SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) - TheSavannah Music Festival (SMF) is partnering with Victory North, a live music venue, to present a night of high-energy funk and blues featuring funk pioneer George Porter, Jr. and Grammy Award-nominated blues artist Jontavious Willis.
“We’re thrilled to announce this can’t-miss live music event at Victory North, featuring two of the South’s most impressive, trailblazing artists,” said Savannah Music Festival Artistic Director Ryan McMaken. “George Porter, Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners are seasoned funk musicians with a classic New Orleans sound, while Jontavious Willis is a rising Georgia blues star who loves to get the audience out of their seats and dancing.”
An award-winning bassist, songwriter and vocalist George Porter, Jr. (Photo provided courtesy of the Savannah Music Festival)
George Porter, Jr. of Runnin' Pardners
An award-winning bassist, songwriter and vocalist with a career that spans over 40 years, Porter is known for his rhythmic work and signature bass lines in songs like “Cissy Strut”. As a founding member of the New Orleans band The Meters, Porter was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame four times and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for serving as a highly influential figure in the funk music scene and creating some of R&B history’s most memorable music. Porter currently tours with the Runnin’ Pardners, a New Orleans band with musicians that include keyboardist Michael Lemmler, guitarist Chris Adkins and drummer Terrence Houston.
Grammy Award nominated guitarist and songwriter Jontavious Willis. (Photo provided courtesy of the Savannah Music Festival)
JONTAVIOUS WILLIS
Willis earned critical acclaim as a Grammy Award-nominated guitarist and songwriter who is on a mission to reinvigorate today’s blues with the spirit of traditional blues. Known for his vocals and guitar licks, Willis’ music draws on his rural Georgia roots and blends traditional Delta, Piedmont and Texas blues with gospel to create a sound that makes many listeners want to get up and dance. Praised as “a great new voice of the 21st century in the acoustic blues,” by blues legend Taj Mahal, Willis has performed live with Mahal and Keb’Mo’ and in solo shows and festivals around the world. His debut album, Blue Metamorphosis, won the Blues Foundation’s International Blues Challenge Award, and his second album, Spectacular Class, earned him a Grammy Award nomination. In August 2024, he released his latest album, West Georgia Blues, which debuted at #4 on the Billboard blues album chart.
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The event will take place on Thursday, Nov. 21 at Victory North, located on 2603 Whitaker St. The doors will open at 7 p.m. and the performance will begin at 8 p.m.
General admission tickets are $31 per person and include standing room access to the first floor viewing area. Partially seated tickets are available for $41 per person and include access to the first and second floors as well as an elevated viewing experience from the mezzanine.
Tickets are currently available at savannahmusicfestival.org.