Editing Zydeco (section)

==Post-war history==
[[File:Chenier brothers.jpg|thumbnail|Chenier Brothers performing at Jay's Lounge and Cockpit, [[Cankton, Louisiana]], Mardi Gras, 1975]][[File:Washboard player 7145.jpg|thumb|A zydeco musician playing a vest frottoir]]

Zydeco music pioneer [[Clifton Chenier]], "The King of Zydeco", made zydeco popular on regional radio stations with his bluesy style and keyboard accordion. In the mid-1950s, Chenier's popularity brought zydeco to the fringes of the American mainstream. He signed with [[Specialty Records]], the same label that first recorded [[Little Richard]] and [[Sam Cooke]] for wide audiences. Chenier, considered the architect of contemporary zydeco,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Best Of Clifton Chenier: The King of Zydeco & Louisiana Blues |url=https://folkways.si.edu/clifton-chenier/best-of-clifton-chenier/cajun-zydeco/music/album/smithsonian |access-date=30 September 2021 |website=folkways.si.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mouton |first=Todd |title=Clifton Chenier's Zydeco Road |url=https://64parishes.org/clifton-cheniers-zydeco-road |access-date=30 September 2021 |website=64parishes.org |date=December 2015 |archive-date=September 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930224114/https://64parishes.org/clifton-cheniers-zydeco-road |url-status=live }}</ref> became the first major zydeco artist. His early hits included ''"Les Haricots Sont Pas Salés"'' ("The Snap Beans Ain't Salty" &mdash; a reference to the singer being too poor to afford salt pork to season the beans).

The first zydeco [[vest frottoir]] was designed by [[Clifton Chenier]] in 1946 while he and his brother Cleveland were working at an oil refinery in [[Port Arthur, Texas]]. Chenier commissioned the instrument from Willie Landry, a welder-fabricator who worked at the same refinery. Landry's original frottoir is held in the permanent collection of the [[Smithsonian Institution]],<ref>{{Cite web |year=2002–2008 |title=Frottoir History |url=http://www.zydecorubboards.com/ |access-date=March 20, 2014 |publisher=Key of Z Rubboards |archive-date=December 23, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131223215943/http://zydecorubboards.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> There was also a zydeco rubboard on display at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, donated by Terrance Simien, and at the [[National Museum of African American Music]] in Nashville, made possible by Cynthia Simien, who lobbied for two years to get their attention. She and Terrance helped curate the zydeco music exhibit placed in the lobby of the museum for its grand opening January 18, 2021.The rubboard for the display was donated by Reginald Dural aka Buckwheat Zydeco, Jr. the son of the late Buckwheat Zydeco.{{cn|date=March 2025}}

In 1978, Clifton Chenier saw how popular Zydeco was becoming on the road and overseas. He persuaded a young creole/lala accordionist named [[Fernest Arceneaux]] to pick up the accordion again. Arceneaux had given up the accordion in the 1960s to play the guitar. Shortly after, he began to tour internationally as Fernest and the Thunders.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |author1=Pat Nyhan |url=https://archive.org/details/letgoodtimesroll00nyha_0/page/136/mode/2up |title=Let the Good Times Roll! A Guide to Cajun & Zydeco Music |author2=Brian Rollins |author3=David Babb |date=March 1998 |publisher=Upbeat Books |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-9658232-0-3}}</ref> 

In the mid-1980s, [[Rockin' Sidney]] Simien, brought international attention to zydeco music with his hit tune "[[My Toot Toot]]". Clifton Chenier, Rockin' Sidney, and [[Queen Ida]] all garnered Grammy awards during this pivotal period, opening the door to emerging artists who would continue the traditions. [[Rockin' Dopsie]] recorded with [[Paul Simon]] on his album ''[[Graceland (album)|Graceland]]'' and also signed a major label deal during this time.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Paul Simon - Graceland (1986, Vinyl) |url=https://www.discogs.com/Paul-Simon-Graceland/release/1719389 |access-date=30 September 2021 |website=www.discogs.com |archive-date=February 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220094037/https://www.discogs.com/Paul-Simon-Graceland/release/1719389 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Rockin' Dopsie |url=https://www.blues-sessions.com/rockindopsie.php |access-date=30 September 2021 |website=www.blues-sessions.com |archive-date=September 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930225849/https://www.blues-sessions.com/rockindopsie.php |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1987, Terrance Simien was also signed to a major label, [[Restless Records]], a punk and metal label by the A&R rep, Ron Goudie who signed Poison to Enigma Records, which later became Restless/Enigma.{{cn|date=March 2025}}

[[John Delafose]] was extremely popular regionally. The music made major advances when emerging bands burst exuberantly onto the national scene, fusing new sounds and styles with the music. [[Boozoo Chavis]], [[Roy Carrier]], [[Zydeco Force]], Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas, the Sam Brothers, [[Terrance Simien]], [[Chubby Carrier]], and many others were breathing new life into the music. Zydeco superstar [[Buckwheat Zydeco]], already well into his career, signed his deal with [[Island Records]] in the mid-1980s. Combined with the national popularity of Creole and Cajun food, and the popular feature film ''[[The Big Easy (film)|The Big Easy]]'', set in New Orleans, and for the first time in a major theatrically released film, a zydeco band was featured on screen: [[Terrance Simien]] and the Mallet Playboys exposed the world to zydeco in a film. The soundtrack that was a who's who of Louisiana and New Orleans music likely went gold. Zydeco legend, Simien also co-wrote the song, "Closer to You" with actor, Dennis Quaid that played in the love scene he did with Ellen Barkin. The music experienced a renaissance during that time period. New artists were cultivated, the music took a more innovative direction, and zydeco increased in mainstream popularity.{{cn|date=March 2025}}

