PORTLAND, Ore. — A musician set to perform at TEDxPortland on Saturday will honor his distant cousin, legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix.
"His dad and my grandad are first cousins," said drummer Tyrone Hendrix.
Tyrone Hendrix is part owner of the Alberta Street Pub in Northeast Portland. He also plays there and has an impressive pedigree.
"My mama said I beat up her pots and pans all around the house when I was a little kid, so she knew I was gonna do something," he said.
Tyrone Hendrix has played with musical legends including Prince, Stevie Wonder and Washington state's own R&B phenom, Allen Stone.
Now, he is collaborating with TEDxPortland for the biggest indoor TEDx event in the world. It will be held on May 28 at Moda Center, after the pandemic canceled the event three different times.
"TED" stands for technology entertainment and design. The theme this year is "audacious" and that describes TED's tribute to Jimi Hendrix.
"What they will see is high energy right off the bat," he said. "Just high energy right off the bat."
The audience will hear Jimi Hendrix hits including "Purple Haze" and "Foxy Lady." Following in the Hendrix family footsteps, Tyrone Hendrix's 11-year-old son will be sitting in on percussion.
The music is set against a backdrop of famous photos including the one of Jimi kneeling in front of his flaming guitar at the Monterey Music Festival in 1967. A teen in the audience took the photo and TEDx turned it into a mammoth billboard at the intersection of Broadway Avenue and Williams Street.
"People haven't really seen it that blown up before," he said. "So, you definitely saw people getting out their cars and taking pictures and just looking at it."
Jimi Hendrix loved that picture so much that he invited the teen, Ed Caraeff, to join his tour. Caraeff went on to become one of rock and roll's preeminent photographers. He will be in the audience when Tyrone Hendrix takes the stage this weekend.
"I'm very nervous but once I hit the snare from the first downbeat the nervousness goes away," he said.
TEDxPortland starts at 9 a.m. at Theater of the Clouds at Moda Center. Tickets are available online along with a complete list of speakers and performers.