat. Bobby Rush

“Can’t Keep No Secret” —– Fat Daddy feat. Tucka

“I Think I’m In Love” —– Coldrank feat. Omar Cunningham

“Supa Woman” —– Volton Wright feat. JD and Jeter Jones

Best Collaboration:

“Take Your Time” by Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby

Listen to Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby singing “Take Your Time” on YouTube.
Read Joe Nice Double Award Winner.

 

Best Out-Of-Left-Field Song

“Chicken Wang” —– Klay Redd

“I Didn’t Know Your Grandma…” —– Stan Butler

“I Ain’t Giving Up My Love” —– Mizz Lowe feat. Bobby Rush

“Pay To Play” —– P2K

“Take Your Time” —– Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby

“Drink Of You” —– The Night Affair Band

“I Don’t Play Them Games” —– Mister Cotton
feat. Nore Cross

“The Chosen One” —– Sir Charles Jones

“Toes Curl” —– Sojo The Ladies Champ

Best Out-Of-Left-Field Song:

“Drink Of You” by The Night Affair Band

Listen to The Night Affair Band singing “Drink Of You” on YouTube.

 

Best Chitlin’ Circuit Blues Song

“Southern Soul Woman” —– Cadillac Man

“Singing The Blues” —– Ra’Shad The Blues Kid

“Hobo Moan” —– Columbus Toy

“You Didn’t Know What You Had” —– Gerod Rayborn

“Down In The Kuntry” —– Stan Butler feat. West Love

“Keep Moving On” —– Dexter Allen

“Real Man” —– Mr. Sipp

“Ride It” —– Ra’Shad The Blues Kid

“I’ll Leave The Light On” —– Karen Wolfe

Best Chitlin’ Circuit Blues Song:

“Down In The Kuntry” by Stan Butler feat. West Love

Listen to Stan Butler feat. West Love singing “Down In The Kuntry” on YouTube.
Read Stan Butler Artist Guide.

 

Best Cover Song

“Love You Down” —– Jeter Jones feat. JD

“Take Your Time” —– Joe Nice feat. Sean Dolby

“Tip Toe In The Bedroom” —– Certified Slim

“Just One Lifetime” —– Stevie J. Blues

“Tennessee Whiskey” —– Sir Jonathan Burton

“Because Of Me” —– Stevie J. Blues

“Torn Between The Two (Trapped)” —– Lady Q

Best Cover Song:

“(Let Me) Love You Down” by Jeter Jones feat. JD

Listen to Jeter Jones & JD singing “Love You Down” on YouTube.
Read Jeter Jones #8 The New Generation..

 

Best Producer

John Ward —– Southern Soul Brother (O.B. Buchana), Cowboy Style (Ms. Jody), I Love My Blues (Gerod Rayborn), It’s Jaye Hammer Time (Jaye Hammer)

Ronald “Slack” Jefferson —– Hear Me Roar (T-Lyons), Fish Grease Friday (Jeter Jones & Various Artists), You’re Not My Competition (Tasha Mac), Trail Ride Certified Part II (Jeter Jones), Love On You Tha Album (Volton Wright)

Self-Produced Artists Of Note —– Jay Morris Group, Avail Hollywood, Bigg Robb, Sir Charles Jones, Big Yayo, T.K. Soul

Best Producer:

Ronald “Slack” Jefferson

Listen to T-Lyons feat. Tanji Emmeni singing “Come Go With Me” on YouTube.

Listen to Volton Wright, JD and Jeter Jones singing “Supa Woman” on YouTube.

 

Best Album

Fantastic —– Bigg Robb

Stawberry Jamz —– T.K. Soul

Electric Cowboy —– Big Yayo

Long Story Short —– Jay Morris Group

Who Is Hisyde? —– Hisyde

Fish Grease Friday —– Various (Jeter Jones)

It’s Jaye Hammer Time —– Jaye Hammer

The Summit —– Urban Ladder Society (Stevie J. Blues)

You’re Not My Competition —– Tasha Mac

Southern Soul Brother —– O.B. Buchana

Love On You Tha Album —– Volton Wright

Now Dig This —– Crystal Thomas

The Southern Side of Soul —– Ra’Shad The Blues Kid

Bluz Me —– Ra’Shad The Blues Kid

Trail Ride Certified Part II —– Jeter Jones

I Love My Blues —– Gerod Rayborn

Moe Better Blues —–Miss Lady Blues

Cowboy Style —– Ms. Jody

The Chosen One —– Sir Charles Jones

Winter Is Coming: A Southern Soul And Blues

Queens’ Christmas —– Various (Dee Dee Simon)

Mood Swings —– Rosalyn Candy

Hear Me Roar —– T-Lyons

Decency —– J’Cenae

Best Album

Long Story Short —– Jay Morris Group

Listen to The Jay Morris Group singing “Knee Deep Part II” on YouTube.
Read Jay Morris Group Triple Award Winner.

