Presale $15, Doors $20

Door 7pm, Show 8pm

Gerard, “Bo Jr.” Dollis is Mardi Gras Indian royalty. The Big Chief of the fabled Wild Magnolias Mardi Gras Indians inherited the role from his father, Bo Dollis, the galvanic singer whose piercing cry summoned a generation of Black Indians into public view through the 1970 regional hit single “Handa Wanda,” the song that put Mardi Gras Indian music on every jukebox in New Orleans and beyond. My Name Is Bo is the latest album from Big Chief Bo Dollis, Jr. & The Wild Magnolias. Produced by Cyril Neville, it’s the sound of a New Orleans neighborhood party. A blend of Indian music and funk, the album shows the elements of New Orleans music—Black Indian, second line, funk, slow groove R&B, jazz, blues, reggae, and hip hop beats. Bo Jr. pays loving tribute to his father’s influence on “If It Wasn’t For You,” a slow funk pull that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Parliament-Funkadelic LP. “Have a Good Time” is a Mardi Gras party anthem that invites the listener to a nonstop party at the second line, at Indian practice on a Sunday night. Cyril, Bo Jr’s friend and mentor, plays percussion, drums and sings backup. Neville, a member of another royal New Orleans musical family, brought the deepest grooves from his experiences with the Meters, Neville Brothers and Uptown All Stars to the project. Cyril and Bo enlisted, among others, the mighty Caesar family as the backing band, adding longtime Wild Magnolias guitarist June Yamagishi, Donald “Indian Blues” Harrison on alto saxophone, Ivan Neville on keyboards, Big Sam on trombone and the Zydeco Dopsie boys on rub-board and accordion. In 1970, on the first day of the inaugural New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Bo and his friend Big Chief Monk Boudreaux led a parade of Indians through the French Quarter encouraging people to come out to the festival site. The Black Indians have been an institution at Jazz Fest ever since. As the Wild Magnolias became an international phenomenon, Bo Jr. started parading with the gang as a child, shepherded at first by his mother Rita Dollis until he was able to walk the demanding day-long excursions on his own. Whenever he could, he went to the Indian practices and hung with the gang, learning the Indian folklore and chants from his elders. When Bo passed away in 2015 after a prolonged illness, Bo Jr. had learned his lessons well.