Ground Zero Blues Club
 | |
 Exterior of Ground Zero Blues Club, 2019. | |
 Interactive map of Ground Zero Blues Club | |
| Address | 387 Delta Avenue |
|---|---|
| Location | Clarksdale, Mississippi |
| Coordinates | 34°12′00″N 90°34′28″W / 34.200028°N 90.574417°W |
| Owner | Morgan Freeman Howard Stovall Eric Meier |
| Capacity | 800 (standing) 400 (seated) |
| Construction | |
| Opened | May 2001 |
Ground Zero is a blues club in Clarksdale, Mississippi, US that is co-owned by Morgan Freeman, Memphis entertainment executive Howard Stovall, and businessman Eric Meier.[1] Attorney Bill Luckett was also co-owner until his death in 2021.[2] It got its name from Clarksdale being historically referred to as "Ground Zero" for the blues.[3][4] It opened in May 2001[3] and is located near the Delta Blues Museum. In the style of juke joints, it is in a repurposed, un-remodeled building, vacant for 30 years, that had housed the wholesale Delta Grocery and Cotton Co.[5] Mismatched chairs, Christmas-tree lights, and graffiti greet one everywhere. Blues fans in Clarksdale welcomed it as a place where local musicians have a chance to work regularly.[6]
The menu consists of traditional Southern foods, and the restaurant has live blues music playing Wednesday through Saturday. In addition to the food and music, there are seven upstairs apartments that can be rented.
Ground Zero is also associated with Ground Zero Biloxi, located in Biloxi, Mississippi.[7][8][9]
Performers
Ground Zero has hosted local, national, and international performers. Artists include:
- Christone "Kingfish" Ingram[10]
- Super Chikan[11]
- Charlie Musselwhite[12]
- Bobby Rush
- Willie Nelson[13][14]
- Robert Plant[14]
- Paul Simon[14]
- Anthony "Big A" Sherrod[15]
Symphonic Blues Experience
Since 2022, Ground Zero has merged Delta blues with symphony music from around the world through the Symphonic Blues Experience.[16] Performances include collaborations with:
- Savannah Philharmonic in Savannah, Georgia[17]
- RTÉ Concert Orchestra in Dublin, Ireland[18]
- Big Island Orchestra in Wolfgangsee, Austria[19]
In media
Ground Zero has appeared in many television shows and publications, including:
- CBS 60 Minutes[11]
- NPR[20][21]
- CNN[22]
- The New York Times[6]
- Southern Living[23]
- Stephen Fry in America (BBC Documentary), third episode, aired October 26, 2008.
- The Mighty Mississippi[full citation needed]
- "The Story of God w/ Morgan Freeman, S1/E3 (Who is God)" ([NatGeo])[full citation needed]
- Loud Hailer Magazine[24]
- Garden & Gun Magazine[25]
- National Geographic[26]
- The Times[27]
Video
- Robert Mugge, Director (2003). Last of the Mississippi Jukes. Clarksdale and Jackson, Mississippi: MVD Visual. OCLC 971052576. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
- Live at Ground Zero Blues Club: Bobby Rush
See also
References
- ^ Stories, Local (June 6, 2023). "Exploring Life & Business with Eric Meier of Ground Zero Blues Club". Memphisvoyager.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "Co-owner of Clarksdale's Ground Zero Blues Club and former Mississippi mayor dies". Wlox.com. October 29, 2021.
- ^ a b "About Us". Groundzerobluesclub.com. 2014. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
- ^ "Thank you, Mississippi, for the Blues - It's a Southern Thing". Southernthing.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Robert Mugge, Director (2003). Last of the Mississippi Jukes. Clarksdale and Jackson, Mississippi: MVD Visual. OCLC 971052576. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
- ^ a b Stephen Kinzer, In Search of the Blues, at Its Roots; Musing on a Genre's Purity, Fans Flock to Mississippi, NY Times, March 25, 2003, Section E, Page 1
- ^ "Morgan Freeman visits Ground Zero Blues Club for 2nd anniversary". Wlox.com. February 17, 2024. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ McElfresh, Amanda (August 27, 2023). "New Orleans businessman teams up with Morgan Freeman to bring the blues to a revitalized Biloxi". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Perez, Mary (June 9, 2023). "Morgan Freeman's blues club is transforming downtown Biloxi. What's next for Ground Zero?". Sunherald.com.
- ^ Christone 'Kingfish' Ingram (January 16, 2021). Christone "Kingfish" Ingram - Live At The Ground Zero Blues Club (Full Performance). Retrieved December 30, 2024 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b Wertheim, Jon (October 29, 2023). "Blues lives on in Mississippi | 60 Minutes - CBS News". Cbsnews.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Barretta, Scott. "Barretta: Musselwhite is featured draw at Ground Zero". The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "God Save the Blues – Good Grit Magazine". goodgritmag.com/. July 1, 2018. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ a b c Althoff, Eric (April 12, 2015). "Mississippi Delta home of blues music, culture, history for tourism". The Washington Times. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "Sherrod". Cityofclarksdale.org. Retrieved November 5, 2025.
- ^ "Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience". Symphonicblues.com. Retrieved November 5, 2025.
- ^ Berinato, Christopher. "Savannah Philharmonic's Phil the Park brings music, picnic competition back to Forsyth Park". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "A night of extraordinary musical collaboration at the UCD Festival, as Morgan Freeman joined the RTÉ Concert Orchestra for 'The Delta Blues Project'". About.rte.ie. June 12, 2023. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "the blues symphony experience | by scalaria". Scalaria.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "Mississippi is home of the blues and key to civil rights past. Locals tell the story". NPR. March 13, 2023.
- ^ Rentner, Simon (October 27, 2017). "Talent And Tourism Keep Blues Alive In Clarksdale, Mississippi". NPR.
- ^ Susan Puckett (May 15, 2014). "10 things to know about the Mississippi Delta". Cnn.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "Ground Zero Blues Club Is Mississippi's Best Blues Club, According To Our Readers". Southernliving.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Walton, Phil (October 12, 2023). "Interview with Eric Meier and Tameal Edwards of Ground Zero Blues Club". Loudhailermagazine.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Gomez-Misserian, Gabriela (September 19, 2023). "Road Trip: Chasing the Blues through Mississippi and Beyond". Gardenandgun.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ "Four road trips to discover Mississippi's cultural heartland". Nationalgeographic.com. March 14, 2023. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Cartwright, Garth (January 26, 2019). "Follow the mighty Mississippi to the beating heart of the blues". Thetimes.com. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
