2025 Blues Music Awards Winners

Acoustic Blues Album Winner
One Guitar Woman, Sue Foley

Instrumentalist- Horn Winner
Vanessa Collier

Blues Rock Artist Winner
Tommy Castro

Instrumentalist- Harmonica Winner
Billy Branch

Soul Blues Female Winner
Thornetta Davis

Instrumentalist- Piano (Pinetop Perkins) Winner
Eden Brent

Instrumentalist- Bass Winner
Bob Stroger

Instrumentalist- Drum Winner
Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith

Blues Rock Album Winner
Life is Hard, Mike Zito

Contemporary Blues Male Winner
Ronnie Baker Brooks

Traditional Blues Album Winner
Crawlin’ ‘Kingsnake, John Primer & Bob Corritore

Traditional Blues Male Winner
John Primer



Instrumentalist- Guitar Winner
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Contemporary Blues Album Winner
Blues In My DNA, Ronnie Baker Brooks

Soul Blues Album Winner
Fine By Me, Curtis Salgado

Traditional Blues Female Winner
Sue Foley

Contemporary Blues Female Winner
Ruthie Foster

Soul Blues Male Winner
Curtis Salgado

Acoustic Blues Artist Winner
Keb’ Mo’

Band of the Year Winner
Rick Estrin and The Nightcats

Best Emerging Artist Winner
Revelation, Piper & The Hard Times

Instrumentalist- Vocals Winner
Ruthie Foster

Album of the Year Winner
Blame It On Eve, Shemekia Copeland

Song of the Year Winner
“Blues In My DNA,” Written by Ronnie Baker Brooks



B.B. King Entertainer of the Year Winner
Mr. Sipp (Castro Coleman)