By Ari’ Browley
On Thursday, June 18, the sound of blues, funk, and soul filled the Chicago Beef Joints venue as Asamu Johnson and the Associates of the Blues headlined their Juneteenth celebration. The audience joyously danced and sang along, unable to resist the band’s lively performance and groovy tunes.
The two-time West Michigan Blues Society Regional Champions are on their summer tour across Michigan. Their signature sound continues to bring joy to crowds and funk to life. For these six musicians, music is not only what they have fun making, but also what gives back to their community and ancestors that have fostered this beloved sound.
Asamu Johnson, the band’s lead singer and bassist from Grand Rapids, discussed how blues as a genre has preserved Black history and culture.
“When we walked out of them cotton fields, it (music) was the only thing we could do,” Johnson said. “That’s what we ate, was to tap off some kind of sounds on that back porch before we had to get ready to go back to the fields in the morning. So blues just came out, you know, right there, before they allowed us to have a church. Everybody tries to say that (the blues started in Black churches), but that wasn’t the case. It was them cotton fields,” Johnson said. “A lot of the work songs from Africa have something to do with it also.”
Johnson, who attended Grand Rapids Community College in the ‘70s, spent time as a successful solo artist, releasing three studio albums before forming the blues band we know today.
Johnson is also a Vietnam War Veteran.
“I didn’t think I was coming back,” Johnson said. During his time in Vietnam, Johnson had two kids. “Because I left there, I didn’t know if the woman survived,” Johnson said. Years later, through Ancestry.com, Johnson was able to make contact with his biological son who was adopted by a French couple. Johnson tells his full story in a PBS documentary, UMOJA, directed by Justin R. Brown.
“I went further into that and did African ancestry.com,” Johnson said. “They can tell you what tribe you are from, where the people you are related to live today in Africa.” Johnson found that his ancestry beyond slavery was based in the Bamileke tribe in Cameroon. Johnson dedicated a song titled Bamilke in the band’s 2024 album, True Freedom.
For these long-time musicians, blues music is not just a genre; it’s a traditional sound that stretches back generations, reflecting the history of their ancestors.
“We grew up with the same influences as other Black folks in America,” Melvin “MC” Clark, the band’s lead guitarist from Grand Rapids said.
“You see, I grew up playing guitar at church. They used to tell me all the time, ‘quit playing the blues,’ So I thought it was just a phrase. Paying attention to the music, a lot of folks don’t know today that any form of music, in this context, derived from slaves. The R&B, the soul, the funk, everything, the rock in roll, classic gospel, that’s all the blues. The blues has such a magical feel that is in all the genres.”
Not every member of the band grew up cherishing the blues.
“I thought I would never play the blues,” Adnan “Boo” Brown, the band’s drummer from Grand Rapids, said. “I was always a funk and a fusion drummer.” After Brown joined the band, he found that the blues could fit with his unique sound. “As a drummer, I bring funk to the blues so we balance each other.”
The band finds that their blend of blues, funk, soul, and fusion creates the band’s signature sound. The members explain how they bring non-traditional elements into their music.
“In particular, these guys, they are all different. They are not from the blues circuit. I just put them together and put a canvas down with a baseline and let them do their own thing. Let them make their own stuff with what they are hearing, and it comes out of them,” Johnson said.
“When you follow the basic chords, that’s all you do,” Johnson said. “MC, he’ll make something just not traditional out of it, but it still blends in with the blues.”
“He’s (Johnson) a real bluesman,” MC Clark said. “So when he comes along with something that’s got that feel or that taste, since we all have parts to emulate that, it’s just about doing what it is that works,” MC Clark explained.
“Everybody thinks blues is separated from everything else, but it’s not,” Johnson said. “It’s all blues is what it is, cause that’s the beginning of everything, everything stemmed from that, so it really doesn’t make no difference what you do, you playing the blues.”
Currently on their summer tour, the band performs tracks released on their 2024 studio album, True Freedom. The nine-track album consists of lyrical songs celebrating African ancestors and bringing awareness to injustices in our Western society.
For these veteran musicians, preparing for these performances has become effortless.
“It’s all mental,” multiple members of the band stated simultaneously.
“You know, we’ve got thousands of years of experience here,” Brown said. “You know, nobody’s under 50. And so we’ve been playing for a long time. It’s just a lot of experience.”
The band’s musical experience and chemistry are key to their longevity, but what keeps them motivated to perform is their genuine love for the art of music.
“These guys, they’re like family,” Brown said. “I have been knowing him all my life; he stayed across the street from my family members, and that’s actually my cousin, so once we’re not having fun no more, we can’t laugh and joke and, you know, sing to each other, I’m done, you know, I won’t play anymore.”
The members give advice to young aspiring musicians finding their style of music .
“Find something else to do,” Brown says jokingly. “No, I would say just listen. You know we have a lot of young cats that’s trying to throw themselves into the blues, and sometimes you’re not ready, you know,” Brown said.
“It’s really not as hard as some people think, but at the same time it is not easy,” MC Clark said.
The accomplished band’s goal list is still ongoing. “As far as the music goes, we just want to continue to grow and continue to play and play and, you know, just keep everything going,” Adam “Daddy Mack” McMillan, the band’s keyboardist and manager from Grand Rapids, said.
“We want as many fans as possible to hear our music. Just hear it. Give it a chance,” Johnson said.
After their busy summer schedule, the band is looking forward to dropping new music for audiences to groove to.
Asamu Johnson and the Associates of the Blues music highlights the pride and spiritual connection members of the Black community share with their ancestors and history. The band’s music is available on platforms Spotify, Apple Music, Shazam, and YouTube, and further information about the band is available on their website.
“Creative music is not taught. It comes from the soul, blues, jazz, funk, and MC Clark.” – No School by Asamu Johnson & The Associates of the Blues