---

---

January 1, 2022

2021:The Year In Southern Soul

January came in like a lamb. Southern Soul concerts were few and far between. Musically, the dust was settling on Beat Flippa’s double album “Producer Of The Year,” and Big Yayo’s “Electric Cowboy,” two strong efforts. Kicking off the new year were Jaye Hammer’s “It’s Jaye Hammer Time” and Jeter Jones’ sampler “Fish Grease Friday,” produced by Ronald “Slack” Jefferson and featuring (among other artists) a host of new and younger-than-usual talents in R&B Pooh, King South and JD. Pokey Bear ruled the singles charts with a new single, “Excuse Me,” along with Cadillac Man, who released his best single to date, “Southern Soul Woman”.

February, with Valentine’s Day, saw an uptick in mid-level touring. Willie Clayton and others, however, were still doing “virtual” concerts. Crystal Thomas released a rare vinyl recording, “Now Dig This”. Arthur Young released another new album, “A Trucker’s Blues,” and Jeter Jones dominated the singles charts with “Love You Down” with JD and “It’s About To Go Down” with Billy Cook. Stevie J. Blues reprised “All Because Of Me” and Hump Dog reprised “The Crawfish Song”.

March welcomed in strong debut albums from Slacktraxx artists Volton Wright and Tasha Mac, and Wright’s disc in particular spawned a trifecta of harmony-rich singles: “Southern Soul Girl” with T.K. Soul, “Supa Woman” featuring J.D. and Jeter Jones and “Circles”. Rapper Joe Nice, assisted by Sean Dolby, scored the #1 Single with a remake of the Lynn White standard “Take Your Time,” and the tune would go on to seize #1 in Daddy B. Nice’s Top 25 Singles of 2021. The first of many mega-sized, Blues Is Alright Tour-type concerts starring Sir Charles Jones, Pokey Bear, Lenny Williams, Calvin Richardson, Theodis Ealey and Bobby Rush—the 14th Annual Motor City (Detroit) Blues Festival and the 15th Annual Chi-town (Chicao) Blues Festival—were cancelled. National Public Radio’s Morning Edition recognized a new book detailing southern soul’s legendary Jackson, Mississippi record label, “The Last Soul Company: The Malaco Records Story” by Rob Bowman.

April commenced with more big concert cancellations, including the popular Spring Fling in Mobile, Alabama and the 14th Annual Shreveport, Atlanta and Indy Blues Festivals, but mid-level gigs continued to slowly rise, powered by Jeter Jones, Pokey Bear, Vick Allen, Terry Wright, Tucka, J’Wonn, Calvin Richardson, Big Yayo, Arthur Young, L.J. Echols and others. O.B. Buchana released his sixteenth album on Ecko Records, “Southern Soul Brother,” but it would turn out to be his last with the venerable Memphis indie label.

May found O.B. Buchana atop the singles charts with Nellie “Tiger” Travis on the ballad, “My Baby,” written and produced by Omar Cunningham, who also ushered in new artist Mr. Fredlo’s debut single. Cunningham, fresh off his first solo album in years, “Certified,” seemed to be involved in writing, singing or producing a major portion of the songs recorded in 2021. Meanwhile, the youngsters in the Jay Morris Group—Jay Morris, Zee Brownlow and KMonique—continued to gain acclaim with their hit song “Knee Deep” and their 2021 debut album, “Like Food For The Soul”. The best news, however, was the concert scene. Mother’s Day marked a turning point, with tour dates for that holiday proliferating across the South. By Memorial Day, southern soul artists had returned to stages in full force.

In June Avail Hollywood hit the road with musical sidekick DJ Trac, as did Wendell B, fresh off his album “Real Talk,” with his new label-mate J’Cenae, whose single “I’ll Be Down In A Minute” eclipsed anything done by southern soul women in the last two years. Bobby Rush returned to southern soul recording with a novelty hit by his booty-rolling, stage dancer Mizz Lowe. Also returning to the scene: Steve Perry, The Winstons, Mister Cotton, Willie B, Anita Love, and DeMond Crump, whose new ballad “Just Love Me” captured the #1 single spot. New artist Hisyde, fresh from his rousing duet with Avail Hollywood on the Beat Flippa-produced “Is It Ova,” dropped his debut album. His new single, “For Your Love,” was produced by Eric “Smidi” Smith, who was instrumental a few years earlier in transitioning Jeter Jones into southern soul. And Jeter Jones released his second album of the year, the 21-track “Trailride Certified Part 2”.

