Definition
A male musician who performs blues music, a genre of American music that expresses sadness, hardship, or emotional pain through vocal and instrumental melodies.
Etymology
Compound of 'blues' (American musical genre with roots in African American spirituals and work songs, emerging in the late 1800s) + 'man,' referring to a male performer of this genre.
Kelly Says
The bluesman figure—think of Muddy Waters or B.B. King—became iconic because blues music provided African Americans a way to process suffering and claim dignity that society denied them, and the bluesman became a symbol of resilience and authenticity.
Translations
AMአማርኛ
💙 ወይን አይነት እንደ አይነት እንደ አይነት
weyn aynit en-de aynit en-de aynit
ARالعربية
موسيقي بلوز
mu-si-qi bluz
BNবাংলা
ব্লুজ সংগীতশিল্পী
bluz sangi-ta-shi-lpi
CACatalà
bluesman
bluez-man
CSČeština
bluesman
bluez-man
DADansk
bluesman
bluez-man
DEDeutsch
Bluesmann
bluez-mann
ELΕλληνικά
μπλουζέρης
mplouzer-is
ESEspañol
bluesman
bluez-man
FAفارسی
موسیقیدان بلوز
mu-si-qi-dan bluz
FISuomi
bluesmies
bluez-mies
FRFrançais
bluesman
bluez-man
GUGU
બ્લુઝ ગાયક
bluz gay-k
HAHA
maƙin blues
ma-kin bluez
HEעברית
מוזיקאי בלוז
mu-zi-kai bluz
HIहिन्दी
ब्लूज़ संगीतकार
bluz sangi-ta-kar
HUMagyar
blues-zenész
bluez-zen-esz
IDBahasa Indonesia
bluesman
bluez-man
IGIG
blues musician
bluez mu-si-cian
ITItaliano
bluesman
bluez-man
KKKK
блюз музыкант
blyuz muzykant
KMKM
ប្រភព ប្រាណ
pra-ph-p pra-an
MRMR
ब्लूज गायक
bluz gayak
MSBahasa Melayu
bluesman
bluez-man
MYမြန်မာ
ရွှေ့ပြောင်း စိမ်း
shwe-pya-ng sai-ng
NLNederlands
bluesman
bluez-man
NONorsk
bluesman
bluez-man
PAPA
ਬਲੂਜ ਗਾਇਕ
bluj gayak
PLPolski
bluesman
bluez-man
PTPortuguês
bluesman
bluez-man
RORomână
bluesman
bluez-man
RUРусский
блюзовый музыкант
blyuzovyy muzykant
SVSvenska
bluesman
bluez-man
SWKiswahili
bluesman
bluez-man
TAதமிழ்
블ூஸ் கலைஞர்
blue-s kala-njar
TEతెలుగు
블ూస్ కళాకారుడు
blue-s kala-ka-ru-du
THไทย
นักดนตรีบลูส
nak-don-trei blu-s
TRTürkçe
blues müzisyeni
bluez mu-zi-si-yen-i
UKУкраїнська
блюзовий музикант
blyuzovyy muzykant
URاردو
بلوzzz موسیقار
bluz mu-si-qar
VITiếng Việt
nghệ sĩ blues
nghe-si bluez
YOYO
ṣẹ́ṣẹ́ ṣẹ́ṣẹ́
she-she she-she
ZH中文
布鲁斯音乐家
bù lù sī yīn yuè jiā
ZUZU
umculi webluz
um-cu-li we-bluz
Ethical Language Guidance
Gender History
The term 'bluesman' uses 'man' as a generic, but historically erases women blues musicians (Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Billie Holiday) who shaped the genre equally. The male-default framing became convention in music criticism.
Inclusive Usage
Use 'blues musician' or 'blues artist' to reflect the full history of the genre. When discussing specific traditions, 'bluesman/blueswoman' with intentional parity is acceptable.
Inclusive Alternatives
["blues musician","blues artist","blues performer"]
Empowerment Note
Women blues singers were foundational to the genre's development and emotional depth. Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey recorded and performed groundbreaking blues before many celebrated male performers, yet histories often forefront male musicians.