Indianola, MS (9/16/25) – When I was 13 years old, I received what was technically my second guitar. I had been given an acoustic guitar at a much younger age, but at that time I had no interest in it. As a young teenager, however, I began turning to music as a way to express myself. I didn’t fully understand what that meant then, I only knew I wanted to play how I felt. The music I played didn’t resemble the blues at all.
Still, at that age, when you dream of being an amazing guitar player, you start looking up to the legends on magazine covers and radio stations that you filled your day looking through and listening to. There’s all the greats like Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and so many more but I became captivated by B.B. King.
Not because I wanted to play the blues as I’ve always preferred rock, but because he seemed so genuine. The emotion in his music resonated with me and from watching his interviews and performances he came across as a true, humble, down-to-earth man.
June 7, 2002 – Spartanburg, SC
On June 7, 2002, I was 18yrs old and B.B. King performed in my hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina, at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium. My high school friend Michael Wilkerson and I had saved our money from working at the local fish camp to buy tickets. I borrowed my dad’s truck for the night, along with his cell phone, and was told to come straight home after the show.
Another iconic artist, Bobby “Blue” Bland, opened the show before B.B. King took the stage. Sitting on his throne, he mesmerized two young teenagers who watched in awe taking in every note.
After the concert, Michael and I went to the front of the stage hoping to find guitar picks that had been tossed from the stage.
We soon heard a voice from above us on the stage asking what we were doing. We recognized the man as being a member from King’s band. We told him what we were looking for, he instructed us to wait there for a moment. He disappeared briefly and returned with guitar picks and B.B. King lapel pins.
To our surprise he asked, “Do you want to meet Mr. King?”
We told him we couldn’t afford the meet-and-greet. He smiled and said we could go backstage for free as Mr. King would love to meet us.
I quickly called home to share the news but my dad didn’t believe me. He ordered me to leave immediately or face being grounded. I refused, telling him I wasn’t going to miss this opportunity.
Meeting B.B. King
The band member led us backstage, past a long line of fans, and into B.B. King’s dressing room. We sat on the couch while he greeted fans, signed autographs, and, between people, spoke with us. He was the kindest, most humble person I had ever met. He didn’t rush anyone. With every autograph, he asked if there was someone else at home he could sign something for. He took genuine time with everyone.
That moment stuck with me, even now at 41 years old. I’ve been backstage with many bands since then. Most are nice but the experience often feels rushed and businesslike. Some have even come off as very arrogant and egotistical. Only one other artist, Jelly Roll, has reminded me of B.B. King’s warmth and gratitude.
When the line ended B.B. King turned his full attention to us. We talked about music, dedication, and even local Spartanburg history with the Marshall Tucker Band. He seemed truly excited to see young kids interested in him and the blues, a genre far from mainstream radio.
He posed for photos, signed our ticket stubs, and even offered us free tickets and backstage passes for his show in Savannah, GA the next night, though we couldn’t go. Before we left he asked if we wanted anything signed for someone else. I initially declined, but my friend nudged me and dropped a hint, so I asked him to sign a photo for my dad (Slab).
When I got home my dad was furious and ready to ground me. Without saying a word, I handed him the autographed photo with a personal message to relay from B.B. King himself asking him not to punish me. My dad’s anger disappeared instantly. He was stunned that I had actually met B.B. King.
If only Mr. King had been around on other occasions to keep me from being grounded then as well, lol.
May 14, 2015 – The Day B.B. King Passed
I always wanted to see B.B. King again but it just never happened.
On May 14, 2015 the hopes of attending another show would fade away. As I sat in a hotel room in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina watching Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots and his solo band load into the venue next-door for a free show that evening the news came across the TV that B.B. King had passed away.
It doesn’t typically affect me when celebrities pass away because I don’t actually know them personally. However, the passing of B.B. King did hit a little differently that day. He was the root of a story in a connection with my dad who had passed seven years prior and had been an influence in learning how to express yourself through music at a time in my life when I was very lost and confused about a lot of things. There was very much a sentimental aspect to the passing of Riley B. King for me.
Full Circle – Present Day (September 16, 2025)
Fast forward to present day of September 16, 2025 while out on a work trip traveling through Mississippi.
I had stayed the previous night in Clarksdale, MS which is famous for being the home of the legendary “Crossroads” where Robert Johnson is told to have sold his soul to the Devil to play music. I was able to pass by and see many other notable historic locations for blues music in the Delta area before reaching Indianola, MS where I would be in the presence of B.B. King again.
Indianola, MS is the adopted hometown of B.B. King who moved there at the age of 17yrs. Throughout the town of only 10,000 people are many notable areas of interest for music lovers interested in the history of B.B. King.
