Director's statement

Late Blossom Blues is my first movie, and I’m still totally surprised by how far it got me, winning awards and getting enthusiastic feedback from all over the world. When I first met Leo "Bud“ Welch, I had no idea any of this would happen. I was booking him for a music festival in Austria I was curating at the time – his first time leaving the US! But even after meeting him, it took me another month or so to realize I want to make a movie about him. But then, things moved really fast – less than 5 month after our very first meeting, we started filming! It was an incredible ride with many ups and downs, but I believe we created a movie that provides many insights into Black America and the still very much existing Blues World. It also tells the story of a poor black man who never wavered from his dream to be a musician. And that’s what we’re hoping to remind our audience of: with passion and patience, it’s never too late to live your dream.

This is part of our The South Has Something to Say playlist.