Mavis Staples

Notodden Blues Festival continues to launch greats for the summer. It's almost too good to be true, but today we can add the triple Grammy-winning artist Mavis Staples to an already impressive artist list for this summer's festival. Mavis Staples is a musical icon and an institution in American music life. A legend, who after more than seven decades as a performing artist, is still relevant and in step with the zeitgeist. Mavis Staples is a blues, gospel, soul and Americana artist with a timeless message. At the age of 85, she herself says that she still has things to do. 

"We have had countless inquiries in recent years from the public with the desire to experience Mavis Staples at Notodden. It is therefore fun to be able to fulfill these wishes now at a time when her message of peace, freedom, unity and respect seems to be more important than ever," says artistic director Jostein Forsberg of Notodden Blues Festival. "I personally saw Mavis Staples being honored at the Americana Awards at The Ryman in Nashville in 2019. Staples has been a free-spirited American roots musician throughout her career. It was so heartwarming to hear her enthusiastic exclamation, "I am Americana!", as she received the Inspiration Award. This unforgettable experience is definitely a contributing factor to our inclusion of Mavis Staples in this year's lineup," says Forsberg.

Mavis Staples was born in Chicago in 1940 and began her career at the age of eleven in the family band, The Staples Singers, in 1950. The Staples Singers became the soundtrack to the American civil rights movement of the 1960s. Led by family patriarch Roebuck "Pops" Staples plus siblings Mavis, Cleo, Yvonne and Pervis, the Staples were often referred to as "God's greatest hitmakers".

Mavis Staples is the artist Bob Dylan referred to as the possessor of his favorite singing voice, and to whom he proposed after a kiss at the Newport Folk Festival in 1963. Staples interpreted it as "puppy infatuation" and declined the offer. Mavis even hid from him during a show at the Apollo decades later, fearing he would ask again. Dylan and Staples remain close friends to this day. 

Hailed as one of America's most defining voices for human rights, freedom and peace, Staples is the kind of artist who only comes along once in a generation. Staples' impact on music and culture is hard to overstate. She is a member of both the Blues Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a civil rights icon, a GRAMMY Award winner, a soul/gospel/R&B pioneer, a recipient of the National Arts Awards Lifetime Achievement Award and an honorary member of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Mavis Staples marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., performed at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration, and sang at the White House for Barack Obama. She has collaborated with everyone from Prince and Bob Dylan to Arcade Fire and Hozier, wowed festivalgoers from Newport Folk Festival and Glastonbury to Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo, performed with The Band at The Last Waltz, and graced the television screens of prestigious shows like Fallon, Colbert, Ellen, Austin City Limits, Jools Holland, and the GRAMMYs. 

At an age when most artists are starting to slow down, Staples stepped up. She released three critically acclaimed albums while in her 70s with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy as producer, prompting Pitchfork to boast that “her voice has only gained texture and power over the years.”

Today, the music world is still crazy about the voice of Mavis Staples. In recent years alone, Nick Cave, Chris Stapleton, Ben Harper, Buddy Guy, Sheryl Crow, Gorillaz, Jon Batiste and Nora Jones have collaborated with Staples.

After more than seven decades on the stage, soul and gospel legend Mavis Staples decided in 2023 that the time had come to retire. While close friends were planning a major star-studded farewell concert, she changed her mind, citing the fact that she still has work to do. At the age of 85, she says, "I don't ever want to stop singing."

As the situation in the world today, with women's rights on the wane in more and more countries, strong personalities like Mavis Staples are important and an inspiration for all women and young girls. Staples has been on the barricades for more than seven decades. The uncompromising gospel and protest singer's message and dream of something better still stands as strong today. 

Take the opportunity to see Mavis Staples at Notodden on Saturday, August 2, and pay tribute and thank an artist who has fought for you and me and who has managed to stay relevant and at the top throughout a career that has spanned more than 70 years.