[[File:C.J. Chenier.jpg|thumbnail|C. J. Chenier performing in the Ross Bandstand]]

Active zydeco musicians such as [[C. J. Chenier|C.J. Chenier]] (son of Clifton Chenier), Chubby Carrier (son of Roy Carrier), [[Geno Delafose]] (son of John Delafose), [[Terrance Simien]], [[Nathan Williams (Zydeco)|Nathan Williams]] and others began touring internationally during the 1980s. [[Beau Jocque]] was a monumental songwriter and innovator who infused zydeco with powerful beats and bass lines in the 1990s, adding striking production and elements of funk, [[hip-hop]] and [[rap]]. Young performers such as [[Chris Ardoin]], [[Keith Frank]], Corey Arceneaux (great nephew of [[Fernest Arceneaux]]), and Zydeco Force tied the sound to the bass drum rhythm to accentuate or [[Syncopation|syncopate]] the backbeat even more. This style is sometimes called "double clutching".<ref name="Tisserand_1998" /><ref name=":0" /> 

Hundreds of zydeco bands continue the music traditions in Louisiana, with fewer in Texas and fewer in California. However, with the Great Migration of African Americans from the South to other cities and states with better opportunities, there was a large Creole population in Texas and to a lesser extent in California. There are also a handful of bands in the U.S., Europe, Japan, the UK and Australia who play music that has been inspired by this traditional genre. A precocious 7-year-old zydeco accordionist, Guyland Leday, was discovered by HBO after contacting Cynthia and Terrance Simien through their website and educational program "Creole for Kidz and the History of Zydeco" The producers, director and film crew came to Louisiana to film Guyland to be featured in a 2006 [[HBO]] documentary film, [https://www.hbo.com/movies/the-music-in-me-childrens-recitals-from-classical-to-latin-jazz-zydeco "The Music in Me: Children's Recitals from Classical to Latin, Jazz to Zydeco] ", about music and young people. <ref>{{Cite web |date=7 October 2006 |title=Big Sounds, All but Bursting Out of Small Packages |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/07/arts/television/07musi.html |access-date=22 March 2018 |website=The New York Times |archive-date=December 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212031630/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/07/arts/television/07musi.html?_r=0 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2007, after a seven year effort led by Cynthia and [[Terrance Simien]], zydeco was recognized with a separate category in the Grammy awards, the [[Grammy Award for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album]] category.<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 6, 2007 |title=Kanye West Leads 50th GRAMMY Nominees |url=http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/News/Default.aspx?newsID=2696&newsCategoryID=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071227060100/http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/News/Default.aspx?newsID=2696&newsCategoryID=1 |archive-date=December 27, 2007 |website=News |publisher=GRAMMY.com, The Official Site of the [[Grammy Award]]s}}</ref> In 2011 the Grammy awards had a major category restructure and eliminated approximately 30 categories. They eliminated the Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album category and folded the genres separately into its new [[Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album|"Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album"]] category.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Spera |first=Keith |date=April 7, 2011 |title=Zydeco and Cajun category among those eliminated from Grammy Awards |url=https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/music/article_78424817-2952-5ab3-9699-514121207c37.html |website=Nola.com}}</ref> However, zydeco artists in this new category continued to receive nominations and Grammy awards. Since the Simien's changed the vocabulary and the way the Recording Academy looked at this genre, there have been hundreds of Louisiana zydeco artists nominated and several dozen honored with a Grammy award, making this one of the most important accomplishments for perpetuating and sustaining a traditional American roots music genre. 

21st century zydeco artists include but not limited to Lil' Nate (son of Nathan Williams), Leon Chavis, Rusty Metoyer. [[Andre Thierry]] has kept the tradition alive on the West Coast, while Corey Arceneaux among other artist perform on the East Coast.  [[Dwayne Dopsie]] (son of [[Rockin' Dopsie]]) and his band, the Zydeco Hellraisers,<ref>{{Cite web |title=ALBUM PREMIERE: Dwayne Dopsie Infuses Zydeco Sounds with Soulful Swampy Blues on 'Set Me Free' |url=https://glidemagazine.com/260831/album-premiere-dwayne-dopsie-infuses-zydeco-sounds-with-soulful-swampy-blues-on-set-me-free/ |access-date=26 September 2021 |website=glidemagazine.com |archive-date=September 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210926233639/https://glidemagazine.com/260831/album-premiere-dwayne-dopsie-infuses-zydeco-sounds-with-soulful-swampy-blues-on-set-me-free/ |url-status=live }}</ref> were nominated for best Regional Roots Album in the 2017 [[Grammy Award]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Winners & Nominees |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/winners-nominees/280 |access-date=26 September 2021 |website=GRAMMY.com |language=en |archive-date=September 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210926233636/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/winners-nominees/280 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2024 at the 66th annual Grammy Awards Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. (son of the late Buckwheat Zydeco) and the Legendary Ils Sont Partis Band took home the Grammy Award for best regional roots album.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lost Bayou Ramblers, Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. win Grammy Award |url=https://louisianais.com/en/news/2024/02/05/lost-bayou-ramblers-buckwheat-zydeco-jr-win-grammy-award/ |access-date=2024-11-17 |website=louisianais.com/ |language=en-CA}}</ref>

Zydeco has become synonymous with the cultural and musical identity of Louisiana, the American South and the United States. Along with all the other popular and culturally important music genres of New Orleans and Louisiana, zydeco has helped put the state on the music map of the world.