Bronwynne Brent

It is almost ten years since we first encountered Mississippi Delta songbird Bronwynne Brent.

Three hundred different acts had showcased at Folk Alliance International in Kansas City where the standard of musicianship and creativity is outstanding.

Over that weekend, we’d soon hear delegates and fellow musicians talking enthusiastically about Bronwynne as someone who stood out due to the standard of her song-writing and the hugely appealing quality of her voice.

Born and raised in a region that’s steeped in the blues, she possesses a from-the-very-soles-of-her-feet earthiness that is irresistible and draws you in.

Long before that big industry gathering, the grapevine had begun to tingle following live appearances, and after releasing her stunning debut album, Deep Black Water, in 2011.

Leading US music critic Jordan Richardson called it “an exquisite record of soul-spilling radiance,” while No Depression said it was something to treasure.

Those Folk Alliance delegates had gravitated her way as if there was some magical magnetic pull that set them all on the same (right) path.

Subsequently, the European grapevine began to tingle with excitement too. She been building a steady following on this side of the Atlantic, championed by “Whispering” Bob Harris who invited her in for a BBC Radio 2 session after repeatedly featuring tracks over many months. He told listeners: “I absolutely love her music!”

Bronwynne found herself voted Best Female Performer in the annual Readers’ Poll (two consecutive years) at the influential AmericanaUK website.

On the back of a sold-out show at Celtic Connections Festival, she found herself performing to capacity crowds at some of the best venues in the UK and selling out her event at the Top Secret Blues Festival.

When she was invited by Roddy Hart to join him for his Quay Sessions event at BBC Radio Scotland, two thousand hopefuls applied for a ticket to be in the audience in the pre-show ballot.

Many reviewers have expressed the view that the true-grit nature of her writing and delivery brings Billie Holiday to mind.