Janiva Magness performs in Sarasota

On Dec. 5 -- less than two months from now --- Janiva Magness will be in Bradenton, headlining the Bradenton Blues Festival.

If you can't wait that long to hear her soulful blues, well, you don't have to. Magness will be in Sarasota on Saturday, performing at the Blue Rooster.

Magness is a big deal. In 2009, she became only the second woman to win the BB King Entertainer of the Year Award. (Koko Taylor was the only woman to win the award before Magness, so that puts her in pretty impressive company.) The Blues Foundation named her Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year three times.

On Friday, the night before she comes to Sarasota, she'll be headlining the huge Daytona Blues Festival. So people who know blues music rely on her to anchor big shows and draw crowds.

She's lived the life of a blues singer. She was born in Detroit and both her parents committed suicide by the time she was 16. She lived on the street and in foster homes. She had a baby and gave it up for adoption while she was still a teenager.

Then she saw Otis Rush playing in a local club and knew what she wanted to do with her life.

She plays a soulful style of electric blues and she's known for intense live performances.

Details: 8 p.m. Oct. 10, Blue Rooster, 1525 Fourth St., Sarasota. Tickets: $20 Information: (941) 388-7539, blueroostersrq.com.

-- Marty Clear

This story was originally published October 7, 2015 at 5:54 PM with the headline "Janiva Magness performs in Sarasota ."