Best music events in Lexington, Louisville for Kentucky Derby week & after

The irony forever surrounding the Kentucky Derby is that for all the weeks-long celebration leading up to it, the event itself is over and done in two minutes. So why not make all the fanfare the Derby encompasses even longer?

That’s what we’ve done here in surveying some of the outstanding live music that will land in Louisville and Lexington in the days leading up to Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. This time, we’re also highlighting some sounds that will drift into next week. But instead of rounding up everything that could be found, our list this year is whittled down to just three concerts in each city. Why? Because each selection in this wonderfully diverse lineup comes highly recommended.

Some feature artists you know, others are acts that may be new to you. But each one is worth checking out, whether you’re here at home at Lexington during Derby time or mixing with the masses in Louisville.

The Derby itself will purposely run past us at lightning speed. These performances, though? Their sounds will likely linger long after the paddock at Churchill Downs empties out.

In Louisville

April 28: Brandy Clark

Bomhard Theater of the Kentucky Center for the Arts, 501 W. Main.

Long one of country/Americana’s finer songwriters, Brandy Clark is known more for the tunes she penned that were cut by other artists (Reba McEntire, Miranda Lambert, Kacey Musgraves, among many others). But her own fine recordings boast indie-levels of narrative finesse and musical immediacy rare for a major label artist. After 17 nominations, Clark took home her first Grammy in 2022 for “Dear Insecurity,” a collaborative Americana single with Brandi Carlile.

A bonus here is that Clark will be playing one of Louisville’s most inviting concert rooms. The 700-patron capacity Bomhard Theater, located on the second floor of the Kentucky Center for the Arts, offers a relaxed intimacy and sonic clarity that make the theatre a prime environment for active listening.

Henry of Ruen Brothers (more specifically, Henry Stansall, half of the contemporary British folk/duo he leads with his brother Rupert) will open.

7:30 p.m., $34.85. kentuckyperformingarts.org.

April 29: Common/Tank and the Bangas

Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center, 3029 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd.

Get set for a revolution. The theme behind this fundraising concert for the non-profit Louisville Urban League is “The Rhythm of Revolution.” The organization’s website defines that as “amplifying the voices of the unheard effecting the change we want to see.”

Leading the charge of the dynamic double-bill that makes up the League’s annual Derby Gala will be Common. An Academy, Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe and three-time Grammy Award winner, Common’s music remains as approachable as it’s been expansive. Strong undercurrents of jazz and vintage R&B have has sat beside activist themes in his work for over three decades. Since then, he has become one of hip-hop’s most entrepreneurial celebrities. Aside from his broadly stylistic music, Common is an actor, activist, head of his own film production company, head of his own clothing line and has authored two memoirs.

Tank and the Bangas round out the Gala bill. The product of a fertile New Orleans musical homestead, the group borrows from the funk, hip-hop, rock and soul grooves inherent in their local culture. Such diversified inspirations were placed generously on display on a series of albums released between 2013 and 2022, two of which (2019’s “Green Balloon” and 2022’s “Red Balloon”) received Grammy nominations. Curiously, it was a three-part spoken word collection from 2024, “The Heart, The Mind, The Soul,” that took home the prize.

9 p.m., $200. trellis.org/2026-lul-derby-gala-concert

May 3 The Black Keys

Louisville Palace, 625 S. 4th St.

Call this your Derby Afterburner party.

The duo of guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney, better known as The Black Keys, has always had a knack for finding a celebratory spin for music that has shifted from primal, bare-knuckled blues-rock to sleek more expansive takes on vintage soul and pop.

The last few years, though, upholding that blend of fuss and fun has meant navigating some speed bumps. Following the April 2024 release of the band’s 12th studio album, “Ohio Players” (a reference to both the state where the Keys got their start before relocating to Nashville in 2010 and to the famed funk band of the same name), an extensive arena tour was mapped out and then promptly cancelled. Low ticket sales were the rumored reason. While that was never confirmed, subsequent performances were booked into “more intimate” venues.

A follow-up album, “No Rain, No Flowers” followed relatively quickly in August 2025 and continued the pop-soul journeys begun in earnest on what remains one of the band’s best recordings, 2011’s “El Camino.”

