What is the best album by contemporary blues artists from the last 20 years?

From Grammy-crowned masterpieces to raw Delta-rooted excavations, the last two decades have produced some of the most vital blues music in generations. Guitar heroes, soul singers, and genre-benders all made their case — the competition is fierce. Which album left the deepest mark?

This Land

Gary Clark Jr.'s 2019 Grammy-winning album fusing blues with rock and hip-hop, delivering politically charged anthems alongside searing guitar work.

1/11

662

Christone 'Kingfish' Ingram's 2021 Grammy-winning sophomore album named after his Mississippi area code, blending traditional Delta blues with modern soul.

2/11

Revelator

Tedeschi Trucks Band's 2011 Grammy-winning debut, pairing Susan Tedeschi's soulful vocals with Derek Trucks' transcendent slide guitar in a sweeping blues-rock epic.

3/11

TajMo

The 2017 Grammy-winning collaboration between blues legends Taj Mahal and Keb' Mo', blending acoustic roots blues with contemporary soul and humor.

4/11

The Last Days of Oakland

Fantastic Negrito's 2016 Grammy-winning debut that reinvented the blues for the modern era with raw emotion, social commentary, and psychedelic grit.

5/11

Kingfish

Christone 'Kingfish' Ingram's stunning 2019 debut album introducing a prodigious young Mississippi bluesman with jaw-dropping fretwork and soulful delivery.

6/11

Blak and Blu

Gary Clark Jr.'s 2012 major-label debut fusing Texas blues, rock, soul, and hip-hop into a defining statement of 21st-century blues guitar.

7/11

Preacher Kids

Robert Randolph's 2025 Grammy-winning album blending sacred steel guitar with blues, funk, and gospel in a joyful and electrifying expression.

8/11

Black Bayou

Robert Finley's acclaimed 2023 album produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, showcasing one of contemporary blues' most powerful and soulful voices.

9/11

The Traveler

Kenny Wayne Shepherd's 2019 album weaving blues, rock, and Americana into a road-worn meditation on journeys both physical and emotional.

10/11

Mileage

Ruthie Foster's 2025 Grammy-winning album showcasing her powerful vocals and hard-won wisdom across blues, soul, and gospel-tinged songwriting.

11/11