I first heard Shannon Curfman when her debut "Loud Guitars, Big Suspicions" came out in 1999. I was immediately taken with the blues riffs and smoky voice. Shannon was just 13 years old when she recorded that debut. A young girl from North Dakota who wasn't from a musical family (her mom is a CPA and dad is a railroad engineer), but there was something about the music that spoke to her at a very young age and continues to burn strong today.

Curfman played the Hard Rock Casino in Sioux City, Iowa Thursday night (October 13) with her stellar band of fellow midwest musicians. I got the chance to spend about a half hour with her before the show and told her immediately that it felt like we'd known each other for years. I don't know if it's because she's a Dakota girl who is now a Minnesota woman. Maybe it's due to the world of social media, which she readily admits, her life is on Facebook. Or maybe it's just that million-watt smile that she offers willingly and her honesty during the interview that draws you in and makes you feel like a friend instead of just a fan. I came away even more impressed with Curfman than I was going in, and after seeing her perform live for the first time in almost 15 years (outside of a couple of Kid Rock shows) I really hope she finds the time for more 'solo' shows in the not too distand future.

You can watch the interview below, as we talked about the blues, the 'business' of the music business, 'The Boss' (Curfman has been touring the world as a member of Kid Rock's band since 2010) songwriting, life as a mom of a 'mini-me' (her daughter Lucy not only looks like her mama, apparently she is also showing that music runs in the genes!). One of the reasons I love talking to blues and roots musicians is that they tend to be more open and honest than 'mega-stars' and Curfman is no exception.

Once she and the band took the stage, she owned it as she has for over half her life, tearing through nearly a two hour set of originals from her three studio albums, to covers of Eric Clapton's "The Core", Mountain's "Mississippi Queen", The Band's "The Weight", Ted Nugent's "Stranglehold", and an encore of Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well".

With Kid Rock taking a short hiatus from touring as he completes work on a new album, it gave Curfman the opportunity to put her band together and get out and play her music for awhile, and you could tell she, AND the band really enjoyed themselves and were genuinely grateful for the applause and cheers from the Blues Series crowd.

If you don't have them yet, order a Shannon Curfman CD (or three) and get to know this young lady. Though she continues to tour with Kid Rock, we haven't heard the last of Shannon Curfman, the midwest roots rocker either.

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Photo Courtesy of Sarah Rahman/B102.7

Here's the full interview. When we finished, both Shannon and I had thought we talked about six minutes. My wife informed us it had been over 17. That's how well we got along!

And here are two of the songs Curfman and her band performed at the Sioux City show: "The Core" and"What You're Getting Into"

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