Photo by Alex Maness
The Wiley Fosters began in 2010 as the house band at Zog’s Pool Hall in Chapel Hill. They’ve held residencies at Mystery Brewing Company (2014 - 2018), Unscripted Hotel (2019 - 2023), Blue Note Grill (2019 - 2024), and are currently in residency at Durham Beer Garden (2024 - today).
They are named in tribute to their great friend Mr Tater The Music Maker (née Foster Wiley) of Clarksdale, Mississippi. The Wiley Fosters try and live up to the example that the real Foster Wiley set by always having new members, new instrumentation, and new songs. As Mr. Tater famously said in his “Music Maker” documentary, “I make people happy… and I never play the same song twice neither.”