Cedric Watson is a Creole artist from southern Louisiana who plays the fiddle and accordion, writes his own songs, and sings them. He made his full-length solo debut in 2008 with the Grammy-nominated album Cedric Watson after establishing himself a few years earlier in collaboration with the Pine Leaf Boys and others. Born in 1983, Watson grew up in Sealy, Texas and later moved to Lafayette, Louisiana, where he found a musical scene befitting his talents. He made his commercial recording debut in 2004 on the album L'Autre Bord de l'Eau by the Savoy-Michot Cajun Band. The critically acclaimed album earned the Savoy-Michot Cajun Band praise from Offbeat magazine, which gave them its award for Best Emerging Cajun Band of 2004. In the wake of this acclaim, bandleader Wilson Savoy (accordion, fiddle, vocals) and Watson teamed up in a new Cajun band, the Pine Leaf Boys, who made their album debut in 2006 with La Musique on Arhoolie Records. Around this same time, Watson was featured on a few other albums: Goin' Down to Louisiana (2006), a collaboration with Corey Ledet (accordion) on Valcour Records; Allons Boire un Coup (2006), a compilation on Valcour; and Les Amis Creole (2006), a collaboration with Edward Poullard (accordion, fiddle, vocals) and James Adams (guitar) on Arhoolie Records. The second Pine Leaf Boys album, Blues de Musicien (2007), was nominated for a Grammy Award. Watson left the band at this point and embarked on a solo career as a Creole artist. He made his full-length solo debut in 2008 with the Grammy-nominated eponymous album Cedric Watson. His second album, the likewise Grammy-nominated L'Ésprit Créole (2009), features the backing band Bijou Créole. The band is comprised of Mike Chaisson (frottoir), Blake Miller (bass), Chris Stafford (guitar), and Jermaine Prejean (drums). ~ Jason Birchmeier