Michael David Ledbetter (April 27, 1985 – January 21, 2019) was an American

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

singer and guitarist.

Biography

A distant relative of

Lead Belly Huddie William Ledbetter ( ; January 1888 or 1889 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk music, folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the ...

(Huddie Ledbetter), he grew up in

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook County, Illinois, Cook and Kane County, Illinois, Kane counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is located northwest of Chicago along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River. As of the 2020 United Stat ...

, United States, and attended Elgin High School. He trained as an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

singer, but was influenced by blues musicians such as

Otis Rush Otis Rush Jr. (April 29, 1934 – September 29, 2018) was an American blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter who has been long revered as one of the creators of modern Chicago blues; though he was respected and praised, the success he sought e ...

and

Buddy Guy George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaug ...

, and began singing in clubs in and around

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He joined the Nick Moss Band in 2010, and performed and recorded with the band for the next seven years, touring around the US and Europe.Maureen O'Donnell, "Blues musician Mike Ledbetter dies at 33"
''

Chicago Sun Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'', January 23, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2019 Jo Nash, "Soulful Blues Star Mike Ledbetter Has Died"
''Bluesrss.edu'', January 22, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2019 In 2017, he started performing with the guitarist

Monster Mike Welch Monster Mike Welch (born June 11, 1979) is an American electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was nominated for a Blues Music Award in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Welch has released seven albums to date, and is a former member of Sugar ...

, recording the album ''Right Place Right Time'' for which they won a

Blues Music Award The Blues Music Awards, formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards (or "The Handys"), are awards presented by the Blues Foundation, a non-profit organization set up to foster blues heritage. The awards were originally named in honor of W. C. Handy, " ...

for best traditional blues album. Welch stated "... from the first time I heard Mike, I knew he was the kind of singer I've always been trying to play like." Ledbetter countered, "The way we played off each other was beautiful to me... Everything just fit perfectly." ''Right Time Right Place'' was released by

Delta Groove Productions Delta Groove Productions is an American blues record label in Van Nuys, California, United States. The label was founded by Randy Chortkoff ( Rand Jay Chortkoff; 1949–2015), a producer, concert promoter, and harmonica player. Chortkoff's biog ...

, and its track listing included a number of original songs and several cover versions. These latterly comprise the album's opening track, a cover of

Elmore James Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ...

' "Cry for Me Baby"; the

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

penned " I Can't Stop Baby"; alongside a reworking of the

Jerry Leiber Leiber and Stoller were an American songwriting and record production duo, consisting of lyricist Jerome Leiber (; April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933). As well as many R&B and pop hits, they wr ...

and

Artie Butler Arthur Butler (born December 2, 1942) is an American arranger, composer, songwriter, and session musician. In a long career, he has been involved in numerous hit records and other recordings, and has been awarded over 60 gold and platinum album ...

song "Down Home Girl"; plus "Cryin' Won't Help You", which was an old

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

song. He formed a band with Welch, the Welch-Ledbetter Connection. The band was nominated for a 2019 Blues Music Award for band of the year, and Ledbetter was nominated as vocalist of the year and "B.B. King Entertainer." On May 9, 2019, he won both individual awards, along with band of the year. Ledbetter died at home in Elgin in January 2019, aged 33, as a result of a "sudden medical emergency", which was later confirmed as complications from

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ledbetter, Mike 1985 births 2019 deaths American blues singers American male singers American blues guitarists Chicago blues musicians People from Elgin, Illinois Blues musicians from Illinois Neurological disease deaths in Illinois Deaths from epilepsy People with epilepsy