Southern Avenue

Southern Avenue

Southern Avenue is a Memphis-based blues and soul blues group formed in 2015. The band consists of Tikyra Jackson, Ori Naftaly, Tierinii Naftaly, Jeremy Powell and Evan Sarver. Its name comes from a street in Memphis that runs from the eastern edge of the city limits to Soulsville, the area associated with the original home of Stax Records.

Background

Ori Naftaly grows up in Israel and moves to Memphis in 2013 to compete for Israel in the International Blues Challenge. After reaching the semi-finals, he stays in the city and later forms Southern Avenue with Memphis musicians, including Tierinii Jackson and her sister Tikyra. The band becomes active in the Memphis scene and is described by Rock 103 as one of the city’s most talked-about acts.

Early recognition and recordings

Southern Avenue reaches the finals of the International Blues Challenge in 2016. Less than a year after forming, the group signs with Stax Records, a division of Concord Music Group. Its self-titled debut album is released in 2017, mixed and produced by Kevin Houston. The album contains ten tracks, with nine written by Ori Naftaly and Tierinii Jackson, and includes a cover of Ann Peebles’ “Slipped, Tripped and Fell In Love”.

Musical style and collaborators

The band works in blues and soul blues, with a sound that combines gospel-tinged vocals, roots and blues guitar, and soul-influenced songwriting. The debut album is recorded at Inside Sounds in Memphis and Zebra Ranch in Coldwater, Mississippi. Guest appearances on the record come from Luther Dickinson of North Mississippi Allstars and trumpeter Marc Franklin of the Bo-Keys.

Live activity

Southern Avenue tours the United States and Europe and appears at several music festivals. The North Mississippi Allstars invite the group to support them on the Prayer For Peace tour. The band also performs at a Rock and Wrap It Up event, plays Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware, and later appears at the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon.

Chart success

The debut album enters the US Billboard Top Blues Albums Chart at number 6 and reaches number 1 on the iTunes Blues Chart.