Big Daddy Wilson is an American blues singer and songwriter from Edenton, United States, born in 1960. He grows up in Edenton, North Carolina, in a poor family, raised by his mother and grandmother after losing his father. He sings in church as a child, works on tobacco plantations and in cotton fields, leaves school at 16, and later joins the US Army.

His move to Germany becomes central to his career and identity. After being stationed there, he develops homesickness, returns to the United States briefly, and then goes back to Germany. He later marries a German woman, who is also the subject of his first song, a poem he turns into music. He first encounters the blues in Germany, where he says he finds something missing from his life, and the shy performer begins writing songs, jamming on the German blues scene, and touring with bands and as a duo.

Wilson records and performs with a warm, soulful voice and builds an international career from northern Germany. His international solo debut appears on RUF Records with Love Is The Key, an album made up entirely of his own songs and recorded with a small band. The record returns to a stripped-back sound with acoustic instruments and soul at its centre.

Songwriting and themes

Love Is The Key includes Anna, his first song, written about his wife. Other songs draw on different influences and subjects: Keep Your Faith In Jah is rooted in gospel, Jazzy Rose praises a gypsy queen from New Orleans, Hard Days Work uses monotone drones for a hypnotic effect, and Dreaming has a breezy Jamaica-style offbeat feel. Ain’t No Slave reflects on African-American history and his growing confidence.

Collaborations

Eric Bibb appears as a guest on Country Boy and Walk A Mile In My Shoes, songs linked to Wilson’s roots. Wilson says he learns a great deal from Bibb and values his contribution highly.

Wilson is also a father of three. He keeps a connection to North Carolina, though he says that returning there to perform remains a dream that makes him nervous.