Brandon O. Bailey

When his grandmother told him that his great-grandfather used to play train songs on the blues harp, Brandon O. Bailey discovered that playing harmonica is in his DNA. Rising through the ranks of young players, in 2008 he triumphed over several hundred contestants to win the Orpheum Star Search in his home town of Memphis, Tennessee, bringing down the house with a performance of J. Geils Band's harmonica showpiece Whammer Jammer. Adapting the post modern harp-boxing style made famous by Son of Dave-blues riffs intertwined with beat-box rhythms-his debut album, Memphis Grooves, rose to #1 on both the U.S. iTunes and Amazon blues music charts. Brandon O. Bailey has put the harmonica music world on notice: there's a new guy on the block.