Chubby Carrier, Lil Jeff Boutte host special jam session to honor the King of Zydeco
Grammy winner Chubby Carrier and zydeco veteran Lil Jeff Boutte lead a Tribute to Clifton Chenier set for 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. June 25 at the St. Landry Parish Visitor Center, I-49 exit 23, in Opelousas. The tribute is part of the Zydeco Capital Jam, monthly jam sessions open to players of all skill levels.
This special tribute falls the day before Clifton Chenier Day, which the state legislature declared in 2021. Chenier, the “King of Zydeco” who won a Grammy in 1983 and earned a Lifetime Achievement Award, was born June 25, 1925 near Opelousas.
Since 2021, the Clifton Chenier Centennial Committee has worked to celebrate 2025, the 100th anniversary of Chenier’s birth. The committee secured Clifton Chenier Day proclamations in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish and throughout Louisiana. The declarations remain in effect for the next two years.
Carrier, a Grammy winner in 2011, counts Chenier as an important influence in a career that has taken him from coast to coast and beyond. A piano accordionist like Chenier, Boutte recently released “I Ain’t Done Yet,” his first album in more than a decade.
For more information, visit the St. Landry Parish Tourist Commission web site at cajuntravel.com.
