Erica Fox is and always has been a storyteller. The evidence is in her own songwriting, in her interpretation of a song she might cover with her own phrasing, or in an acting role on film or on stage.

Most musicians take a while to hit their stride. They experiment and, over time, cast aside ideas and projects as they discover new paths. So, it is rare to see a concept hold a
musician on track for almost a decade as they seek to realize their vision. But Julian Primeaux has done just that.

Chubby Carrier can sum up what it’s like to be a working musician these days in very few words: “No gigs means no money.” Carrier and his band have been a mainstay
of the zydeco music scene for more than two decades. But even the big dogs on the scene were humbled in the face of the COVID-19 shutdown that swept the country last year.

There’s a lot to be said for perspective. And, for Terrance Simien, the last year has offered it in spades. The Mallet native has plied his trade for decades, playing his particular flavor of zydeco to fans across the globe. The band was the first to showcase zydeco in a major motion picture, 1986’s “The Big Easy.” Simien even made an appearance on a Disney soundtrack, 2009’s “The Princess and the Frog,” playing accordion, rubboard and triangle on “Gonna Take You There,” his collaboration with Randy Newman.

It’s hard to imagine a more humble start for a musician than playing a set at Frank’s Bar. A nondescript two-room storefront on U.S. Highway 190, it is what most people would call a workingman’s bar — a long, worn bartop on the darker side, dim fluorescent lights, a pool table and a few four-tops on the other.

For most people, going from playing on stage before packed arenas to playing the clubs along Nashville’s Broadway would seem like a step down. But for Tracy Broussard, who has spent the better part of the last two decades on the road as country superstar Blake Shelton’s drummer, it’s provided a measure of balance. The Cankton native used his time during the pandemic to rediscover the reason he fell in love with music in the first place.