Downtown Resort Pronounces Birthday Celebration Honoring Blues Legend Robert Johnson
Downtown Resort Pronounces BD Celebration
The long-lasting and historic Gunter Resort, a Tribute Portfolio Resort, is proud to share particulars on a serious celebration slated for Friday, Could 8, 2026. The celebration will honor Robert Johnson, the well-known Blues musician who recorded one in every of solely two albums throughout his storied profession at The Gunter in room 414 in 1936 . The celebration on Could 8 will mark what would have been Robert Johnson’s a hundred and fifteenth birthday. This occasion is the primary of its form to be hosted on the lodge, which lately reopened after a $57M main renovation.
The all-day celebration will characteristic a panel dialogue on Robert Johnson and his seminal position in blues and American music, a birthday celebration within the vinyl listening area within the foyer, a live performance within the historic Crystal Ballroom that includes Sue Foley, The Peterson Brothers and Nicky Diamonds, three subsequent nights of blues exhibits, in addition to a late evening blues jam at Bar 414 following the Crystal Ballroom live performance.
“This place has had music in its partitions for over a century and from day one in every of this renovation, we felt the load of that,” mentioned Jiwon Choi, Proprietor and Managing Director at Axle Capital. “Celebrating the person who helped make this lodge legendary is simply one of many methods we’re honoring that legacy and persevering with to construct on it.”
The programming schedule for Could 8 is as follows:
4 – 5 PM: Panel Dialogue: Robert Johnson & His Legacy
This panel dialogue that includes Alex Peterson, Glenn Peterson Jr., Nicky Diamonds, Colin Hancock and moderator Bria Woods of KRTU will contact on the musical influence Robert Johnson has had on the evolution of blues, its deep roots in Texas, and its relevance in at the moment’s music panorama. The dialogue can be held within the Gunter Studio Lounge on the second flooring of the lodge.
The panel is free to attend, however area is restricted, so reservations are required. events can reserve their spots HERE. Friends are additionally inspired to reach early and luxuriate in bar service within the Studio Lounge earlier than the dialogue begins.
5 – 6 PM: Robert Johnson Birthday Occasion
The general public is invited to come back collectively within the foyer of the Gunter Resort to formally rejoice Robert Johnson’s birthday with cake, espresso, a vinyl set that includes Robert Johnson’s works, an authentic poem from former San Antonio Poet Laureate Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson and extra.
The occasion is free and open to the general public, however reservations are required. They are often made HERE.
7:30 – 10:30 PM: Reside Music Live performance That includes Sue Foley, The Peterson Brothers and Nicky Diamonds
Sue Foley is a celebrated Blues guitarist that has shared the stage with legends like B.B. King, Buddy Man and extra. She even hosted a digital live performance from room 414 through the pandemic. The Peterson Brothers are a duo composed of Glenn Jr. on vocals and guitar, and Alex, a GRAMMY® award-winning artist, on bass, vocals and violin. Their distinctive sound is a mix of Soul, Funk, Blues and Jazz. Nicky Diamonds is an Afro-Indigenous Nation-Roots/Blues Musician and a San Antonio native. As a toddler, Nicky was impressed by Robert Johnson – a lot in order that he tried unsuccessfully to sneak into room 414 of the Gunter Resort. Now he’s again to formally pay homage to the legend that began all of it.
This ticketed live performance will happen within the Crystal Ballroom of the Gunter Resort. Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson will emcee the occasion. VIP tickets are $75 and embrace premium seating at cabaret tables with an up-close view of the stage and banquet type seating for a snug, elevated expertise. Theatre Seating tickets can be found for $55 and embrace reserved theater-style seating positioned simply behind the cabaret part. Common Admission (standing room solely) tickets can be found for $40.
Tickets will be bought HERE.
9 PM – 12 AM: Bar 414 Blues Jam
To wrap up the evening, Blues musicians and fanatics are invited to hitch a Blues Jam Session at Bar 414, led by the Chris Cuevas Mission. The jam session invitations artists, musicians and music lovers alike to come back collectively for an natural, high-energy near the day’s festivities. Anybody can attend, however area is restricted. The occasion is 21+ solely.
Along with the Robert Johnson occasion, the Gunter can be singing the blues all through the weekend with reside music at Bar 414, that includes Jacob Kyle at 9 PM on Thursday, Could 7 and the Eve Monsees Trio at 9 PM on Saturday, Could 9.
Moreover, to assist rejoice the event, the Gunter Resort will supply a particular reserving bundle to assist friends profit from their keep. The Keep Legendary Package deal contains: Two Common Admission tickets to the Robert Johnson Birthday Celebration Live performance (with meet & greet), a Robert Johnson vinyl file to take-home, a limited-edition Robert Johnson birthday commemorative poster signed by the live performance artists, a Gunter Studio T-Shirt and discounted valet parking. The bundle is on the market to ebook now by means of Could 8, 2026. Legitimate keep dates are Could 7 – Could 9, 2026. Availability is restricted.
A Century of Sound
The Gunter Resort’s relationship with music will not be a current discovery, fairly it’s a legacy greater than a century within the making. Within the lodge’s early days, legendary massive band leaders together with Alphonse Trent, Mack Rogers and Henry Lange held residencies inside the Gunter’s personal celebrated venues, like The Cave, The Keystone Membership, the Rose Room and the grand Crystal Ballroom. Jimmie Rodgers, the Father of Nation Music and one in every of America’s most celebrated songsmiths, referred to as the Gunter residence all through his life, performing right here and cementing the lodge’s place within the American musical canon.
No second outlined that legacy extra indelibly than November 1936, when blues visionary Robert Johnson walked into Room 414 and recorded what would change into a number of the most influential recordings in music historical past. That session gave delivery to “King of the Delta Blues Singers” and despatched reverberations by means of generations of artists. Musicians, together with John Mellencamp, have made the pilgrimage to Room 414 ever since, drawn by the room’s mythic artistic power.
A Vibrant Musical Future at The Gunter
Along with celebrations just like the Robert Johnson birthday extravaganza, the Gunter Resort is dedicated to paying homage to its musical roots. Every visitor room encompasses a file participant and a duplicate of “King of the Delta Blues Singers,” connecting each visitor on to the second that made Room 414 well-known. A vinyl lending library of almost 1,000 data, curated with the assistance of the lodge’s onsite Vinyl Ambassadors, completed DJs and devoted music aficionados, invitations friends to attain their very own keep. At Bar 414, named for the room that put the Gunter on the musical map, reside music is a weekly fixed, showcasing the artists and sounds of San Antonio and Texas in an area that has all the time identified methods to maintain a crowd.
The cherry on prime of the lodge’s devotion to music will come when the state-of-the-art Gunter Studio, a recording studio designed by famous producer and musician Michael Ramos and acoustician Steve Durr, opens this summer time. The Studio can be a useful resource for the following technology of musicians and producers in San Antonio and be out there to college students and nonprofits as a useful resource for supporting and inculcating creativity locally. Extra particulars in regards to the Gunter Studio will observe within the weeks to come back.
To assist guarantee the correct reverence to the area is given, the Gunter Resort has fashioned a particular musical council to advise on programming, the recording expertise and extra. The council at the moment contains members like blues musician Nicky Diamonds, musical advocate Celeste Quesada, musician and producer Adrian Quesada of the GRAMMY® award-winning Black Pumas, Will and Noel Bridges of Antone’s Nightclub, San Antonio’s personal Joe Reyes and cosmic cowboy Garrett T. Caps.
For updates and happenings on the Gunter Resort, observe alongside on Instagram and Fb. For extra particulars in regards to the lodge, go to www.thegunterhotel.com.
