Prior Lake Rotary Club’s Family-Friendly Musical Event Returns to Lakefront Park

PRIOR LAKE, Minn., May 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Multiple Grammy award-winning musician Buddy Guy
will headline the second annual Lakefront Jazz and Blues Festival, a
day-long family-friendly event featuring jazz and blues artists at
Lakefront Park in Prior Lake on Saturday, July 16. Tickets are available now for $5 at www.lakefrontjazz.com.

The
event was created by the Prior Lake Rotary, and is presented by Mystic
Lake Casino Hotel and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community which
donated $50,000 to support the event.  The SMSC also donated $50,000 to present the first Lakefront Jazz and Blues Festival in 2010.  

“We are absolutely honored to have Buddy Guy headlining this year’s festival,” said Shaun Naya,
event and fundraising co-chair for the Prior Lake Rotary. “He is an
extraordinarily talented musician that will highlight an amazing day of
jazz and blues music.”

George
“Buddy” Guy has a colossal musical resume and hard-earned accolades
including being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He’s a
chief guitar influence to rock titans like Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Stevie Ray Vaughan,
and has received six Grammy Awards, the Billboard Magazine Century
Award for distinguished artistic achievement, the Presidential National
Medal of Arts, and 23 W.C. Handy Blues Awards—the most of any artist.

In addition to Guy, other performers scheduled to entertain festival guests include:  

• Quinn Sullivan, a 12 year-old guitar prodigy who began playing the guitar when he was three. Sullivan caught the attention of Ellen DeGeneres in 2006 and was personally invited by Buddy Guy to join him on tour in 2011. His new record Cyclone explores
  many styles ranging from scorching Blues and Rock n’ Roll, to Pop
  oriented ballads, all while showcasing his incredible guitar skills.
• Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
  brings their mix of blues and Southern-folk-rock talents to the
  festival this year, promising to stay true to their musical roots.
  Nelson honed his singing and songwriting skills growing up on the road
  with his famous father. The band has toured with everyone from B.B. King and Dave Matthews Band to Blues Traveler and Creedence Clearwater Revisited.
• Headed by Pat “Lamont” Hayes, The Lamont Cranston Blues Band will feature Bruce McCabe
  as a special guest. From clubs, concert halls and festivals, to
  auditoriums and stadiums, the band has shared the stage with many blues
  legends, including Muddy Waters, Charlie Musselwhite, The Blues Brothers and Bonnie Raitt.
• A recent contestant on NBC’s “The Voice,” Minnesota musical artist Tim Mahoney was influenced by R.E.M., U2 and Sam Cooke. A mainstay in the Twin Cities music scene for over 10 years and Prior Lake native, Mahoney’s raspy voice and bittersweet lyrics are still winning people over.
• Contemporary guitarist and vocalist Steve Oliver brings
  his multi-genre music covering world, contemporary, soul and pop to the
  festival. Recently nominated as International Instrumentalist of the
  Year for 2010 by the Wave Awards, Oliver has phenomenal capabilities of
  incorporating global music styles with a mix of pop/rock/soul and
  contemporary, bringing a fresh, chart-topping sound as an unparalleled
  guitarist and signature vocalist.
• Mexican-American saxophonist/singer Jessy J
  is already a jazz sensation with her sizzling mix of hot beats, Latin
  and samba rhythms and instantly captivating melodies. The 31 year-old
  has received high accolades, including Radio and Records “Debut Artist
  of The Year”, and contemporary jazz song of the year by R&R and
  Billboard for the title track of her debut album, Tequila Moon.

Last
year’s event attracted more than 14,000 people to Lakefront Park and
this year again will include “Lil’ Louie’s Music Camp” – a special area
just for kids with free activities like painting, jazz dance, crafts and
musical games – as well as a variety of food and beverage vendors, and
an artisans shopping area.

Mystic Lake Casino Hotel is also offering a Lakefront Jazz and Blues Festival hotel package for visitors. The $129 special includes a premier, double occupancy guestroom, a $20
food & beverage coupon, a Play 10/Get 10 coupon, 20% off a gift
shop purchase, free valet parking, free access to Dakotah! Sport and
Fitness, and complimentary transportation to and from Lakefront Park on
Saturday. For more information about the package or to make
reservations, call 1-800-813-7349 and reference code JAZZ11, or visit www.mysticlake.com/hotel.

“We
look forward to offering a great day of music and are excited to once
again bring a strong lineup of musicians and family entertainment to
this year’s festival,” said Event Co-Chair Dave Card.
“From the very beginning, it was our goal to create a family-friendly
musical event while showcasing our beautiful city, and raising money to
continue the philanthropic vision of the Prior Lake Rotary.”

For more information about the Lakefront Jazz and Blues Festival, please visit www.lakefrontjazz.com.  

About Prior Lake Rotary Club

The
Prior Lake Rotary Club is a community service organization responsible
for enhancing the quality of life for its residents through humanitarian
service and the encouragement of high ethical standards in all
vocations. The Club has 70 members and is recognized for its quality and
array of services and leadership in the local community, region, nation
and throughout the world. Rotary is a volunteer organization of 1.2
million business and professional leaders united worldwide to provide
humanitarian service and address today’s challenges – including
illiteracy, disease, hunger, poverty, lack of clean water and
environmental concerns.

 Prior Lake Rotary Club