The ensemble, founded 86 years ago, will perform with blues singer Shemekia Copeland.
The Blind Boys of Alabama have been a uniquely powerful voice for gospel music for more than 80 years, winning multiple Grammy awards, influencing generations of musicians and breaking racial barriers. Founded in 1939 in Talladega, Alabama, the group has gone through many iterations as they slowly gained popularity. Their breakthrough year was 1983, when they performed in the Obie Award-winning musical “The Gospel at Colonus.” Over the years, the Blind Boys’ changing roster of musicians has mostly been vision impaired.
The five-member ensemble will perform Saturday at Soka Performing Arts Center with iconic blues singer Shemekia Copeland, whose memorably powerful voice brings urgency to songs that are heartfelt, sometimes humorous, and always honest in their examination of contemporary issues and challenges.
Singer and percussionist Eric “Ricky” McKinnie has performed with The Blind Boys of Alabama since 1989. Culture OC recently talked to him about the group’s long history and continued relevance.
Culture OC: Tell us a little bit about what it’s like to manage a group like this. There must be so many traditions involved.
Ricky McKinnie: Well, you know, I’ve been working with the Blind Boys for a long time. I first met them when I was about 4 years old. My mother was singer Sarah McKinnie-Shivers, and she was in a group called the Female Nightingales, so that’s how I met them. I’ve been in the music business for a long time. I had my own group for a while out of Texas. I first joined (The Blinds Boys) group as a member, so my management skills were already kind of in place even before I started to manage them.
Culture OC: You’ve been a performer since you were very young. You’ve got a half a century performing under your belt now.
McKinnie: I started professionally when I was 18 years old. In 1970 I joined a group out of Atlanta called the Soul Searchers, and they were like the No. 1 group in the area. It’s been a good, good ride.
Culture OC: One of your members, Jimmy Carter, retired at 91 after decades in the group. How do you determine when someone should retire?
McKinnie: It’s up to the member himself. We don’t have a set time. Whenever you feel like it’s your time to kind of take a rest, you should be able to decide for yourself. Jimmy sang with us last year. He’s still hanging in there. It’s amazing. Singing gospel is something like that that keeps you going, you know, gets you up in the morning, right?
Culture OC: Tell us a little bit about how you choose your repertoire. You’ve always adhered to strict gospel music for the most part. Is it a group decision about bringing new music into the repertoire? How does that work?
McKinnie: Well, you know, there was a time when the group made all the decisions pretty much about the music, but since about a little before the end of 1994 we started using different professional producers. They come in and we listen to them as well. They bring some songs, and we take a listen to them.
Culture OC: Bringing on a new member doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, is there an audition process? How does it work? How do you get to be a member?
McKinnie: Well, yeah, we do auditions. We are looking for different kinds of singers. A lot of people will say they sing in different ranges, but nobody really (does that) well. So we just try to find the one that fits the opening that we need, whether it’s tenor or bass.
Culture OC: A lot of your members did not get paid much over the years. I read that in 1953, each member made $100 per side on an album. You have not always reaped the fruits of your labor.
McKinnie: Things have changed a lot. Back then, it didn’t take as much to live as it does now. And we aren’t out here just for the money. See, if you're out here just for the money then you’re doing it for the wrong reason. I enjoy doing what I’m doing and, and God has allowed us to make a living doing this. But the Bible says that bringing voices and our message to people is the most important thing.
Culture OC: What are we going to hear in the Soka concert? Does your repertoire vary from concert to concert?
McKinnie: We’re going to have a wonderful time. We’re going to sing some a cappella songs. We’ll sing some very old songs. We’re going to sing songs from our newest LP, “Echoes of the South,” and then we’re just going to bring it on down home. Gonna have a great time. So if you come to the show and you might be feeling bad, that will not last. I will guarantee you that when you leave a Blind Boys concert, you’re going to end up feeling good.
Blind Boys of Alabama & Shemekia Copeland
Where: Soka Performing Arts Center, 1 University Drive, Aliso Viejo
When: 8 p.m. Feb. 22
Cost: $38-$88
Contact: 949-480-4278 or tickets@soka.edu
