Odd Fellows Hall

skylar neal staff Fifteen miles south of Thibodaux, the Odd Fellows Hall in Houma echoed with the dynamic performances of Chitlin’ Circuit artists through the night. In the 1930s-1970s, Guitar Slim, Joe Tex and Ike and Tina Turner performed in Houma, Louisiana, at the Odd Fellows Hall, a venue along the Chitlin’ Circuit.  Located at […]

The Rose Club

kaylie st. pierre staff  The grand opening of The Rose Club in the 1950s was the beginning of years of dancing, music and memories for the South Louisiana residents of Verdunville.  The Rose Club was a dance hall that welcomed many talented Black artists, starting during the grand opening with Hosea Hill’s Serenaders. The Serenaders […]

Breaking the Rules: Leroy Martin and the Sugar Bowl

gabrielle chaisson staff In a time when Jim Crow laws banned whites and Blacks from integrating, a white Golden Meadow native broke the rules for the love of music. Leroy Martin was born on Aug. 4, 1929, in Golden Meadow, Louisiana, and served as a Lafourche Parish assessor, a disc jockey for KTIB radio station […]

The Sugar Bowl

sarah kraemer features editor Every Saturday night, the Sugar Bowl’s walls reverberated with the sound of the blues and R&B.  The club was a safe space where the community would gather for entertainment and support when needed. The club was known for its Cajun food and live music. It was one of the most popular […]

Chitlin’ Circuit’s Start in the Bayou Region

sally-anne torres staff In the mid-1900s, music could be heard throughout the Bayou Region of South Louisiana when the sun set.   Playing through the night, blues, rock, jazz and soul harmonized with the late-night laughter of African American artists who established venues for performers since they were not allowed in white spaces. Frank Painai owned […]