Jeffrey Broussard is a highly -respected Creole-zydeco accordionist and fiddle player. He debuted on drums when he was just eight years old in his dad’s zydeco band, Delton Broussard and the Lawtell Playboys. Fifty years later, Broussard remains a torchbearer for the musical form and its Creole traditions, deeply rooted in the country around his native Opelousas, Louisiana. Although he has cited Boozoo Chavis and his father as influences, Broussard has always had his own, clear sense of style.
As a young man, after he left his father’s band, Broussard kicked around a bit, playing drums with Terrance Simien and bass in Roy Carrier's band. But in the mid-1980s, a young Broussard, now firmly established as a top accordion player, founded Zydeco Force along with bassist Robbie Robinson. The band showcased fresh, crowd-pleasing techniques like double-clutching (two quick bass drum kicks) and dance steps that went along with specific songs, like “The Dip” and “Zydeco Push.” Zydeco Force was seen as a pioneer in the emergence of this “nouveau zydeco” style, and in their heyday they offered a roadmap for many younger bands looking for a fresh sound. Zydeco Force recorded several fiery albums on the Maison de Soul label in the early 1990s, and became quite popular on the south-central Louisiana trail ride circuit.
In 2005, Broussard departed Zydeco Force for a new band, Jeffrey Broussard and the Creole Cowboys, a group that took a more traditional approach, invoking early iterations of zydeco called Creole or la la. Indeed, their first album, also on Maison de Soul, was titled Keeping the Tradition Alive! Broussard told an interviewer at the time, "I'm a Creole person, a French African-American in Louisiana, and it's all about that tradition. I grew up in this culture, and my father played this music. We grew up on farms, riding horses and playing fiddles and accordions. Some people called it Creole music; some called it la-la, but it was how the music started out before it grew into zydeco and Cajun.”
Over the years, Broussard and the Creole Cowboys have become fixtures in area clubs and venues, with his trademark straw hat and toothpick always in the corner of his mouth. He also has become an ardent champion of the art form, and of the cultural in which it grew; he teaches music and works with younger generations to keep speaking in French. He’s toured the world, including cultural exchanges in Russia, and has performed at festivals including the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Festival International, Festivals Acadiens et Créoles, French Quarter Festival, and the Rhythm and Roots Festival. In addition to many other accolades, he is an inductee in the Louisiana Folk Life Center Hall of Fame.
