Editing Keb' Mo' (section)

==Biography==
===Early life===
From early on, Keb' Mo's parents, who were from Louisiana and Texas, instilled in him a great appreciation for the [[blues]] and [[gospel music]]. By adolescence, he was an accomplished guitarist.{{Cn|date=November 2024}}

===Career===
Keb' Mo' started his musical career playing the [[steel drum]]s in a [[calypso music|calypso]] band. He moved on to play in a variety of blues and backup bands throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He first started recording in the early 1970s with [[Jefferson Airplane]] violinist [[Papa John Creach]] through an R&B group. Creach hired him when Moore was 21 years old and Moore appeared on four of Creach's albums: ''[[Filthy!]]'', ''[[Playing My Fiddle for You]]'', ''[[I'm the Fiddle Man]]'' and ''[[Rock Father]]''. Keb' Mo's first gold record was received for a song, "Git Fiddler", which he co-wrote with Creach on [[Jefferson Starship]]'s ''[[Red Octopus]]''.<ref name="Git Fiddler">{{cite web|last1=William|first1=Ruhlmann|title=Jefferson Starship Red Octopus|website=[[AllMusic]]|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/red-octopus-mw0000194323/|access-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref> ''Red Octopus'' hit number one on the [[Billboard 200]] in 1975.<ref name="Red Octopus Awards">{{cite web|title=Jefferson Starship Red Octopus: Awards|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/red-octopus-mw0000194323/awards|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref>

Moore was also a staff writer for [[A&M Records]] and arranged demos for Almo – Irving music. Keb' Mo's debut, ''[[Rainmaker (Keb' Mo')|Rainmaker]]'', was released on [[Chocolate City Records]], a subsidiary of [[Casablanca Records]], in 1980. He was further immersed in the blues with his long stint in the Whodunit Band, headed by [[Bobby "Blue" Bland]] producer [[Monk Higgins]]. Moore [[Jam (music)|jammed]] with [[Albert Collins]] and [[Big Joe Turner]] and emerged as an inheritor of a guarded tradition and as a genuine original.

Keb' Mo' has appeared on stage (1990–1993) in several versions of the musical [[Spunk (play)|Spunk]], by [[George C. Wolfe]], an adaptation of three short stories by [[Zora Neale Hurston]]. His character, Guitar Man, learned while he was an understudy to "Chick Streetman", played all the actual music in the play while performing.<ref name=Spunk>{{cite news|author1=Roger Catlin|title=Blues Of Keb' Mo' Provides The 'Spunk' At Hartford Stage|url=https://www.courant.com/1995/01/12/blues-of-keb-mo-provides-the-spunk-at-hartford-stage-2/|access-date=January 17, 2016|newspaper=[[Hartford Courant]]|date=January 12, 1995}}</ref> The character of Guitar Man is the foundation for his stage persona.

In 1994, Keb' Mo' released his self-titled album, ''[[Keb' Mo' (album)|Keb' Mo']]'', which featured two [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]] classics, "[[Come On In My Kitchen]]" and "[[Kind Hearted Woman Blues]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wirz.de/music/rarearly.htm|title=Illustrated discography of various artists' early records|publisher=Wirz.de|access-date=May 18, 2015}}</ref> In the [[Martin Scorsese]] miniseries ''[[The Blues (film)|The Blues]]'', Keb' Mo' states that he was greatly influenced by Johnson. Keb' was the runner-up for Best New Blues Artist at The [[Long Beach Blues Festival]], where he was spotted by Steve LaVere, who owns the publishing for the entire [[Robert Johnson]] song catalogue (1992–93).

Keb' Mo's self-titled album was released on [[Okeh Records]], a vintage revival division of Sony Music.

