Membership
Board of Directors
Volunteers
Advertising Information
Mission Statement
The Washington Blues Society is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to promote, preserve and advance the culture and tradition of blues music as an art form.
Bi Laws : https://wablues.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/WBSBylawsRevised05082008.pdf
The Washington Blues Society is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization and donations are tax-deductible.
The Washington Blues Society is one of over 250 affiliates of The Blues Foundation in Memphis, Tennessee. and it is the only all-volunteer nonprofit
blues society to have continuously produced a monthly magazine since 1989.
In 2009 The Blues Foundation awarded a prestigious Keeping the Blues Alive Award to the Washington Blues Society on its 20th anniversaryin.
More About The Washington Blues Society
The Washington Blues Society recognizes this music’s roots in African American and Indigenous people’s history, and traditions. Our goal as a blues society is to provide art and cultural programming to raise awareness among all communities of this uniquely American art form in its influence on all of popular culture.
Muddy Waters famously said, “The Blues Is the Root , the rest is the fruit.”
We not only strive to focus events and activities of Black, Indigenous and People of Color, but also sexual and religious minorities and the disabled in our 32-page color Bluesletter monthly magazine, monthly free blues concerts (“Blues Bashes”), and support musicians in need through a Musicians Relief Fund.
We adhere to all state and federal guidelines in presenting live music shows, and our “Blues Bashes.”
The blues society’s primary
activities are:
1) Production of a monthly 32-page Bluesletter magazine with a circulation topping 5,000 (in print and online),
2) Host free live blues shows at our second and fourth Tuesday known as the “Blues Bashes,” as well as other sessonal special events and fundraisers.
3) Host a Musician Relief Fund to confidentially respond to requests for emergency assistance from musicians in need,
4) Staff over 40 festivals and other special events (including memorial services) with volunteers and merchandise sales support,
5) Host an education initiative, Passing the Torch, designed to reach children and youth through in-school and after-school music
workshops led by professional musicians, and fundraiser to send students to the Centrum Blues Workshop.
6) Host an annual awards show, Best of the Blues (“BB Awards”) recognizing the years achievments of blues performers and artists in over 30 categories. The awards are
nominated and voted upon by the society’s members.
7) Conduct a statewide competition to send a band and a solo/duo act to compete in Memphis at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis.
The Blues Foundation’s Statement Against Racism
The Blues Foundation unequivocally condemns all forms and expressions of racism, including all symbols associated with white supremacy and the degradation of people of color. We will hold ourselves as well as all blues musicians, fans, organizations, and members of the music industry accountable for racist actions and encourage concrete commitments to acknowledge and redress the resulting pain. The Blues Foundation acknowledges that racism contributed to the historic oppression and exploitation of African American blues musicians and recognizes that hateful acts of racism continue to afflict the blues community today. We consistently strive to identify, discuss and challenge issues of race within the blues community. We commit to the ongoing development and implementation of strategies to dismantle structural and systemic racism within our programs, special events, and organization. We hereby adopt an action plan to purposefully address racism and contribute to a more equitable blues community.
https://blues.org/about/#mission
WA. State Land Acknowledgement
The Washington Blues Society acknowledges that we work on the traditional land of the Coast Salish Peoples, specifically the first people of Seattle, the Duwamish People, original stewards of the land, past and present, we honor the land which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Duwamish, Puyallup, Suquamish, Tulalip, and Muckleshoot nations.
Washington Blues Society P.O. Box 70604
Seattle, WA 98127
