A 73-year-old blues legend builds guitars from chicken coops and still outshines your Spotify playlist.
A Life in Blues both celebrates and explores the personal and musical life of one of Mississippi's most treasured sons. Having travelled the world sharing his own unique brand of blues music, James 'Super Chikan' Johnson, at the age of 73, still strives to balance a musical career while providing for his family. This film endeavours to not only lay bare Chikan's own story, but also examines how the culture and setting of the south has ultimately influenced his journey.
Direction
Patient observation lets Chikan's charisma do all the heavy lifting.
Production
Handmade instruments from salvaged chicken coops—functional folk art.
Director
Mark Rankin
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Chikan's nickname came from childhood—he'd chase chickens, his friends called him 'chicken boy,' and he owned it into legend.
The film quietly documents the last generation of Hill Country bluesmen who learned directly from Fred McDowell and R.L. Burnside.
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