At the intersection of Church Ave and 2nd street you can find what is now labeled as “King’s Corner.” This is a location where a young Riley B. King in the 1940’s would sit with his guitar during the day and entertain people passing by who would often leave him some tips. On June 5th, 1980 some new concrete was poured where Mr. King etched the date and his name along with pressing his palm prints into the new sidewalk. The handprints and name are slowly fading away from years of foot traffic and weather but a Mississippi Blues Trail historical marker now stands at this location noting the history for years to come.
As night would fall Riley would move just a couple blocks down Church Ave to a more populated black area of town and continued to perform. This area would be filled with members of the African-American community looking for entertainment and the numerous juke joints that lined the street on Saturday nights and looking for redemption at church on Sunday morning. Many of these buildings are no longer standing, but a few have stood the test of time such as the “Cozy Corner Cafe“. Though some of the business names have changed the music still flows and reflections of the past are still very prominent and authentic.
If you go just around the corner to Hanna Ave you will find the legendary “Club Ebony.” Originally opened in 1948 this venue was much larger than typical juke joints of the south. During the Jim Crowe era Club Ebony provided a great venue for many black artists to perform along what was then called the “Chitlin’ Circuit.” Many notable artist such as Ike and Tina Turner, Count Basie, Ray Charles, James Brown, Aretha Franklin and more would frequent the venue.
A young B.B. King was said to have snuck around the venue taking peaks inside at artists like Sonny Boy Williamson II before later performing at the venue himself.
In 1980 B.B. King began hosting annual homecoming shows each year all the way up until 2014 as he passed away prior to the show in 2015. In 2008 King purchased the iconic club himself in order to keep the tradition and history alive. He donated it to the museum in his name just down the street. From 2020 to 2021 the venue closed due to Covid and structural issues became more noticeable. In 2023, after $800,000 in renovations the venue reopened.
Bell Grove Missionary Church is near by as well. This is the church where on May 30th, 2015 the funeral for King was held. A crowd showing their respects that included Buddy Guy and Marty Stuart, overflowed into the church parking lot and to the museum, where King was laid to rest.
We shall bypass the museum for a moment and head over to Itta Bena, MS.
As you turn off the main road of HWY 82, also known as “BB King Memorial Highway,” you will find yourself on a red dirt gravel road surrounded by cotton fields as far as the eye can see. You’ll cross a railroad track before moving along the banks of Blue Lake and up to the Mississippi Blues Trail marker noting the birthplace of B.B. King. The marker is actually located just up the road from where his actual home was at his time of birth. The actual location is noted on the back of the marker. If you follow the path you come to the fields where the story of a young boy named Riley ,who would rise to fame, began. To be out in the middle of nowhere and see the rural beginnings of such an infamous person you begin to realize the struggles he had to fight through to achieve his success.
At the age of 4 his father left the family and Riley moved over to Kilmichael, MS with his mother where they stayed with his Grandmother. His mother would pass at his age of 9 and his grandmother at his age of 14. They are both buried in unmarked graves at Pinkney Grove Missionary Church.
He would live with other family members in the area before he went to live with his dad in Lexington, MS who had remarried. He is sad to have not liked it there and rode a bicycle 60 miles back to Kilmichael where he began to work and live on the farm of a white man named Flake Cartledge, whom King respected for his fairness and lack of prejudice. Cartledge would go on to help King get his first guitar.
Kilmichael is where King says he was first introduced to blues music. The Reverend Archie Fair first introduced King to the guitar and had a major influence on him. King immersed himself with music and began performing at first as a singer with a group called the “Elkhorn Jubilee Singers” which was formed and named after the Elkhorn Primitive Baptist Church and School that King attended. King has said in interviews that he would walk 5 miles, one way, to and from school.
As King grew in his musical abilities, and looking for more opportunities to perform, he found his way to Indianola, MS
This takes us back to where we left off with the museum.
The B.B. King Museum
Outside the museum stands an old cotton gin where King once worked. It was here that his body rested for fans to pay their respects in 2015. On this day, however, I unknowingly arrived on what would have been his 100th birthday.
The museum was decorated with balloons and banners. I was given a shirt, stickers, and a pen to mark the celebration. Inside, a cake shaped like “Lucille,” his beloved guitar, was served. There were also multiple pictures and decorations around, displaying his life and legacy.
Despite the crowd, I managed to find a quiet moment alone at his gravesite. Surrounded by Mississippi cotton fields and the deep history of the blues, it was humbling to stand there, understanding more fully the struggles and triumphs of a man who never forgot his roots.
Legacy
B.B. King rose from nothing to become a legend. He influenced countless musicians around the world, but more importantly, he carried himself with kindness and humility. Even in death, he rests just 20 miles from where his story began, a final reminder of a man who never lost touch with where he came from.
Do not altar photos
Copyright: MJBragg Photography
