Frank Sultana, an Australian blues musician, has been releasing original blues music since 2011, with about 15 albums to his name.
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Frank Sultana has been releasing original blues music since 2011, with about 15 albums to his name.
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“I've been putting out about one a year,” he said.
“Original blues from the east coast. Been sort of working pretty hard up and down the east coast over that time, touring pretty extensively.”
The turning point came in 2023 when Frank travelled to Memphis to compete in the Memphis International Blues Challenge.
“I was fortunate enough to win that event in the solo duo category,” he said .
“That's kind of lifted my profile quite a bit, and so since 2023 I've come back to the (United) States four times and played festivals and things like that.”
Frank is looking forward to seeing other artists at the festival, including Sammy Owen, Pete Campbell and the Lazy Dog, and The Honey Badgers. Frank Sultana played solo shows at the Echuca Moama Winter Blues Festival in 2022 (pictured).
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He has since collected five Sydney Blues Society Music Awards, including Best Songwriter, Best Traditional Blues, Artist's Choice and Artist of the Year for 2023 and 2024.
His roots in the music run deep.
“When I was younger, my parents' record collection was predominantly American 50s rhythm and blues, and a lot of that was recorded at Sun Studio in Memphis,” he said.
“Growing up it was Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis, Carl Perkins, that was kind of what I grew up on.”
He later discovered pre-World War II Mississippi Delta music, which became the foundation of his sound.
Frank won the Sydney Blues Challenge in July 2022, earning him entry to the Memphis competition in January 2023.
“I was already pretty established before that, as I'd been playing the blues since 2011,” he said.
“But I think going over there certainly raised my profile everywhere, because blues societies from all around the world keep up with who wins.”
He is currently booking a Canadian tour, which he says has been considerably easier to arrange than it would have been a few years ago.
His Ghosts of Sun album, recorded at Sun Studio in Memphis days after his International Blues Challenge win, spent six months in the Australian Blues Roots Radio Airplay Charts.
His 2024 album, Have Band Will Travel, released in September, peaked at number two on the same charts and remains in the top 10.
Frank Sultana will be returning to the Echuca Moama Winter Blues Festival, where he first played in 2017, and will be bringing his band, featuring drums, bass, and guitar. Pictured is the Frank Sultana Blues Band at Radcliffe’s at Echuca Moama Winter Blues Festival in 2023
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McPherson Media Group
Frank is returning to the Echuca Moama Winter Blues Festival, having first played it in 2017.
“It is a very enjoyable festival, and very, very Melbourne-centric,” he said.
“I like that it is venues in the town, the whole town becomes quite alive from it.”
He will be bringing his band this year, featuring drums, bass and guitar, though the lineup is still being finalised.
“I love seeing the Melbourne cats, Sammy Owen and all those guys,” he said, adding he was also looking forward to catching Pete Campbell and the Lazy Dog from Sydney and The Honey Badgers from Adelaide.
Frank Sultana will play a solo show at the 2026 Echuca-Moama Winter Blues Festival on Thursday, July 23 at Antonio’s Pizza at 7pm
You will find The Frank Sultana Blues Band playing the 2026 Echuca-Moama Winter Blues Festival on Friday, July 24 at Henry’s Bridge Hotel at 8.30pm and Saturday, July 25 at the American Hotel at 8pm.
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