Under 21 with Guardian

Ronnie Baker Brooks
He was born Rodney Dion Baker in Chicago, Illinois, United States. At the age of nine, he first appeared on stage playing guitar alongside his father. In 1985, he graduated from Hales Franciscan High School. He learned to play bass guitar and joined his father’s band in 1986. He played guitar on his father’s live album, Live from Chicago: Bayou Lightning Strikes, released by Alligator Records in 1988. He was then part of Alligator Records’ 20th Anniversary Tour, performing alongside Koko Taylor, Elvin Bishop, and Lil’ Ed Williams.

By 1998, Brooks was pursuing a solo career. His debut album, Golddigger, was released the same year by the Watchdog label. It was produced by Janet Jackson. He was nominated for a Blues Music Award in 2000 for Best New Artist. His second album, Take Me Witcha, was released in May 2001.[5]

Brooks next album was The Torch (2006). The Boston Herald described it as “ferocious and unrelenting, The Torch may be the year’s best blues album.” The album included contributions from Lonnie Brooks, Eddy Clearwater, Jimmy Johnson, Willie Kent, and Al Kapone and was produced by Jellybean Johnson. From 2007 to 2010, Brooks toured with band members Carlton Armstrong, C.J. Anthony Tucker, and Steve Nixon, to support The Torch. On occasions when his younger brother, Wayne Baker Brooks, joined him and his father on stage, they were billed as the Brooks Family Band.

Brooks played at the Notodden Blues Festival in 2007 and at Memphis in May and the Musikfest in 2009. In August 2010, he co-wrote three tracks with Chris Beard for the latter’s Who I Am and What I Do, released by Electro Glide Records.In 2012, the blues journalist David Brais declared Brooks “blues royalty”, stating that “his particular style of Chicago blues has been performed on stages around the world. It honors the true torch bearers of this unique sound which includes Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Luther Allison and his father.”

Times Have Changed is Brooks most recent album, and was released in January 2017.

Brooks lives in Dolton, Illinois, and is a regular at Artis’s Lounge on Chicago’s South Side.

https://ronniebakerbrooks.com/


Mathias Lattin
The grandson of NBA Hall Of Fame legend and two-time NCAA All American, David “Big Daddy” Lattin, Mathias Lattin chose to bring his talent to the stage and not the basketball court. The decision has already paid off. At 20 years old, Mathias Lattin won 1st place at the 2023 International Blues Challenge in the band category and was awarded Best Guitarist by the judges.

Mathias Lattin is a product of the Houston ISD Fine Arts magnet program. He is a 2020 graduate of Kinder High School for Performing and Visual Arts.

Mathias Lattin is an emerging young Texas guitarist and product of the acclaimed Kinder High School for Performing and Visual Arts. He’s heavily influenced by music legends B.B. King, Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Albert Collins, and Wes Montgomery. Mathias’s love for music is reflected in the soulful blues, jazz-inflected chords, and funky bass lines. Trained as a jazz guitarist, he incorporates that knowledge in his playing and songwriting.

The Living Blues Magazine's review of his debut EP “Let’s Start Here” determined
“...there’s enough promise here to mark him as an artist to watch.” He continues to pave his way in the Blues, Mathias is on his way to creating his own legacy.

https://www.mathiaslattin.com/

Keeshea Pratt
Singing since the age of six, Keeshea Pratt has shared the stage with several notable national figures including bluesman Bobby Rush, Eddie Cotton, opera singer Grace Bumbry, soul singer Musiq Soulchild, and gospel icon the late Reverend James Moore.

Pratt has accomplished what few Mississippi based singers before her has ever achieved: The ability to attract fans from all walks of life without ever straying from the intricate roots that nurtured her awarding winning voice in the first place.

Pratt’s impressive musical range and undeniable charisma changed the landscape of local entertainment by displaying the kind of vocal immediacy and vulnerability possessed by few singers and leaving you wanting more.

Draped with amazing style, class, and sophistication, Pratt takes you on a journey through all genres of music. “I always get asked the same question,” says Pratt, “What type of music do you sing?” My answer has always been the same… “I sing it all.”

There has been an elite array of influences with unique sounds and styles that has cultivated Pratt’s alluring and spirited presentation. She’s an artist that appreciates all genres and refuses to be put in a box, and her connection with her audience allows her to tap into whatever their mood is and render an offering of shear vocal pleasure.

Some of Pratt’s accomplishments include “The Jackson Free Press Artist of the Week 2011”, “The 2012 Female Artist of the Year in the Jackson Music Awards”, and a featured artist the 2010 Chicago Blues Festival. However, her love of music continues to ignite her passion causing her to dig deeper into the depths of her musical soul to give her audience more of what they crave for this dynamic vocalist.

Recently in 2018 Pratt lead her band to a higher elevation when they represented Houston in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis winning by a landslide and “took the blues music world by storm” as stated in the Houston Press. Pratt’s win was the first in Houston’s history earning her the well-deserved honor to be newly crowned “the queen of the blues!”

She is unique in her own right, her style is all her own, “influence” by the greats, however, this grit and energy can’t be borrowed. Pratt will continue to reach higher and work harder to ensure the purity of her craft is never diluted… because it is the greatest gift to yourself and your fans.

Her road to the top of her musical game has been filled with the type of conviction that now causes a younger generation to look to her as a musical influence.

Having sang, performed, studied her craft, triumphed and failed Pratt now has a story about life to sing about to the world and is spreading her wings to do what so many of her adoring fans have longed for… her… living in their radio!

She is taking her music career to another level and is positioning herself to become a sought after recording artist. She and her band recently released their debut album “Believe” in May 2018. Pratt now resides in Houston, TX with her family. Are you ready for Pratt experience?

https://keesheapratt.com/