In 1996, he released ''[[Just Like You (Keb' Mo' album)|Just Like You]]'', his second album, which featured 12 songs full of [[Delta blues|Delta rhythms]]. He won his first [[Grammy Award]] for this album, which featured guest appearances from [[Jackson Browne]] and [[Bonnie Raitt]].<ref>''[[Just Like You (Keb' Mo' album)|Just Like You]]'' CD sleeve</ref>

On June 10, 1997, Moore performed on the television program ''[[Sessions at West 54th]]''. He joined musicians Laval Belle on drums, Reggie McBride playing bass and Joellen Friedkin on keyboards to perform 14 songs, some from each of his albums. Blues pianist [[Dr. John]] also made a guest appearance. This session (known as ''[[Sessions at West 54th: Recorded Live in New York]]'') was shown on television but was not released as a DVD until late 2000.

In 1998, Moore was involved in the multi-artist project "Begegnungen (Encounters)" by German rock musician [[Peter Maffay]]. They performed together a new version of Mo's "Am I Wrong" on the album and some more songs in the 30 concerts at the arena tour later the same year, documented on the live album ''Begenungen Live'', released in early 1999. A further guest of Maffay at the ''Begegnungen'' album and tour was [[Sonny Landreth]] and many more artists from around the world.

''[[Slow Down (album)|Slow Down]]'', his next album, was released in 1998 and featured twelve songs. It earned him a second Grammy Award. The album begins with the song "Muddy Water", a tribute to [[Muddy Waters]]. It also features a song entitled "Rainmaker", which had been released previously on his first album, eighteen years prior.

His fourth album, ''[[The Door (Keb' Mo' album)|The Door]]'', was released in 2000. The same year, Keb' Mo' released ''[[Big Wide Grin]]'', a [[children's album]] featuring many songs from Moore's own childhood, along with some newer children's songs and some by Moore himself. In 2001, he appeared on [[Sesame Street]] with [[Kermit the Frog]], [[Grover]], [[Elmo]], and other [[muppets]] performing the song "Everybody Be Yo'self". The album includes an original arrangement of "[[America the Beautiful]]", which he performed years later on the 2006 series finale of ''[[The West Wing]]'', "[[Tomorrow (The West Wing)|Tomorrow]]", in which he appears as himself to perform the song at the [[inauguration]] of President [[Matt Santos]].

In 2003, [[Martin Scorsese]] collaborated with many blues musicians including Keb' Mo' to put together a series of films entitled ''The Blues''. Following its release, several albums were released in accordance, some were compilations, some new collaborations and Keb' Mo' released an album in the series featuring a handful of existing recordings from Keb' Mo'  to The Door.

Also in 2003, Moore and Lyle Lovett released a cover of the Bob Seger song "'Til it Shines".

On February 10, 2004, he released ''[[Keep It Simple (Keb' Mo' album)|Keep It Simple]]'' which earned him a third Grammy Award, again in the contemporary blues genre. Later that year, he released his sixth studio album, ''[[Peace... Back by Popular Demand]]''.

Moore released ''[[Suitcase (Keb' Mo' album)|Suitcase]]'', on June 13, 2006. His touring band following the release included [[Reggie McBride]] on bass, Les Falconer III on drums, [[Jeff Paris (musician)|Jeff Paris]] on keyboards, and Clayton Gibb on guitar.

On October 20, 2009, Keb' Mo' released the live album, ''[[Live and Mo']]''.

[[File:Keb Mo and Dan Aykroyd, 12Apr2013.jpg|thumb|left|Keb' Mo' performing with [[Dan Aykroyd]] at the 2013 [[Crossroads Guitar Festival]], April 12, 2013]]

At the 2010 [[Crossroads Guitar Festival]], Keb' Mo' performed an acoustic set with [[Stefan Grossman]] and an electric set with [[Vince Gill]], [[Albert Lee]], [[James Burton]], [[Earl Klugh]] and [[Sheryl Crow]]. He joined the finale with most of the day's performers.<ref>{{cite web |title=CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL 2010 |url=http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-discography/eric-clapton-videos-dvds-and-bluray-discs-music-videos-concerts-various-12/ |website=whereseric.com |access-date=September 15, 2015}}</ref>

On August 2, 2011, Keb' Mo' released ''[[The Reflection (album)|The Reflection]]''.

