Talk about paying dues. In April, the award-winning vocalist Janiva Magness traveled to Iraq and Kuwait. Co-headlining Bluzapalooza, the battle-tested veteran ably performed for American troops in the first-ever blues concert tour held in the Middle East.
“I jumped at the opportunity to bring those men and women some relief,” Magness says. “Here’s the thing for me: My personal politics are pretty hard left, but I didn’t go over there for my personal political reasons. I went because I had an opportunity to try and bring some relief to the men and women who are in a really difficult situation, doing a very difficult job. From day to day they don’t know if they are coming home in a bag or with all their body parts.”
It was a tough gig for Magness as well. “We were never in the Green Zone,” she says. “We were outside. It was frightening. There were bombs. We had to wear flak vests and helmets. There was more than one occasion where we were getting yelled at: ‘Get down on the ground — incoming!’
“The last show we did we had to stop in the middle and evacuate to the bunkers because there were bombs coming in. The ground and building were shaking. It was the real shit, in other words.”
Magness was there for 10 days and wherever she went, the singer and her stellar band were met with the same thing: gratitude. “We kept hearing, ‘Thank you so much. We can’t believe you came this far to do this for us. You made me forget where I was for two hours.’”
Magness is currently touring in support of her Alligator debut, What Love Will Do, which features gems by Little Milton Campbell, Ike Turner and Al Green. 
As a singer, her husky alto conjures up such soulful lung scrapers as Mavis Staples, Ann Peebles and Bettye Lavette. As a performer, Magness brings 30 years of experience to the stage. The Los Angeles-based singer makes her Worcester premiere this Friday. For fans of classic soul with a deep bluesy feel, do yourself a favor and check her out.
For more on Magness, visit www.janivamagness.com. Interview tip: Check out the YouTube clip with her in conversation. o
