Pokey Bear

Southern bluesman Pokey Bear injects a larger-than-life swagger into his R&B-infused bayou soul. Similar in old-school sound and spirit to Willie Clayton, the Baton Rouge party-starter is also a James Brown-influenced soul man at heart. One-third of the Louisiana Blue Brothas with Tyree Neal and Adrian Bagher (the trio issued Love on the Bayou in 2014), Pokey Bear also released the solo effort Josephine Son Pokey in 2014. The album included sensual dance tracks like "The Gingerbread Man" and "Mr. Hit It and Quit It" as well as his de facto theme song, "They Call Me Pokey." Mr. It Ain't Fair arrived in January 2016. The album featured local dancefloor hit "Good Foot" and "Shake That Money Maker" with Mystikal. ~ Neil Z. Yeung