Keb' Mo' performed at a White House event titled "In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues" on February 21, 2012.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues Pictures |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/in-performance-at-the-white-house-red-white-and-blues-20120222/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=February 22, 2012 |access-date=September 15, 2015}}</ref> On February 24, 2012, many of the same performers, including Keb' Mo, [[Gary Clark Jr.]], [[Buddy Guy]], [[Warren Haynes]], [[Susan Tedeschi]] and [[Derek Trucks]], paid tribute to [[Hubert Sumlin]] at the "Howlin' For Hubert" memorial concert at the [[Apollo Theater]] in New York City.<ref>{{cite web |title=February 24, 2012 – Howlin' For Hubert |url=http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/24/02/2012/ |website=whereseric.com |access-date=September 15, 2015 |archive-date=May 12, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150512203717/http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/24/02/2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On the first night of the 2013 [[Crossroads Guitar Festival]], Keb' Mo' performed a set with [[Booker T. Jones]], [[Steve Cropper]], [[Blake Mills]] and [[Matt Murphy (blues guitarist)|Matt "Guitar" Murphy]]. Keb' Mo' later performed two songs with emcee [[Dan Aykroyd]].<ref>{{cite web |title=April 12, 2013 – Crossroads Guitar Festival |url=http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/12/04/2013/ |website=whereseric.com |access-date=September 15, 2015 |archive-date=May 23, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150523023422/http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/12/04/2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> On the second night of the festival, Keb' Mo' performed with [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]].<ref>{{cite web |title=April 13, 2013 – Crossroads Guitar Festival |url=http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/13/04/2013/ |website=whereseric.com |access-date=September 15, 2015 |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222164818/http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-tour/13/04/2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In early 2014, he was nominated for three [[Grammy Awards]] for Best Americana Album (''[[BLUESAmericana]]''), Best American Roots Performance ("The Old Me Better") and Best Engineered Album Non-Classical (''BLUESAmericana'').<ref>{{cite web|author=Jewly Hight |url=http://www.cmtedge.com/2014/12/24/keb-mo-completely-shocked-by-grammy-nominations/ |title=Keb' Mo' Completely Shocked by Grammy Nominations |website=Cmtedge.com |date=December 24, 2014 |access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref> In May, he appeared alongside [[Metallica]] at MusicCare' 10th Annual MAP Fund Benefit Concert at Nokia honoring [[Ozzy Osbourne]] and Jeff Greenberg.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://themusicuniverse.com/metallica-slash-keb-mo-added-as-performers-to-musicares-map-fund-concert/ |title=Metallica, Slash, Keb Mo added as performers to MusiCares MAP Fund concert |date=March 18, 2014 |publisher=The Music Universe |access-date=October 26, 2016 |archive-date=June 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630235723/http://themusicuniverse.com/metallica-slash-keb-mo-added-as-performers-to-musicares-map-fund-concert/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> In October 2014 he honored [[The Everly Brothers]], at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 19th annual Music Masters Series, and in November he honored [[Mavis Staples]] alongside [[Bonnie Raitt]], [[Gregg Allman]], [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]] and [[Grace Potter]], at Chicago's Auditorium Theatre for celebration of Staples' life and career in honor of her 75th birthday.<ref>{{cite web |last=Niesel |first=Jeff |url=http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2014/07/10/rock-hall-to-honor-the-everly-brothers |title=Updated: Rock Hall to Honor the Everly Brothers &#124; Scene and Heard: Scene's News Blog |website=Clevescene.com |date=September 30, 2014 |access-date=October 26, 2016 |archive-date=August 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809190128/http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2014/07/10/rock-hall-to-honor-the-everly-brothers |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2014/11/mavis-75-bonnie-raitt-otis-clay-keb-mo-and-more-ta.html |title=Mavis 75: Bonnie Raitt, Otis Clay, Keb' Mo' and More Talk Mavis Staples' |website=Pastemagazine.com |date=November 18, 2014 |access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref> Also in late 2014 he was featured on a [[Jackson Browne]] tribute album, ''[[Looking into You: A Tribute to Jackson Browne]]''.

