Blues & Boogie Weekend to be Presented by the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Following up on the impressive success of the monthly Busker Incognito Blues & Boogie Music Jam Nights series in Cheers Bistro at the DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton, Reading, PA, and taking over where the now-discontinued Reading BluesFest left off, the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is announcing that it will be presenting a new, re-imagined and re-energized blues and boogie music festival weekend in Berks County starting this November.

At a press conference last week, it was announced that Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend will make its debut on Nov. 19, 20, 21, and 22, (Thursday through Sunday), at the DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton – Reading, 701 Penn St., Reading, PA.

“This new weekend music festival will continue the great and welcoming vibe that has been started during the monthly blues and boogie jam nights at the hotel,” said Festival Founder and Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Executive Director Dave Kline. “We’re creating a familial atmosphere for the weekend by putting together a fun, immersive collection of blues and boogie musicians, and combining their talent with the wonderful hospitality and great food of the DoubleTree Hotel as we create a central hub and home for the music, musicians, and fans here in Berks County.”

At a recent monthly Busker Incognito Blues & Boogie Nights at Cheers Bistro, New York-based bluesman and former bandleader and lead guitarist for the James Cotton Blues Band, Slam Allen, was quoted as quipping:

“It’ll be a Novemba to Rememba!”

Featured Musical Artists include: Mud Morganfield Band, (son of Muddy Waters); Alexis P. Suter Band; John Nemeth; Greg Piccolo & Heavy Juice; Benny Turner; Katie Henry; Slam Allen, (director and lead guitarist for the James Cotton Blues Band); BC Blue featuring Bev Conklin; and Busker Incognito & the SHOW, (the house host band).

For tickets, lodging, and a full schedule of events, including free jams, visit buskerincognitobluesboogie.com.

For fest volunteer, sponsorship, and vendor opportunities, contact yobusker@buskerincognitobluesboogie.com.

What others are saying

Sallie Bengston, Founder & Owner, Nola Blue Records and MoMojo Records, said, “My first introduction to the blues came more than 30 years ago in my hometown of Reading. At the time, I could never have imagined that this music would one day become my life’s passion and my career as a record label owner. Bringing our artists home to Reading is very significant to me, and I am deeply grateful to everyone who has helped make this event possible. A special thank you goes to Dave Kline for his endless energy and unwavering commitment to keeping the blues flame burning brightly in Reading; to John Ernesto for generously sharing his event production and organizational expertise; and to The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel for their valued support of this ‘Novemba to Rememba!’”

Chris Shellhammer, President of Reading Hospitality & DoubleTree by Hilton, Reading said, “The Blues and Boogie Weekend fits perfectly into our vision of making the DoubleTree Reading a hub for community experiences that bring people together through entertainment, information, and connection,” said Chris Shellhammer, president of DoubleTree Reading.

Heather Zimmerman, President & CEO Experience Reading & Berks County, (Berks County Visitors Bureau) said, “Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend is the perfect example of how the arts can drive tourism, generate economic impact, and enhance Reading’s appeal as a destination. Visitors come for the live music, but their spending benefits hotels, restaurants, and local attractions. We are so thrilled this happens right here in Reading, PA.”

Meet the house band!

News Flash! As a part of this November’s fest Busker Incognito & the SHOW will be holding a new album release party during the 5 to 7 p.m. open jam in Cheers Bistro. There will be plenty of free swag and no cover charge! The new album, “Music is Religion,” features 11 new, original songs by the group and it’ll be released worldwide on all major digital download and streaming platforms in November as a part of Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend.

Mission and goal

Our mission and goal with this festival is to celebrate, preserve and perpetuate the extraordinary legacy of a uniquely American music art form. Blues & Boogie music personifies the American story in all its complexity — the meeting of cultures, the endurance of the human spirit, the power of storytelling, and the universal need to express what it means to be alive. By bringing this music, its musicians, its history, and its audience together, we hope to keep these songs and stories alive, introduce them to new generations, and remind everyone that the Blues and the Boogie aren’t simply music from our past — they are living, breathing traditions that continue to shape our future.

Why blues & boogie music?

Blues & Boogie music is far more than a musical style — it is one of the great foundational forces behind the popular music of the modern world. From the 1920s forward, its DNA can be heard in virtually every major form of Western popular music. Its story begins in the American South, particularly the Mississippi Delta, and in the great urban centers such as Chicago, where the voices, experiences, struggles, and creativity of African Americans — people whose lives and ancestors had been profoundly shaped by the abhorrent institution of slavery — found expression through music. At the same time, the American musical landscape was being shaped by the centuries-old Scots-Irish tradition of storytelling through song: ballads and tunes that carried tales of love, loss, death, family, hardship, humor, work, food, drink, celebration, and the everyday human experience. In the extraordinary cultural melting pot that became America, these traditions encountered, influenced, and transformed one another. Out of that convergence emerged a musical language that came to be known as the Blues, while its infectious, rhythmic, dance-driven counterpart became known as Boogie.

