ÎÞëÊÓƵ

Mar 7, 2024 By Stephanie Kalina-Metzger 4 min read

The Palace Theatre will, once again, prove itself as a destination for music lovers when blues-rock icon, 5-time Grammy-nominated guitarist and Louisiana native Kenny Wayne Shepherd takes the stage on March 10.

A Childhood Obsession

Malcolm Gladwell claims that to master one’s craft, one must be willing to practice — a lot.

“It takes 10,000 hours to truly master anything. Time spent leads to experience and experience leads to proficiency,” he said, in his best-selling book “Outliers.”

If that’s the case, then Shepherd certainly fits the bill. At the age of 3, Shepherd’s grandmother purchased him his first plastic guitar with S&H Green Stamps. (Who remembers those?) This just led to more for the self-taught musician.

“I’d go through them like candy,” Shepherd said.

You could say that Shepherd was steeped in music as a youngster. His dad Ken, as a local radio personality and concert promoter, owned an impressive collection of music. At age 7, Shepherd had the opportunity to meet Stevie Ray Vaughan at one of the concerts that his father promoted. Shepherd reports being “mesmerized” by Vaughan which strengthened his resolve to master the guitar.

“I was really drawn to that kind of music and it was what I was compelled to play,” said Shepherd.

At age 13, blues musician Bryan Lee invited him to play guitar onstage, which led to demo tapes and eventually a video at an arts festival in Shreveport where important people began to take notice.

Accumulating the Accolades

Over the years, Shepherd has been demonstrating his bona fides in the music industry. At age 13, he was signed to a major record deal. His debut album “Ledbetter Heights” topped the blues charts and achieved platinum certification, thrusting him into the spotlight in the mid-’90s. Since then, he’s propelled seven singles to the Top 10 and holds the record for the longest-running album on the Billboard Blues charts with “Trouble Is…”

The talented musician has been nominated for five Grammy Awards and received two Billboard Music Awards, two Blues Music Awards and two Orville H. Gibson Awards.

To celebrate the 25th year of “Trouble Is…,” Shepherd released a re-recorded version in December 2022.

“We wanted to take a nostalgic trip down memory lane in the studio,” said Shepherd, adding that he has more control over it now. “Warner Brothers had 90% control over the previous one.”

Evolution and Inspiration

Shepherd said that he’s seen Blues change over the years.

“I think with my generation there came a heavier influence on the rock side of it — it developed more of an edge,” he said, adding that it came naturally to him.

Shepherd also claims that there’s more competition out there today than there was during the Stevie Ray Vaughen era.

“There was a lull after his passing,” said Shepherd.

In November 2023, Shepherd came out with a new album called “Dirt on my Diamonds, Vol 1.”

“In that album, I mix all kinds of genres together: rock, country and R&B,” he said.

The musician said that his songs tend to manifest from the insight he gains from his own life and observing others.

“Generally, I try to focus more on uplifting types of things,” he said.

Bobby Kittleberger, editor of , is a fan of Shepherd’s music.

“When I started learning guitar, my friends and I began listening to Shepherd’s deep tracks and the more technical stuff that he did — what I would call heavy blues. While my guitar-playing style is heavier and less blues-focused than his, I’ve adopted a lot of his techniques and playing style into my own,” he said.

Shepherd’s advice to anyone looking to break into the business is to put the time in.

“Practice is a requirement, and don’t let anyone steer you in a different direction; make sure you enjoy it,” he said.

As for what attendees can expect from a show, Shepherd cites two staples that fans always count on: “Blue on Black” from “Trouble Is…” which won Song of the Year at the 1998 Billboard Music Awards and his take on “Voodoo Child,” by Jimmy Hendrix.

Shepherd said that he’s looking forward to returning to the Pittsburgh area on March 10.

“The people work hard and they play hard. They are serious about their music and their concerts and as a result they bring us a lot of energy,” he said.

To learn more about show times and ticket prices, visit the Palace Theatre website at thepalacetheatre.org.