FUNDING FOR GREATER CHATTANOOGA IS PROVIDED BY EPB FIBER OPTICS [BLUES MUSIC] WITH RICK, WHAT I REALLY ENJOY PLAYING WITH HIM IS GETTING BACK TO THE ROOTS OF HOW I LEARNED TO APPRECIATE MUSIC, WITH LIKE CLASSIC ROCK, THE BLUES, ERIC CLAPTON, JIMI HENDRIX, LED ZEPPELIN.

WE PLAY ALL THAT STUFF, AND IT JUST REALLY KIND OF MAKES ME FEEL LIKE A KID AGAIN.

KIND OF ONE OF THOSE REALLY NICE BALANCES THAT RICK HAS.

ALL HIS MUSIC YOU CAN HEAR THAT IT'S HIM.

YOU CAN HEAR WHERE HE'S DOING HIS OWN THING.

YOU CAN DEFINITELY HEAR SOME VERY MODERN TOUCHES IN PLACES.

BUT THERE'S NOT A SINGLE TUNE OF HIS WHERE YOU CAN'T HEAR THE ROOTS OF THE BLUES.

[GUITAR MUSIC] GROWING UP WAS, WAS INTERESTING.

I GREW UP IN CINCINNATI SO PRETTY MUCH, WE WERE THE ONLY AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILY IN A WHITE NEIGHBORHOOD.

WE ALWAYS HAD A HOUSE FULL OF SOUL, AND GOOD MUSIC.

RUSHING IS MY LAST NAME.

JIMMIE RUSHING IS AN UNCLE, GREAT UNCLE OF MINE, WHO SANG WITH COUNT BASIE, AND JELLYROLL MORTON AND DAVE BRUBECK.

THE SCHOOLS I WENT TO WERE HEAVILY ARTS-DRIVEN.

SO I GOT EXPOSURE TO THE ARTS AT A VERY EARLY AGE.

I PLAYED BASKETBALL, SO I WAS ABLE TO TRAVEL.

I FIGURED I HAD AN ADVANTAGE BY BEING TALLER.

ENDED UP MOVING TO CALIFORNIA, UH, LOS ANGELES.

WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP WAS ONE OF THE MOVIES I SAW WHEN I WAS A KID.

THAT IMAGERY ALWAYS JUST STUCK WITH ME.

AND SO I, YOU KNOW, REALLY I SAID, I HAVE TO GO OUT THERE AND TRY TO RECREATE THAT.

I WAS IN, LOS ANGELES ON VENICE BEACH.

WE HAD JUST GOT DONE PLAYING FIVE ON FIVE, FULL COURT.

AND THERE WAS THIS ACOUSTIC GUITAR, JUST NO ONE AROUND IT, ON THE BLEACHERS.

YOU KNOW, IT JUST HAD THIS GLOW TO IT.

SO I PICKED IT UP, YOU KNOW, AND I *CLANG* YOU KNOW, JANKED SOME CHORD AND EVERYONE LAUGHED AT ME.

THANKFULLY, THAT GUITAR LEFT A LASTING IMPRESSION ON ME, WHEN I MOVED TO TENNESSEE, I DEVELOPED THAT WITH MY TEACHERS.

YOU KNOW, THE FIRST THING I LEARNED WAS 1-4-5 BLUES.

AND THEN IF YOU CAN PLAY THAT IN G, YOU CAN PLAY THAT IN F SHARP, YOU CAN PLAY THAT EVERYWHERE.

AND THEN IT DID ALSO HAVE THE FEELING OF IT, YOU KNOW, THE BASKETBALL BLUES, THE CALIFORNIA BLUES, THE CINCINNATI BLUES, THE MISSOURI BLUES, OR.

I JUST GOT LOST IN IT IN A GOOD CREATIVE WAY, AND JUST KEEP PLAYING, JUST KEEP JAMMING, AND PLAY IT OUT.

[PACKED MY DREAMS HEADED OUT WEST FINALLY MADE IT] RICK RUSHING AND THE BLUES STRANGERS STARTED PROBABLY AROUND 2008, OVER AT THE MUD PIE IN NORTH CHATTANOOGA.

IT WAS THIS THREE-PIECE.

THANKFULLY, I'VE GOT A KEYBOARD PLAYER NOW, HE'S PHENOMENAL, JAKE EVATT, AND GOT A PHENOMENAL BASS PLAYER, ALEX HARPER, AND A PHENOMENAL DRUMMER, JOSH CARLILE.

RICK WAS ONE OF THE FIRST ONES TO GIVE ME THE ENCOURAGEMENT I NEEDED TO THINK IN MY OWN MIND THAT MAYBE THIS IS SOMETHING I CAN ACTUALLY DO, THAT I'M DECENT AT, AND, HE SEES THAT POTENTIAL IN PEOPLE.

RICK'S A VERY STRONG BAND LEADER, I THINK HE'S REALLY UNDERRATED IN THAT RESPECT.

AND ALSO REALLY GOOD STAGE, STAGECRAFT.

HE'S VERY GOOD ABOUT CONNECTING WITH AN AUDIENCE.

ONE THING I WILL SAY ABOUT RICK, ONE OF THE COOLEST THINGS ABOUT HIM, HE'S FULL OF SURPRISES.

