LiUNA! Bluesfest Windsor unveils line-up for 2019

By Guoliang Fu

It’s official: The blues are coming back to Riverfront Plaza this July, and LiUNA! Bluesfest Windsor promises to be bigger and better than ever before.

Bluesfest President Robert Pertroni last week announced the event will launch the weekend of July 5 and 6, continue the following Friday and Saturday and  feature a different theme every night including 90’s Throwback, Hot Rock Night, A Night for Amazing Blues and Celebration of Prince.

“We decided to go Friday-Saturday, Friday-Saturday, because we might get sold out a lot quicker and (this will help us) plan better,” Petroni said.

So far, sales are brisk: Petroni said early bird ticket sales are up 35 percent over last year.

“We’re trying to do 8,000 per night.” Petroni said, adding that for the first time, he received an email from a band’s manager asking if they could perform.

“Back when we start to booking the Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s of the world, we started to get noticed,” he said.

Jeff Burrows, a local celebrity and drummer for The Tea Party, said finding the right talent for the right price is always a challenge.

“Everybody wants to play if the price is great and meets their specifications,” Burrows said, “(but if) we can meet their requirements, they’ll all want to come.”

Burrows called Bluesfest Windsor a fantastic opportunity for local talent. This year’s line-up includes legendary performers such as Vanilla Ice, The 2-Live Crew, Tone Loc, blues legend Buddy Guy and Prince contemporary Sheila E.

For more detail information, go to the www.bluesfest.com website.