Keb' Mo', armed with a guitar and banjo, has been making the world take notice of his arrival since his debut 1994 album was released. He has ranked within the top five on Billboard's Top Blues Album chart every time a new album is released.

According to Mo,' his main sources of influence come from the old country blues styles of Big Bill Broonzy and Robert Johnson, the king of the Delta Blues. Johnson is regarded as a celebrated and seminal character in the blues community as a pioneer of the music form. Mo' is known to cover Johnson's songs in concert and has recorded two of Johnson's songs on his debut album.

However, Keb' Mo' doesn't focus his sound on the nostalgic sounds of the past. To mix things up Mo' dabbles in soul and his own brand of folksy storytelling, which he accredits to his eclectic background in the music scene. He has played in jazz and rock bands throughout his life before focusing primarily on a blues career.

“Keb' Mo' is great,” says Christopher Watroba, a Buffalo State student. “He doesn't sound like all of these other hokey electric blues musicians. He's got a very old-fashioned and primitive sound . It's pretty refreshing.”

His juxtaposition of modern storytelling and old-fashioned sound has made Keb' Mo' a highly revered contemporary blues musician. He appeared in “Can't You Hear the Wind Howl,” a docudrama based on Robert Johnson's brief, but mythic life. He was also one of the subjects for “Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues,” a documentary about the history and evolution of blues music.

Mo' was also selected to narrate and host a 13 segment Public Radio International series. Entitled “The Blues,” this vast chronicle of blues music was, according to PRI, the company's most widely broadcast radio special in existence.

Born Kevin Moore in 1951 and raised in Compton, California, Keb' Mo' has released several albums in his lifetime beginning with his self-titled 1994 release. His 1996 album, “Just Like You,” earned him a Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues album. The 1998 release of “Slow Down” won Mo' another Grammy in the same category.

“Keb' Mo' crafts a warm, wry, blues-informed version of pop Americana that wrestles with contemporary problems like how to pay the mortgage, the high price of coffee , or how to afford a vacation in France,” said All Music Guide in its review of Mo's new album, “Keep It Simple.”

“He's a good guitar, he's a good songwriter and he's a good singer,” said Joe Igielinski, manager of Record Theatre and blues music connoisseur. “What more could people want?”

Now he's coming to Buffalo State. Mo' will be performing at the Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall at 8 p.m. April 2. All seats will be reserved. Tickets are still available. The opening act has yet to be announced. Tickets are:

• $27.50 advance
• $29.50 at the door
• they are on sale at the Rockwell Hall Box Office, (716) 878-3005
• and Ticketmaster, (716) 852-5000

For more information see: www.buffalostate.edu/pac/season/kebmo or www.kebmo.com .