What followed was nothing short of a musical revolution. Blues and Boogie became essential building blocks for jazz, swing, rhythm & blues, rockabilly, rock & roll, soul, funk, country, bluegrass, hip-hop, rap, and countless other musical forms. The music carried the stories of real people — their sorrow and joy, their resilience and rebellion, their humor, and heartbreak, their celebrations, and their struggles — and transformed those experiences into a universal language that could be felt as powerfully as it could be heard.

Although these musical traditions are uniquely rooted in the American experience, their influence did not remain within America’s borders. The sounds born from these American stories traveled across oceans and generations, inspiring musicians and transforming cultures throughout the world. Today, their rhythms, melodies, vocabulary, and spirit are woven into the soundtrack of the human experience itself.

Why Reading, Pennsylvania?

Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend is held in Reading, Pennsylvania at the DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton because this city — and this very location — embodies the same spirit of resilience, cultural pride, and community-driven renewal that the music itself represents.

The DoubleTree Hotel stands as a living testament to a vision shared by a group of forward-thinking community leaders and philanthropists, most notably Mr. Albert Boscov, who believed deeply in the power of culture, hospitality, and the arts to revitalize a city. Their goal was to create a downtown hub where music, gathering, and meaningful connection could thrive — helping to restore Reading to the vibrancy it once knew during the height of its industrial era, when the Reading Railroad, the Berkshire Knitting Mills, and other great enterprises defined the region’s identity.

Mr. Boscov was not only a builder of institutions, but a champion of people. He believed in music as a unifying force — especially the music of the common man: jazz, blues, and other American roots traditions that speak directly to lived experience, struggle, joy, and perseverance. In many ways, his vision mirrored the very essence of Blues & Boogie itself.

At the public celebration of life held in his honor across from the Fest’s main venue, the DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton – Reading, those gathered were reminded of his enduring challenge to the community: “Who among you will follow Mr. Boscov’s lead and carry this mission forward?” Many members of the Busker Incognito Blues & Boogie Weekend leadership team were present that day, and those words became a call to action — one that continues to guide this festival today.

By hosting this event at the DoubleTree in Reading, we are not only honoring a remarkable legacy of civic vision and cultural investment, but actively continuing it. This festival is part of that ongoing mission: to bring people together through music, to support the cultural life of the city, and to help carry forward the spirit of renewal that leaders like Mr. Boscov so passionately championed.

We invite you to join us in that mission — as a volunteer, sponsor, donor, or fan — and to be part of the next chapter in Reading’s cultural story.

About the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

The Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s decision to present Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend, is based on obvious connections to the celebration of the music, musicians, history, and cultural traditions that helped shape not only American popular music, but the musical identity of Berks County itself. The decision represents a natural next step in the Hall of Fame’s ongoing mission to recognize, preserve, and celebrate the remarkable musical heritage of our community.

To date, the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has inducted 56 bands, each of which originated in Berks County and has either performed throughout the region or continues to actively perform. In addition, the Hall of Fame has honored more than 293 individual musicians from Berks County, recognizing the extraordinary depth of musical talent that has emerged from our community.

Berks County’s musical history is inseparable from its unique geographic and cultural position. Situated between the major music markets of Philadelphia and New York City, and within reach of the Jersey Shore, Reading, and Berks County have long served as a crossroads for musicians, touring performers, and music lovers of virtually every genre.

From the earliest days of blues, boogie and doo-wop through the emergence of rock & roll, Reading experienced the same musical revolution that was transforming America. The arrival of the British Invasion, led by The Beatles, further accelerated that transformation — but the musical foundation beneath that revolution was deeply rooted in American blues, particularly the Delta and Chicago traditions. Those sounds resonated throughout Berks County, inspiring generations of young people to pick up instruments, form bands, fill dance floors, attend concerts, and make music an enduring part of their lives.

For many of those generations, music was not simply entertainment. It was a lifestyle, a community and a means of expression.

That history is precisely why the Hall of Fame believes Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend is such a fitting addition to its work.

Presenting Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend is a logical next step in the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s leadership role in preserving and advancing the cultural history of the community of Reading, Berks County, and eastern Pennsylvania in general. The music we celebrate today did not appear out of nowhere. It grew from the blues, boogie, rhythm & blues and other American roots traditions — and those sounds became the foundation upon which rock & roll and so much of modern popular music were built.

Busker Incognito’s Blues & Boogie Weekend provides an opportunity to look beyond the familiar story of rock & roll and explore the musical roots that preceded it. It celebrates the musicians, performers, storytellers, and audiences who carried these traditions forward, while demonstrating how profoundly those traditions continue to influence contemporary music.

For the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the festival is also about connecting generations — honoring those who came before, celebrating the musicians performing today, and introducing younger audiences to the music that helped create the soundtrack of the modern world.

Dave Kline, Founder and Executive Director of the BCRRHOFame sums it all up like this, “Our Hall of Fame’s involvement reflects a simple belief: preserving musical history does not mean putting it behind glass. It means keeping it alive. Connecting with the community through this festival helps us achieve that vision and goal.”

Through Blues & Boogie Weekend, the Berks County Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is helping ensure that the stories, sounds and cultural traditions that shaped Berks County — and ultimately helped shape the world — continue to be heard, experienced, celebrated, and passed on to the next generation.

The music has a history. Berks County has a history. That history plays on through BCRRHOF.