Clifton Chenier (June 25, 1925 – December 12, 1987), a Louisiana French-speaking native of Leonville ^[3], Louisiana, near Opelousas, was an eminent performer and recording artist of zydeco, which arose from Cajun and Creole music, with R&B, jazz, and blues influences. He played the accordion and won a Grammy Award in 1983. He was a recipient of a 1984 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the United States government’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. He was inducted posthumously into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1989, and the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2011. In 2014, he was a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

He was known as the King of Zydeco and also billed as the King of the South.

Chenier began his recording career in 1954, when he signed with Elko Records and released Cliston’s Blues [sic], a regional success. In 1955 he signed with Specialty Records and garnered his first national hit with his label debut “Ay-Tete Fi” (Hey, Little Girl) (a cover of Professor Longhair‘s song). The national success of the release led to numerous tours with popular rhythm and blues performers such as Ray Charles, Etta James, and Lowell Fulson. He also toured in the early days with Clarence Garlow, billed as the Two Crazy Frenchmen. Chenier was signed with Chess Records in Chicago, followed by the Arhoolie label.