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At Grammys, zydeco music gets a spark of renewal
Terrance Simien, a leading light among the younger generation of zydeco musicians, is raising the genre's profile at this year's Grammy awards.
from the February 8, 2008 edition
Page 2 of 3
But, the genre purists – and the revolutionaries – are still based in "the heart of Cajun country" amid the ramshackle houses, wandering roads, and shuttered music clubs of outer Lafayette.
"It's in the bloodlines," says Simien. "The music comes from the heart – from experiencing the trials and tribulations of growing up in this area. And you can't fake that. A lot of people want to know about the Creole and Cajun cultures. Well, it's right here, in the music."
Simien was born in 1965 in St. Landry Parish, which rests about 40 miles north of Lafayette, and raised by French-speaking, Creole parents. He first heard zydeco, he remembers, at busy church fundraisers, or community dances, blaring from small, worn speakers.
"Back then," he says, "it was considered music for an older generation. But I pestered my dad to keep taking me to these dances and I found out there was room for kids like me."
In high school, Simien bought a trumpet and, later, picked up the accordion. By the time he hit his early 20s, he was touring on a regular basis, shuttling first to regional concerts and then farther afield, to Boston, to Chicago, to Canada, to New York.
By Simien's rough estimation, he's traveled to dozens of cities and a handful of countries, including Mali, Cuba, and Australia. At his cramped practice space, behind the Simiens' house on the outskirts of Lafayette, concert posters and all-access passes line the walls alongside write-ups from Rolling Stone.
"I've been on stage with some great acts," Simien says, pointing to a photo from the second Clinton inauguration, where his band was invited to play.
Fresh recognition
But after recording a substantial catalog of zydeco records, with a rotating lineup of local musicians, Simien began to turn his eye toward a bigger prize.
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