From jamming with Jimi Hendrix as a teenager, through his disco days with Chic and Sister Sledge, to producing David Bowie, Madonna, Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck, right through to Nile’s huge hit ‘Get Lucky’ in the 21st century with electronica stars Daft Punk. Nile is the ultimate cross-genre guitarist.

With Buddy’s boundless enthusiasm to work in new musical styles, it is easy to imagine him meeting and collaborating with Nile. As the Chairman of the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame, Nile knows what it takes to be a great songwriter, mixing a writer’s early inspirations with new ideas to produce something original, creative and everlasting.

Nile’s Foundation guitar is called ‘Sexy Ways’, after a Hank Ballard and the Midnighters song that has a special place in Buddy’s story. Before his career took off, Buddy was working with his brother Larry in the family tiling business, and they stopped at a juke joint late one night returning from a job. The juke joint’s band were playing Hank Ballard songs, and when Buddy joined in with the band on guitar, the appreciative audience spread the word until the place was packed and rocking. Larry always said that he knew that night Buddy would be a success in music, and resolved then to do all that he could to support Buddy in his dream to be a musician.

Mike Read