Thursday, September 3, is a good night to clear your calendar.
The Berea College convocation series is bringing Tee Dee Young to campus, and if you know anything about Kentucky blues, you already know his name means serious music. Young is a Lexington institution: 50-plus years of playing, singing, and leading bands in blues clubs and concert halls. He’s played with Aretha Franklin, James Brown, and Al Green. He was a finalist in the International Blues Competition. In 2022, he was inducted into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. The King of Beale Street Award sits in his collection. And he still plays every Monday night at his own club in Lexington, Tee Dee’s Progressive Club.
This concert is free. It’s open to the public. It starts at 8 p.m. Thursday in Phelps-Stokes Chapel on the Berea College campus, 161 Chestnut Street. Visitor parking is available near the chapel.
Young is known for what people call “firing down on that guitar” — a style combining traditional gospel with blues shaped by decades of touring and performing. He’s spent years working club stages and concert halls, playing what he wants to play, never chasing trends. That consistency matters.
Berea College has been hosting the Stephenson Memorial Concert series for decades. The series is named for John B. Stephenson, who served as Berea College’s president from 1984 to 1994. Stephenson was an Appalachian scholar and someone who understood the region’s musical heritage. He was president during my earliest time at Berea College, and he supported the arts and took an active interest in my personal studies as a vocal performance major. The college made his commitment to live music part of the school’s convocation calendar, bringing world-class artists to campus several times a year, all without charging admission.
Convocation requirements at Berea mean students are expected to engage with speakers, performances, and cultural events. That framework keeps audiences mixed: students fulfilling a requirement, locals who caught wind of a good show, people from surrounding counties who know that Berea College doesn’t gate these events behind paywalls. Tee Dee Young will be in good company in that tradition.
Young started playing guitar as a boy in Lexington, sitting by the railroad tracks off Prall Street, learning from older musicians in the neighborhood. His father was a gospel singer; his brother steered him toward blues. By 14, he had formed his own band. The arc from there is long and credible: opening acts for major touring musicians, albums, performances overseas in Italy, France, Germany, Belgium.
Tee Dee Young has been playing blues longer than most of us have been alive. He’s opened for legends. He’s made his own music stick. And Berea College is giving you a chance to hear him for free on a Thursday night in early September. That’s a simple offer. It’s also a good one. And if you want to keep the local arts rolling, The Spotlight Playhouse has its final shows of “Sense and Sensibility… and Margaret” Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. at 214 Richmond Road.
✍️ About the Author
Chad Hembree serves as the Executive Director of Spotlight Acting School, The Spotlight Playhouse, and Spotlight Performing Arts. A resident of Berea, Kentucky, and a former member of the Berea Council, he has spent decades working in community theater, arts education, and local journalism. Since 1995, he has operated BereaOnline.com, focusing on local news, civic issues, and stories that highlight community collaboration and grassroots efforts across Madison County.
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📅 Upcoming Community & Theater Events
- September 3, 2026: Stephenson Memorial Concert featuring blues legend Tee Dee Young at Phelps-Stokes Chapel, Berea College (free, 8 p.m.). 🎵
- September 4, 2026: Family Activity: Forest Reptiles at the Pinnacles, Berea (6:30–9:30 p.m.). 🐢
- September 4, 2026: Summer Nights in Suburbia: Honey Child at Moondance Amphitheater, Lexington (free, 7–9 p.m.). 🎤
- September 4, 2026: Music at the Mansion: 64West at Griffin Gate Marriott Mansion lawn, Lexington (free, 7 p.m.). 🎷
- September 4–6, 2026: Lexington Comic & Toy Con (Fall Edition) at Central Bank Center, Lexington. 🥶
- September 5, 2026: Stepping Out for Art, the Berea Arts Council’s 40th Anniversary Celebration at Churchill’s, Berea (5–10 p.m.). 🎨
- September 5, 2026: Miss Spoonbread Festival & Miss Berea pageants at Berea Community Gym. 👑
- September 5, 2026: auditions for Disney’s The Aristocats KIDS (ages 4 to 11) at The Spotlight Playhouse. 🐱
- September 5, 2026: Final performance of Sense and Sensibility… and Margaret (The Bluegrass Players) at The Spotlight Playhouse. 🎭
- September 10, 2026: EKU CityFest at EKU campus (Intramural Field / Powell Plaza), Richmond (evening). 🎉
- September 11–13, 2026: The Velveteen Rabbit (Spotlight on Faith Series) at The Spotlight Playhouse. 🐰
- September 18–27, 2026: Honk! Jr. (Spotlight Acting School students ages 9 to 14) at The Spotlight Playhouse. 🦢
- September 18–27, 2026: Salem’s Daughter (The Bluegrass Players) at The Spotlight Playhouse. 🕇
This article originally appeared on BereaOnline.com – your home for Madison County news, community events, and local updates.