In 2015, his album ''[[BLUESAmericana]]'' won the 'Contemporary Blues Album' category at the [[Blues Music Award]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.americanbluesscene.com/2015/05/2015-blues-music-awards-winners/ |title=2015 Blues Music Awards Winners |publisher=Americanbluesscene.com |access-date=May 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150519063558/http://www.americanbluesscene.com/2015/05/2015-blues-music-awards-winners/ |archive-date=May 19, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

He has been supportive of charity [[Playing For Change]] since its inception and recently appeared in a video with [[Keith Richards]]' singing [[Bob Marley]]'s "Get Up, Stand Up". He appeared on two tracks from the ''Playing For Change: Songs Around The World'' that was released on June 17. The album had over 180 musicians from 31 countries, including [[Keith Richards]], [[Sara Bareilles]], [[David Hidalgo]], [[Cesar Rosas]], and [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]]. He donates 5% of ''[[BLUESAmericana]]'' to the charity.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://playingforchange.com/musicians/kebmo/ |title=Keb´Mo´ |publisher=Playing for Change |access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref>

In late 2015, he performed at a special concert hosted by [[Barack Obama]] called "A Celebration of American Creativity: In Performance at the White House". It was shot and filmed in the [[East Room]] of the [[White House]]. Other performers included [[Smokey Robinson]], [[James Taylor]], [[Buddy Guy]], [[Queen Latifah]], [[Usher (entertainer)|Usher]], [[Trombone Shorty]], [[MC Lyte]], [[Audra McDonald]], [[Esperanza Spalding]], [[Brian Stokes Mitchell]] and [[Carol Burnett]]. It commemorated the 50th anniversary of the founding of [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]'s [[National Foundation on the Arts]] through the Humanities Act.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/inperformanceatthewhitehouse/home/ |title=In Performance at the White House |publisher=PBS |access-date=October 26, 2016}}</ref>

Keb' Mo' released a live album, ''Keb' Mo' Live – That Hot Pink Blues Album'' on April 15, on Kind of Blue Music/[[RED Distribution]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eurweb.com/2016/03/keb-mo-drops-keb-mo-live-hot-pink-blues-album/ |title=Keb' Mo' Drops 'Keb' Mo' Live – That Hot Pink Blues Album' |publisher=Lee Bailey's EurWeb.com |date=March 6, 2016 |access-date=March 30, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.theurbanmusicscene.com/2016/03/keb-mo-set-to-release-keb-mo-live-that-hot-pink-blues-album/ |title=Keb' Mo' Set To Release "Keb' Mo' LIVE – That Hot Pink Blues Album" on April 15th, 2016 : Announces Nationwide Tour |publisher=TheUrbanMusicScene.com |date=March 23, 2016 |access-date=March 30, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.axs.com/news/keb-mo-readies-special-live-project-for-release-77495 |title=Keb' Mo' readies special live project for release |date=March 1, 2016 |access-date=March 30, 2016 |author=Vallon, Vanessa|work=AXS }}</ref>

Keb' Mo' partnered up with [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]] to release a joint album, ''[[TajMo]]'', on May 5, 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/tajmo-mw0003033262 |title=TajMo – Taj Mahal / Keb' Mo' |website=AllMusic |access-date=May 8, 2017 |author=Erlewine, Stephen Thomas}}</ref> The album has guest appearances by [[Bonnie Raitt]], [[Joe Walsh]], [[Sheila E.]], and [[Lizz Wright]], and has six original compositions and five covers, from artists and bands like [[John Mayer]] and [[The Who]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oregonmusicnews.com/tajmo-set-to-release-new-album |title=TajMo: Taj Mahal and Keb' Mo' team up for new album |work=Oregon Music News |date=March 15, 2017 |access-date=May 8, 2017 |author=Cunningham, Scott}}</ref> The album won the 2018 Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/kebmo|title=Keb'Mo'|date=November 28, 2017|website=Grammy.com|access-date=January 29, 2018}}</ref>

[[File:Keb Mo(49627462077).jpg|thumb|Keb' Mo' performs in 2020.]]
In June 2019, Keb' Mo' released a studio album, ''[[Oklahoma (Keb' Mo' album)|Oklahoma]]'', with guest contributions from [[Rosanne Cash]], [[Jaci Velasquez]], Robert Randolph, and Taj Mahal, with a duet with Robbie Brooks Moore (his wife).

