PIANO WILLIE

Willie Oshawny (Piano Willie) is a fixture in the music world when it comes to boogie and blues piano. Born and raised in Queens, New York, he grew up around multiple musical genres. Having a mother who played various instruments gave Willie the foundation to start honing his musical chops at a young age. Blues was always around him, and in junior high, he was already playing T Bone Walker and Chuck Berry. Willie not only plays the keys, but he also played the bass and guitar, starting his own rhythm and blues band in high school. This high school band was so good they began to travel and even opened for James Brown! Even though he played guitar in this band, he found his passion in the keys and hasn’t looked back. In the late 60’s he began crafting his art as he studied Otis Spann, who was a blues piano icon. Some of the most important influences that shaped Willie’s creative style were Sunnyland Slim, Pete Johnson, Meade Lux Lewis, and Pinetop Perkins, who was one of the creators of “boogie” in the late 20’s. Piano Willie’s discography is lengthy, and he has performed worldwide, sharing the stage with such greats as Jimmy Rogers, Willie Dixon, Pinetop Perkins, Sam Lay, Junior Wells, and Buddy Guy. Willie has performed on festival stages throughout the world and has graced television audiences with his killer piano skills in Asia, Europe, South America, Canada, and on Late Night with Conan O’Brien in the States.