Korean blues band coming to Norwich Arts Center. What to know about these rising stars.

In terms of attracting international talent and great performers, the Norwich Arts Center punches above its weight class.

Richiman and Groove Nice, a contemporary blues trio from South Korea, will perform at the Norwich Arts Center on Saturday, Aug. 5 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 for Arts Center members, $23 for seniors, students and military, and $25 for adults.

The simple answer for how the Arts Center is able to get international acts is through connections, Blues on Broadway Producer Ron Bates said.

While most of the talent playing the Norwich Arts Center is from across the country, other foreign acts have played there before. For example, Bates remembers bringing in Italian blues guitarist Roberto Morbioli when the Blues on Broadway series started in 2018. Bates knew him for a few years and he happened to be touring in the area.

“We want to attract and be open to all acts and all musicians,” he said.

Bates also hopes to bring two European acts for the Blues on Broadway series in 2024.

Bates heard about Richiman and Groove Nice when he went to the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee. He attends every year to meet up-and-coming blues artists. He first saw an earlier incarnation of the band at the Challenge in 2020, and saw them again in 2022, and with the band’s current bassist, “they went from good to great,” Bates said.

In 2022, Richiman and Groove Nice made the final five of the International Blues Challenge.

“Never had a South Korean blues band made it that far,” he said. “Very few foreign bands make it that far.”

Getting to know Richiman and Groove Nice

Richiman and Groove Nice, consisting of vocalist and guitarist Isaac Cha, bassist Jinhee Baek, and drummer I.O. Lee, arrived in Connecticut this week, and will play other shows while in the area, including the Black-Eyed and Bluesfest in Hartford on Saturday.

Connecticut has been receptive to the band’s style of blues, Cha said.

“I love playing blues everywhere, but Connecticut, I think has more passion,” he said. “They love blues. I could feel it when I was in Connecticut in January and February.”

Richiman and Groove Nice aims to share their emotions with the audience when performing. Unlike the typical blues emotions, focusing on sad things, Richiman and Groove Nice likes playing upbeat blues songs, said Dennis Cotton, the band’s manager, who is also part of the Connecticut Blues Society.

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Cha has heard a lot about the Norwich Arts Center, and he said it’s the perfect venue for the band. The audience should expect an energetic show, and the band will probably break out in a sweat. The band is also looking forward to meeting people from Norwich after the show, Cha said.

The band is “the real deal,” Bates said.

“I’m not sure I’ve ever experienced a band that takes so much joy in performing as these guys do,” he said.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Korean Blues band Richiman and Groove Nice to play Norwich Arts Center