Ghalia Volt
Get ready for a tough blues lady who takes charge and does everything herself. Ghalia Volt plays the guitar, sings and plays the drums at the same time as she performs her own songs and blues classics with enthusiasm and energy.
Ghalia Volt is a Belgian-born blues vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter who let her love of blues music lead her to the American South to learn the blues from the inside. Volt took his obsession seriously and has spent a lot of time in blues meccas like Chicago, New Orleans and Mississippi.
In Mississippi, it was the Hill Country Blues that captured her interest the most. She collaborated with local artists such as Cedric Burnside, Lightning Malcolm and Watermelon Slim. All artists that the audience at Notodden know well. Volt quickly became a fixture at the annual Juke Joint festival in Clarksdale and at other popular blues festivals in the region. In the end, New Orleans became her residence and new source of inspiration.
When the pandemic hit us and touring life was put on hold, Ghalia Volt faced the same dilemma that everyone playing in bands experienced. What now? But one should never underestimate the power of a woman with her back against the wall. The answer to Ghalia Volt was “One Woman Band”. She learned to play the drums at the same time as she plays the guitar and sings. It was the start of something new and suddenly she was successful. Turns out that was all she needed to create magic.
Ghalia Volt spilte inn albumet «One Woman Band» og plata gikk rett inn som nummer tre på Billboards bluesliste. Siden har hun vekslet mellom å spille med band og å spille alene. Det er som «One Woman Band» hun har hatt størst suksess, og det er denne utgaven av Ghalia Volt som kommer til Notodden Blues Festival der hun bl.a. skal spille på festivalens populære Folk & Blues Stage og Blues Cruise.
With purposeful work, Ghalia Volt has established itself as a favorite at blues clubs and festivals both in the USA and Europe. A good proof that she has made her mark in her new hometown, New Orleans, is that this year she will play for the first time at the prestigious New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Ghalia Volt is a firework by an artist who is living proof that you succeed if you dare to pursue your dream. She says: “To the women of 2024, I wish them to be courageous, to live from their passion, not to hold their tongue and to live fully. If the woman of the previous century was oppressed and could not show what she could do, the woman of today and tomorrow must be strong, powerful and, above all, free!”
We like tough women like that at Notodden. Don’t miss Ghalia Volt at this year’s festival!