Diyarbakir welcomes blues
Some of the biggest names in blues music took to the stage at Turkey's only blues festival, the 19th edition of the Efes Pilsen Blues Festival, on Tuesday in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. The festival, held in Demirok facilities, brought together John Lee Hooker Jr, Sharrie Williams and Watermelon Slim with their fans in the city.
Multi award-winning Watermelon Slim and one of the best female blues vocalist, Sharrie Williams, took the stage first. But the most surprising moment of the event came from American jazz great Hooker. Blending his roots with a modern sound, Hooker arrived on stage with a poşu (a traditional cloth that is widely used by men in the southeastern Anatolia region) on his head and won the applause of the audience. This year's event, which began Oct. 24 in the southern city of Mersin, will continue on to Malatya, Kayseri, Moscow, Girne, Denizli, Antalya, Konya, Trabzon, Ankara, Eskisehir, Bursa, Istanbul, Balikesir, Canakkale, Izmir, Kocaeli and end in Edirne.