The Pink Bluesman is the story of Floydd Watkins, a black albino musician from the wealthy section of Harlem whose dream was to be a Bluesman and play the real Blues. But the Blues is honest. You can’t fake it.
So Floydd began his quest to meet musicians who lived “the blues” and with them, play the sad music of the soul. And, because of an old musician superstition that says, “Playing music with a Black Albino brings good luck”, they all felt “lucky” to play with Floydd.
Along the way, Floydd met Knuckles, a drummer who speaks through the rhythm of his drumbeat, Bessie, a little lady with a big voice, and Ruby, a sax player with six kids. Together they formed Floydd’s Group and were on the threshold of meteoric success.
This story is a celebration of the triumph of the human spirit. The irony is that as a Black Albino who always had good luck, the essence of the Blues eluded Floydd in his music until fate and a cat turned his world upside down.
More than 45 paintings illustrate the story of Floydd’s Group (4 wood statues). Using the paintings and off-camera narration, a video was produced. In 2022, a groups of students from Miami Beach Senior High School film class critiqued the video as part of a Center for Folk and Community Art anti-bullying art project. CFCA artists then re-edited the video based on some of their suggestions.
Although the story has been updated, and the films edited several times, this will always be a work-in-progress.
“The Pink Bluesman” – the tale of Floydd Watkins and Floydd’s Group.