2023 Lineup

Known as “The World’s Greatest Party Band,” The B-52s, will headline the family-friendly events on Friday night, October 13, in West Village at the 2023 Chattanooga Motorcar Festival, sponsored by Millennium Bank.

The B-52s were formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976, after drinks at a Chinese restaurant. Nearly 40 years later, with more than 20 million albums sold, they remain one of music’s most beloved and enduring bands. They named themselves after Southern slang for exaggerated “bouffant” hairdos. The group, which includes Keith Strickland, Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson, recently wrapped an acclaimed multi-city farewell tour, followed by an exclusive 10-night residency at the Venetian Theatre in Las Vegas in May.

More information on the group whose “thrift store aesthetic and genre-defying songs were the talk of the post-punk underground,” according to the official bio, may be found at https://www.theb52s.com/.

From Left: Cindy Wilson, Fred Schneider and Katie Pierson of The B-52s. (image courtesy of The B-52s and The Chattanooga Motorcar Festival)

Rudy Love Jr is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Wichita, Kansas whose music blends elements of soul, funk, and R&B to create a sound that is uniquely his own. Born into a musical family, Rudy’s love for music was instilled at an early age by his father, Rudy Love Sr., a renowned musician in his own right, best known for his family band Rudy and the Love Family and work with Sly and The Family Stone, Marvin Gaye and many more.

After several years of hypercompetitive hustle in the Los Angeles music scene (which included collaborating with world-renowned artists like Neyo and Rihanna, and opening for Anderson .Paak, and Kamasi Washington), Rudy Jr. returned to Wichita in late 2015, dead-set on writing the music he actually wished to write and perform with the people he wanted to perform with. Rudy Jr. resumed performing with his father in the Love Family, further strengthening the pair’s unbreakable bond (as seen in the critically acclaimed documentary This Is Love), inspiring him to start writing the music he had a passion for, with the latest iteration of this being Rudy Love & The Encore.

Consisting of Rudy Jr. himself (vocals), Marrque Nunley (drums), Rachelle Love (percussionist), Willy Simms (guitar), and DJ Breathett (bass), Rudy Love & The Encore could arguably be interpreted as the zenith of Rudy Love Jr. in his element. A collective of close friends and family working together to create a particular flavor of pop-R&B/soul which they all share a love for, Rudy Love & the Encore is about as tight as a band comes in terms of synergy and songwriting ability.