Keb' Mo' played the [[Glastonbury Festival]] in June 2019 followed by UK and European dates in July 2019.

Keb' Mo' performed at the 2019 [[Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum]] concert and induction ceremony.

Keb' Mo' won the [[Grammy Award]] for "Best Americana Album" in 2020 for ''Oklahoma''.<ref>[https://www.vulture.com/2020/01/grammy-winners-2020-the-full-list.html Grammy Winners List 2020] by Zoe Haylock, Vulture.com, January 27, 2020.</ref> He was one of the headliners at the 2020 Mahindra Blues Festival in Mumbai, India.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rollingstoneindia.com/keb-mo-on-four-decades-of-the-blues-remembering-african-american-history-activism-in-music-and-more/|title=Keb' Mo' on Four Decades of the Blues, Remembering African American History, Activism in Music and More -|date=February 5, 2020|language=en-US|access-date=February 26, 2020}}</ref>

===Film projects===
In 1998, he portrayed [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]] in a documentary film, ''Can't You Hear the Wind Howl?''<ref name="russell">{{cite book |first= Tony |last= Russell |year= 1997 |title= The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray |publisher= Carlton Books Limited |location= Dubai |pages= 129–130 |isbn= 1-85868-255-X}}</ref>

In 1997, Keb' Mo' portrayed the character Isaac, the Angel of Music, in the episode "Inherit the Wind" and again in 1999 in "Then Sings My Soul" of the television series ''[[Touched by an Angel]]''. He performed "Hand It Over" from his 1996 release ''Just Like You'' in the 1997 episode and again in the 2002 episode "Remembering Me: Part 2". He also appeared as J. D. Winslow in the 2001 episode "Shallow Water", where he performed his song "God Trying to Get Your Attention" from his album ''Slow Down''.

The 2003 movie [[Holes (film)|Holes]] features a re-recorded rendition of ''Just Like You'' with slightly altered lyrics. 

In January 2007, he performed at the [[Sundance Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://music.netscape.com/story/2007/01/28/kebmo-plays-at-sundance-2007 |title=AOL.com – Netscape |publisher=Music.netscape.com |access-date=May 18, 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

He played the role of the mischievous spirit Possum in the 2007 [[John Sayles]] movie ''[[Honeydripper (film)|Honeydripper]]''.

Keb' Mo' provided additional music for ''[[Mike and Molly]]''.

He has co-written the opening music for ''[[B Positive]]'' with executive producer [[Chuck Lorre]].<ref name= "BPositive">{{cite news |last=Fienberg |first=Daniel |url= https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/b-positive-tv-review |title='B Positive': TV Review |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=November 4, 2020 |access-date=December 13, 2020}}</ref>

In 2019, Keb' Mo' featured as a guest artist on the PBS concert series ''Bluegrass Underground'' (now re-branded as ''The Caverns Sessions'').

===Political activism===
In 2004, he participated in the politically motivated [[Vote for Change]] tour alongside [[Bonnie Raitt]] and [[Jackson Browne]], with whom he originally recorded the title track from the album ''[[Just Like You (Keb' Mo' album)|Just Like You]]''.

Keb' Mo' is part of the [[No Nukes group]] which was against the expansion of [[nuclear power]]. In 2007, the group recorded a music video of a new version of the [[Buffalo Springfield]] song "[[For What It's Worth (Buffalo Springfield song)|For What It's Worth]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nukefree.org/node/96|title="For What It's Worth," No Nukes Reunite After Thirty Years|publisher=Nukefree.org|access-date=May 18, 2015|archive-date=July 19, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719202100/http://www.nukefree.org/node/96|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nirs.org/home.htm |title=Nuclear Information and Resource Service |publisher=Nirs.org |access-date=May 18, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609064533/http://www.nirs.org/home.htm |archive-date=June 9, 2015}}</ref>