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Wilson Savoy, Grammy-winning accordionist, keyboard player, fiddler and singer joins Discover Lafayette to share his life’s musical journey. Wilson hails from the renowned musical family, the Savoy Family Cajun Band.
He plays with The Pine Leaf Boys and performs solo as Sweet Willy Allen. Wilson co-owns the Hideaway on Lee in downtown Lafayette and Hideaway Hall, the former Schilling Shack.
Wilson Savoy is laid-back and humble. A resident of North Lafayette, he spends time utilizing his carpentry skills when he is not performing his beloved Cajun music. As we spoke, he reflected on how serendipity led to his successful career as a Cajun musician, harkening back to a fateful day in 2004 when UL-Lafayette police told him he could not perform his music on the sidewalk on campus. Within days, he was being offered opportunities to play at Artmosphere and the Blue Moon Saloon, which led to great career success and critical acclaim.
In Roots of Fire, a soon-to-be-released film, Wilson, his brother Joel, Kelli Jones, Kristi Guillory and Jourdan Thibodeaux honor the rich history and cultural legacy of Cajun music. The Cajun contemporary scene in Louisiana has found mainstream success with Grammy nominations and wins, but shuttering venues and an aging fan base leave some questioning the music’s future. The film is a celebration of the unique sounds created when the forces of fresh talent and deep history come together to fight for cultural survival. Featuring performances from the Pine Leaf Boys, Feufollet, Jourdan Thibodeaux et Les Rôdailleurs, Bonsoir Catin, T’Monde, Anna Laura Edmiston and Roddie Romero, Roots of Fire shows how playing ‘kick-ass’ music and preserving Cajun tradition for future generations can be a shared goal.
