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S. R. No. 50 *SS26/R1390* ~ OFFICIAL ~ N1/2
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To: Rules
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026
By: Senator(s) Brumfield, Butler, Blackmon,
Hickman, Jackson, Turner-Ford, Norwood,
Frazier, Mumford, Thomas, Simmons (12th),
Simmons (13th)
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 50
A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE MUSIC CONTRIBUTIONS OF 1
MISSISSIPPI GOSPEL AND BLUES ARTIST CASTRO "MR. SIPP" COLEMAN FROM 2
MCCOMB, MISSISSIPPI, GRAMMY-WINNING GUITARIST WITH THE WILLIAMS 3
BROTHERS. 4
WHEREAS, Castro "Mr. Sipp" Coleman is a young guitarist, 5
singer and songwriter from McComb, Mississippi, who has become a 6
gospel and blues ambassador for our state; and 7
WHEREAS, Castro Coleman a.k.a. "Mr. Sipp" was born August 25, 8
1976, and is an American blues and gospel singer, musician, 9
songwriter and guitarist. Mr. Sipp is the Vicksburg Blues 10
Society's 2014 International Blues Challenge winner as well as the 11
2014 Gibson Best Guitarist Award Winner. The same year Castro was 12
given the Bobby Rush Entertainer of the Year Award by the Jus' 13
Blues Foundation. In 2015, he won several Jackson Music Awards, 14
including International Male Blues Artist, Blues Artist of the 15
Year, and Entertainer of the Year; and 16
WHEREAS, Castro was the Blues Music Award Best New Artist 17
Debut Winner in 2016 and The Spirit of Little Walter Award Winner 18
the same year. The same year, Castro was the first blues artist 19
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to have his handprint inducted into the Wall of Fame in 20
Fredrikshavn, Denmark. For the 25th Annual Living Blues Awards, 21
he won the Best Blues Album of 2017 New Recordings Award 22
(Contemporary Blues) with Knock a Hole In It. In 2018, he won the 23
National Blues Artist of the Year Award at the 44th Annual Jackson 24
Music Awards. At the 2025 ceremony of the Blues Music Awards, 25
Coleman was named as the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year; and 26
WHEREAS, Castro Coleman was born in McComb, Mississippi, to 27
Jonell and the late Vera Coleman. He is a husband and the father 28
of four daughters. He has been around music all of his life. His 29
parents and aunt had a quartet group, and he was influenced by 30
B.B. King at the age of six, which is when he started playing the 31
guitar; and 32
WHEREAS, Coleman started out playing gospel with the 33
legendary Williams Brothers, the Canton Spirituals, and the 34
Pilgrim Jubilees. He later started his own group The True 35
Believers, which launched them in the gospel industry with their 36
album In This Place. After The True Believers, he started Castro 37
Coleman and Highly Favored, which again proved successful in the 38
gospel industry, with television appearances on Bobby Jones 39
Gospel. Their album Time Out gained national attention; and 40
WHEREAS, in 2012, Coleman decided to venture into the blues 41
genre. He competed in the regional competition in the fall of 42
2012 and won. He then went to compete in Memphis in January 2013 43
and made it to the finals. He went back and won the regional 44
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competition in the fall of 2013. He won again and was back in 45
Memphis in 2014 to triumph at the International Blues Challenge; 46
and 47
WHEREAS, on February 1, 2019, Castro and his group, The True 48
Believers, released a new album and DVD, Back to the Roots. 49
Coleman has won numerous awards, including: 50
• Bobby Rush 2014 Entertainer of the Year Award by the Jus' 51
Blues Foundation; 52
• 2015 International Male Blues Artist, 41st Annual Jackson 53
Music Awards; 54
• 2015 Blues Artist of the Year, 41st Annual Jackson Music 55
Awards; 56
• 2015 Entertainer of the Year, 41st Annual Jackson Music 57
Awards; 58
• Best Blues Album of 2017 New Recordings (Contemporary 59
Blues) for Knock a Hole In It, Malaco Records, 25th Annual Living 60
Blues Awards; 61
• 2018 Gospel Group of the Year with The True Believers, 62
Mississippi Gospel Music Awards; 63
• 2018 National Blues Artist of the Year, 44th Annual 64
Jackson Music Awards; 65
• 2020 Award for Mississippi Legend at the Underground 66
Southern Soul Awards; 67
• 2025 B.B. King Entertainer of the Year category winner at 68
the Blues Music Awards; and 69
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• Coleman has over 125 credits listed on AllMusic; and 70
WHEREAS, Coleman has given workshops for Epiphone. He is 71
endorsed by Ernie Ball, Nord, and Humes and Berg. He is on the 72
roster of the Mississippi Arts Commission and conducts programs in 73
the area schools teaching the young and old about the blues. His 74
latest album, The Mississippi Blues Child, on the Malaco Records 75
Label debuted at No. 6 on the Living Blues Chart and made the Top 76
50 for the 2015 year; and 77
WHEREAS, Coleman was cast in Get on Up as the first guitar 78
player for James Brown, playing the role of Les Buie. In 2016, he 79
was cast as the young B.B. King on three episodes of the CMT 80
series Sun Records and, in 2021, he was cast as a blues singer and 81
musician in the movie Texas Red, performing one of his original 82
songs from his new album Sippnotized with special arrangements for 83
the movie; and 84
WHEREAS, in 2018, Coleman opened his own blues club known as 85
Sipp's Place in Magnolia, Mississippi. In 2019, along with his 86
blues tours and blues club in Magnolia, Castro Coleman came back 87
to gospel with The True Believers. After a few years, Castro 88
Coleman and The True Believers released Back to the Roots, 89
recorded live in April 2018 at Prince of Peace Church in 90
Blytheville, Arkansas. It was released on February 1, 2019; and 91
WHEREAS, his discography includes the following: 92
Mr. Sipp - The Mississippi Blues Child 93
• 2013: It's My Guitar, Baby Boy Records; 94
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ST: Recognize music contributions of
Mississippi Gospel and Blues Artist Castro "Mr.
Sipp" Coleman from McComb, Mississippi.
• 2015: The Mississippi Blues Child, Malaco Records; 95
• 2017: Knock a Hole In It, Malaco Records; 96
• 2021: Sippnotized, Malaco Records; 97
• 2024: The Soul Side of Sipp, Malaco Records; 98
The True Believers 99
• Steppin' Out on Faith, Blackberry Records; 100
• Don't Count Me Out, Blackberry Records; 101
• Live at Home with Family and Friends, Blackberry Records; 102
• 2007: In This Place, Malaco Records; 103
• 2008: Break Through, Malaco Records; 104
• 2018: Back to the Roots, Winds/Malaco; and 105
• 2021: The Sound We Grew Up On, Winds/Malaco; and 106
WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we commend a Mississippi 107
blues and gospel ambassador who has brought the attention of a 108
music generation to his home town and to the State of Mississippi: 109
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF 110
MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby recognize the music contributions 111
of Mississippi gospel and blues artist Castro "Mr. Sipp" Coleman 112
from McComb, Mississippi, Grammy-winning guitarist with the 113
Williams Brothers, and extend our congratulations to a Mississippi 114
gospel and blues ambassador and best wishes for future success. 115
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to 116
Castro Coleman, forwarded to the Mississippi Arts Commission and 117
be made available to the Capitol Press Corps. 118