Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Kenny Wayne Shepherd is a blues singer-songwriter and guitarist. Shepherd is widely considered a blues guitar great -- James Brown once referred to him as “one of the wonders of the world."

Shepherd has a guitar named after him, too -- the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Fender Stratocaster, which was released on September 1, 2008.

During his already legendary career, Shepherd has opened for and played with some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Lynyrd Skynrd, Van Halen, Aerosmith, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, BB King, and The Rolling Stones.

Born in Shreveport, Louisiana, Shepherd began teaching himself to play guitar at age 7, figuring out Muddy Waters licks from his father's record collection. Using his own contacts in the record business, Shepherd's father and manager, Ken Shepherd, helped his son, then 16 years old, land a major-label record deal with Giant Records.

In 1995, his debut album, Ledbetter Heights, was released. It featured original material and a few covers and had been recorded while Shepherd was just a senior in high school.

Shepherd has fought his share of battles, overcoming an alcohol addiction in 2005 at the age of 25. Not long after his decision to become sober, Shepherd converted to Catholicism. In 2006, Shepherd married Hannah Gibson, who is the daughter of famous actor Mel Gibson.

Shepherd has been nominated for five Grammy Awards and has received two Billboard Music Awards, two Blues Music Awards, and two Orville H. Gibson Awards.

In 2013, Shepherd, along with Stephen Stills (Crosby, Stills & Nash) and Barry Goldberg (Electric Flag), formed The Rides. The three wrote, recorded, and released a CD titled "Can't Get Enough" on August 27, 2013. Stills refers to the band as "the blues band of my dreams". The band toured the US in 2013 supporting their debut record, culminating with an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The three reunited in 2015, writing and recording a second release, "Pierced Arrow", that was released on 429 Records and Mascot Label Group in Europe in 2016.

On May 31, 2019, Shepherd released The Traveler. The album, like his previous release Lay It On Down, was co-produced by Marshall Altman.