On Friday — Derby Eve, to you and me — the Keys will release “Peaches!,” a new covers album. It lands a mere nine months after “No Rain, No Flowers.” The record falls very much in the same stylistic territory as a previous covers collection, 2021’s “Delta Kream.” Both records honor the Hill Country blues music that made late career roots music celebrities out of artists like R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. Their songs are features on both recordings.

8 p.m., $64-$259. ticketmaster.com.

In Lexington

April 28: Marc Broussard

Manchester Music Hall, 899 Manchester St.

Derby week here at home gets in full swing on Tuesday with a blast of bayou fortified blues-rock courtesy of Marc Broussard.

The guitarist, vocalist and songwriter hails from Louisiana — specifically, a city just outside of Lafayette (yet still in the Lafayette Parish) called Carencro. Broussard’s hometown pride extended to naming his 2004 major label debut album after the city. That record was in the works the first time Broussard played Lexington. He opened a 2003 concert at the Singletary Center for the Arts for Maroon 5.

Being a son of the bayou, Broussard came calling when his home state needed help. His Momentary Setback Fund (named after his 2002 indie debut record) was designed to assist in release efforts for victims of Hurricanes Katrina in 2005 and Rita in 2024.

Musically, the swampy, deep Southern flavor of Broussard’s songs is best defined by a series of albums under the banner titled of “S.O.S.: Save our Soul.” The fifth and newest volume, subtitled “Songs of the ’50s,” is a sampler of soul, pop, country and R&B cover tunes that get a respectful bayou makeover. Among the tasty entrees: “Hallelujah, I Love Her So” (which became one of Ray Charles’ earliest hits in 1957), “Unchained Melody”(which dates back to 1955, although the most famous version arrived a decade later courtesy of The Righteous Brothers) and “Lucille” (a 1957 rock ‘n’ roll classic by Little Richard.)

8 p.m., $39.92-$50.82. manchestermusichall.com.

The remaining two entries bookend Derby Day a little further down Manchester Street at The Burl. Both shows share influences that borrow from vintage soul and R&B, yet their resulting sounds differ greatly. Still, the acts recognize some of their in-common musical lingo. On Derby Eve, in fact, they will be sharing the same concert bill in Chicago. For Lexington, their soul-seeking sounds will, in one case, help build Derby Week excitement and, in the other, ease us out of it.

April 30: Thee Sinseers

The Burl, 375 Thompson Rd.

Listening to the East Los Angeles-bred soul impressions of Thee Sinseers is like stepping into a time machine. Their sounds fall right in line with the soul and doo-wop informed pop that began to overtake airwaves in the early 1960s. While this sizeable ensemble can cook up a hearty groove when needed, its specialty is cool — specifically, a brand of sleek romantic soul that lets the Little Anthony-style singing of Joseph Quiñones wash over a band full of great harmonizers and an ultra-tasteful horn section. Thee Sinseers’ 2024 debut album is cheekily titled “Sinseerly Yours.” Don’t sleep on this one, folks. This is my top Derby week concert pick.

One side note: This performance was originally scheduled to also feature fellow East L.A. retro soul stylists The Altons. Sadly, their appearance has been cancelled due to a medical emergency involving lead singer Bryan Ponce. Thee Sinseers, however, will carry on.

This will be an indoor show at The Burl.

8 p.m., $27. theburlky.com.

May 6: St. Paul and the Broken Bones

The Burl, 375 Thompson Rd.

St. Paul and the Broken Bones is an altogether different soul-savvy beast. They also employ Southern soul-pop inspirations of the ’60s as basic components of their music. But the ensemble’s sound, especially, in performance, is bigger, brassier and more revivalist in design, right down to the glitter choir robes and general onstage giddiness of lead singer Paul Janeway.

But then, Lexington knows all this. Some of the band’s first gigs outside of its Birmingham, Ala., home base were in 2012 at the original (and long since defunct) Willie’s Locally Known location on South Broadway. Since, then the band has played the Opera House for a two-night engagement in 2017 and the inaugural Railbird in 2019. Now, they’re back to shake some souls in the midst of Derby aftermath.

This will be an outdoor show at The Burl with Bee Taylor opening.

8 p.m. Alas, this performance is sold out. theburlky.com.