LIKE, HE COULD WALK INTO A RESTAURANT, AND THERE'S A LITTLE DOG.

AND HE SAYS HELLO TO THE DOG, AND HE PULLS A TREAT OUT OF HIS BACKPACK.

HE'S GOT DOG TREATS ON HIM ALL THE TIME, IT'S CRAZY.

LAUGHTER HE'S KIND OF ALWAYS GOT SOMETHING UP HIS SLEEVE.

AND THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT IN A BAND LEADER, THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT AS A PERSON, TO JUST BE PREPARED, AND HAVE SOMETHING FOR YOU WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT.

EMBRACING YOUR INHERITANCE MEANS, USING WHAT YOUR ANCESTORS LEFT YOU TO MAKE YOUR LIFE BETTER.

SO THAT INHERITANCE FOR ME WAS THE BLUES.

MY VOICE, THE GUITAR.

OVERALL, THE BLUES IS, YOU KNOW, THE BASE OF WESTERN CULTURE MUSIC.

EVERYTHING MUSICALLY REALLY COMES FROM THE BLUES.

ANY SONG YOU'RE HEARING WILL MORE THAN LIKELY HAVE A 1-4-5 IN IT.

AND THAT'S SO, AND THAT'S THE BLUES.

IT'S JUST UNIVERSAL, IT'S A BASE THAT YOU CAN LAY ANY EMOTION, ANY EXPRESSION, AND ANY INSPIRATION ON TOP OF.

IT'S A VERY UNPRETENTIOUS FORM.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S STANDARDS, BUT YOU CAN KIND OF PLAY WITH IT AND DO YOUR OWN THING.

AND HONESTLY, THAT RICK'S MUSIC IS BLUES-BASED IS ONE OF THINGS THAT'S ALWAYS MADE PLAYING WITH HIM JUST FUN, AND EASY, YOU KNOW, PICKING UP THE SONGS.

YOU KNOW, THEY ALWAYS HAVE ONE FOOT IN THE PAST, BUT HE'S DOING HIS OWN THING WITH THEM.

YOU CAN'T REALLY SEPARATE IT FROM THE PAST, YOU KIND OF ALWAYS HAVE TO HAVE ONE FOOT IN THE ROOTS OF THAT MUSIC.

EVERY SONG, BASICALLY EVERY BLUES SONG HAS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME STRUCTURE.

THEY ALL HAVE SO MUCH DIFFERENCE AND SO MUCH FEELING, THAT YOU CAN POUR INTO IT.

AND IT'S BECAUSE OF HOW IT CAME UP, REAL OPPRESSION AND REAL EMOTION, WHERE THAT MUSIC MEANS SOMETHING.

IT'S AFRICAN-AMERICAN, YOU KNOW, IT AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE.

I FEEL LIKE IT IS AN HONOR TO KNOW HOW TO PLAY THAT, THAT STYLE OF MUSIC, AND EMBRACE MY INHERITANCE.

[GUITAR PLAYING SCALES] THE BEST THING ABOUT THE BLUES IS THAT IT'S FOUNDATIONAL, BUT IT'S ALSO EDUCATIONAL.

- I REALLY LIKE THE BLUES, HOW IT SOUNDS AND THE RHYTHM AND STUFF.

IT'S FUN TO PLAY, AND I REALLY LIKE HOW, IT EXPRESSES HOW YOU FEEL AND HOW YOU THINK.

KIDS INVOLVED IN MUSICAL PROGRAMS GRADUATE AT A HIGHER RATE THAN KIDS WHO ARE NOT.

IT GIVES THEM A SENSE OF BELONGING AS WELL, SOCIAL INTERACTION.

AND SO, ANY TIME THAT MUSICAL ELEMENT IS BROUGHT INTO A CHILD'S LIFE, THEN IT IS GOING TO GIVE THEM THE ABILITY TO PLAY AND CREATE.

IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, HE WILL GIVE YOU A WHOLE HISTORY LESSON ABOUT HOW IT WORKS.

AND I REALLY LIKE THAT.

LIKE, HE ASKS ME DO I KNOW CERTAIN BLUES ARTISTS.

AND I'M LIKE, NO I DON'T, I'VE NEVER HEARD OF THEM.

AND HE WHIPS OUT A CD.

IT'S NOT COMPLETELY LOST, BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF BLUES ARTISTS OUT THERE WHO ARE GIVING BACK, AND THEY'RE DOING, THEY'RE PUTTING BLUES IN SCHOOL AND THEY'RE GIVING KIDS INSTRUMENTS, AND HELPING, HELPING KIDS YOU KNOW ACCEPT THAT INHERITANCE OR PLAY THAT MUSIC.

THAT SPECIFIC STYLE, SO BY TEACHING THE MUSIC IS REALLY HOW I'M PASSING IT ON.

[WHOOPS, SEE, GOOD] WHAT I'M DOING IS I'M GOING TO SAY, YO, I'M GOING TO KEEP PUSHING ON THIS.

AND HOPEFULLY I'LL BE ABLE TO LEAVE SOMETHING.

SO PEOPLE WILL SAY, "THAT'S MY INHERITANCE.

THAT'S THE MUSIC THAT MY ANCESTORS CREATED."

[GUITAR MUSIC]