This past Saturday before the Grammys, the wonderful people of Louisiana threw a party at the Biltmore Hotel in Downtown L.A. to celebrate the Grammy Nominees for Best Cajun or Zydeco Band. For the unaware, folks from Louisiana know how to have a good time. It’s really not that hard when you have Cajun food and live Zydeco music. Kudos to Anna Whitlow, Deveney Communications, for putting on one hell of a party.
Last year Scott from Infectious Publicity contacted us about an opportunity to go to New Orleans to cover Voodoo Festival and document the goings-on of the town. CraSH jumped at the opportunity and lined up a crew to produce a monster review. The project was attached to the Louisiana Office of Tourism, where bloggers from different parts of the country were invited to cover the festival. Well the town is alive and kicking, and if you visit, the locals will show their gratitude with some southern hospitality. Hopefully we will be invited to Jazz Fest and maybe turn it into a two week road trip showcasing all that the state of Louisiana has to offer, while of course giving away free ice cream during our travels.
CraSH got there just before me and was shooting Wilson Savoy Trio as I entered. I had no idea what to expect and was surprised how big the event was and how packed it was. I didn’t want to look too obvious and just go straight for the food but it was hard not too. There was Chicken and Andouille Gumbo, Crawfish Etouffee, and a salad with wickedly thick bacon. After getting a hug from Anna I retreated back to the lower level where the food was, and CraSH and I both dug into the gumbo. Finishing my bowl of gumbo, I quickly refilled with crawfish and watched as Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu took the stage to discuss the importance of Louisiana’s cultural economy. I didnt realize that Louisiana was the fourth most used state for movie and television shooting.
Soon after that, Kenny Wayne Shepherd took the stage for a performance that was surprisingly short, which left you wanting to hear more from the grown up guitar prodigy. Following Kenny was a video segment showcasing a lot of the famous bands that had come from Louisiana who’d won Grammys in the past. I couldn’t help but chuckle when, after spotlighting the legends, there was a roll call of a bunch of other artists and Britney showed up. What doesn’t Louisiana have?
My favorite moment came when I realized there were a bunch of people up front dancing as Quint Davis and his band rocked out. That’s just not something you’d expect to see in L.A., especially at such an elegant event. Pretty much reminiscent of anywhere you go in Louisiana, if you have live music you have people dancing. You can take the person out of the bayou, but you cant take the bayou out of the person.
So…. if we are lucky, we’ll be able to find a way to give away ice cream at Jazz Fest and tour around Louisiana for a couple weeks. Getting to see those out of the way places or hidden gems that you only get to see if you are in the know. I am sure the Office of Tourism knows all the spots we should go. But it has always been my motto to drive the back roads, because it is always a surprising adventure filled with genuine people. Then you give them a free ice cream and find yourself in a wonderful conversation with them. I’ll keep my fingers crossed here and we’ll see what comes.
See also: Only in Louisiana 2009