By the 4th of July, the southern soul concert scene was as busy as ever. The “living legends” gig in Monroe, Lousiana brought together veterans Lenny Williams, Latimore, Bobby Rush, Carl Sims, Ricky White and Stephanie McDee. Ms. Jody put out her fifteenth album on Ecko Records entitled “Cowboy Style”. A new artist stormed into the singles charts with a novelty dance jam called “Chicken Wang”. His name: Klay Redd. Sir Charles Jones put out a potent new album and single titled, “The Chosen One”. Stan Butler was active in the recording studio all year, but his best product might have been the mid-summer anthem “Down In The Kuntry” with talented, high-energy newcomer West Love.

August ushered in another new talent in the youth movement at SlackTraxx, T-Lyons (The Southern Soul Kid) with the aptly named single, “Young Thang”. Dexter Allen, Bobby Rush’s onetime guitarist, published a new album. The Jay Morris Group’s YouTube video for “Knee Deep” hit the stratospheric number of twelve million views. Dee Dee Simon wrote and 2 Buck Chuck produced Karen Wolfe’s most popular single of the year, “I’ll Leave The Light On”. Avail Hollywood dominated the month’s singles chart with his mid-tempo jam, “Dukes And Boots”. The Duchess Jureesa McBride returned with a new single, “All Men Ain’t Bad,” and P2K (formerly P2K Da Diddy) came back with a new album, “Pour It Up”. Touring was torrid, with Tucka and Pokey Bear in greatest demand. Sadly, in a year with otherwise very little loss of life in the artist ranks, the genre lost Maurice Wynn, whose song “What She Don’t Know (Won’t Hurt Her)” became a southern soul classic.

September typified one of the hallmarks of the year: the emergence of the younger generation and its audience. “Young” not as in T.K. Soul or Sir Charles Jones (now the “mid-generation”) but “young” as in twenty-or-early-thirty somethings (and T-Lyons may not even be that), a development that had been unthinkable a decade ago. So young, middle-aged and senior mingled as never before, and you had T.K. Soul sharing the bill with the Jay Morris Group, Karen Wolfe onstage with Dee Dee Simon, Bobby Rush live with Mississippi Hummin’ Boy. One of the youngest performers, Ra’Shad The Blues Kid, delivered two new albums—one southern soul, one blues. And among the elders, Bigg Robb, Sir Charles Jones and T.K. Soul all put out fresh (read “young”) new sets.

October marked the passing of Lexington/Tchula, Mississippi’s WAGR disc jockey Big Money—a larger-than-life radio personality—who died in an unfortunate car accident on one of his familiar country roads. And Miss Portia, one of southern soul’s youngest and brightest stars, passed away in the middle of the month from causes never made public. Ecko Records-affiliated singer/songwriter Gerod Rayborn released his first solo album in a decade and Miss Lady Blues went bluesy in her LP “Moe Better Blues”.

November saw Dee Dee Simon’s “Winter Is Coming:A Southern Soul And Blues Queens’ Christmas” sampler portend the holiday season. The album featured Simon and a host of young southern soul divas who took their music on the road. Roi “Chip” Anthony made the transition from the zydeco circuit to the chitlin’ circuit with a new southern soul album, “Leo King”.

December brought Daddy B. Nice’s Top 100 Countdown: New Generation Artist Chart to a total of fifteen artist guides (so far), updating rankings for the new decade:

15 Ronnie Bell
14 Karen Wolfe
13 Bishop Bullwinkle
12 Jay Morris Group
11 Bigg Robb
10 Ms. Jody
9 Avail Hollywood
8 Jeter Jones
7 Wendell B
6 J-Wonn
5 Nellie “Tiger” Travis
4 T.K. Soul
3 Tucka
2 Sir Charles Jones
1 Big Pokey Bear
See the Chart.

…And, as if to add an exclamation point to the “year of the youngsters,” the Jay Morris Group released their sophomore album, “Long Story Short,” fulfilling the promise of their first.

–Daddy B. Nice
 

---

---