Join us for a specially arranged concert featuring three-time Grammy winner, Bobby Rush! On Sunday, February 15, 2026 Bobby Rush and his band will perform at RJ’s Grill & Bar in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, the city where Rush got his musical start in the late 1940’s.
Doors will open at 5:00 PM. The Port City Blues Players will open up the show followed by the performance by Bobby Rush and his band. After the show, Rush will greet and visit with concert goers. This will be a great opportunity to see Rush perform in the cozy and friendly atmosphere of RJ’s located at 128 S. Main Street in downtown Pine Bluff. The show is being sponsored by Midtown Town Tire and Auto and ExplorePineBluff.com
Seating is limited and tickets will go fast. Call (870)510-1910 to purchase tickets at $25 each before they are gone!
Fresh off a tour and collaboration with Kenny Wayne Shepherd, for which Rush was recently nominated for a Grammy for the eighth time, Bobby Rush will be bringing his legendary show to downtown Pine Bluff for his friends and fans in the area. Rush credits Pine Bluff as the place that launched his storied musical career. In 2019, a portion of Third Avenue was named “Bobby Rush Way” in celebration of his musical accomplishments and connection to the community. In the same year, Rush was named an honorary lifetime member of Port City Blues Society, an organization based in Pine Bluff and affiliated with The Blues Foundation.
Rush, known as the "King of the Chitlin' Circuit," has had a career spanning over seven decades. He has received numerous accolades, including multiple Blues Music Awards and three Grammy Awards. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2006. The Arkansas House of Representatives recently passed a resolution honoring his contributions to music.
Born Emmett Ellis Jr., Rush moved with his family to the Pine Bluff area around 1947. He started performing in local juke joints like Nappy's and Jitterbugs as a teenager, wearing a fake mustache to appear old enough to gain entry.
It was in Pine Bluff that Rush first met and became friends with other notable blues artists, including slide guitarist Elmore James, Boyd Gilmore and pianist Johnny "Big Moose" Walker, among others. After moving to Chicago, Illinois, in the early 1950s, Rush worked with legends such as Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Albert King.
By the early 1970s, he had his first Billboard R&B hit with the song “Chicken Heads,” which reached No. 34. Rush later made his first full album, Rush Hour, in 1979, with another hit, “I Wanna Do the Do.” Rush has recorded dozens of albums and has built both a national and international fan base.
He received his first major recognition after the release of Raw, his twenty-second album, when he received the Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year award at the Blues Music Awards in 2007. His album Hoochie Momma received a Grammy nomination in the blues category in 2001. In 2006, Rush was inducted into The Blues Foundation’s Blues Hall of Fame. His album Porcupine Meat was released in 2016 and won a Grammy the following year.
Remember, seating is limited and tickets will go fast. Call (870)510-1910 to purchase your tickets!
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