Selby Minner, widow of D.C. Minner and one-half of the duo Blues on the Move, was found dead near her home in Rentiesville, Oklahoma, on June 10. The trailblazing musician and blues historian dedicated her life to sharing and preserving the music she loved. She was 75 years old.
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Minner’s granddaughter, Micaela Minner, shared the news of Minner’s death in a recent social media post. “My grandmother, Selby Minner, was murdered on June 9 in Rentiesville, Oklahoma–inside her home and steps from the blues club she poured her entire soul into for decades,” she wrote.
Mrs. Minner founded and operated the Down Home Blues Club, which also housed the Oklahoma Blues Hall of Fame. She and her late husband co-founded the Dusk ‘til Dawn Blues Festival.
“Selby wasn’t just my grandma, she was a blues legend, a trailblazer, a civil rights advocate, a teacher, a mother, a grandmother to the community, and a guardian of music history,” the younger Minner’s post continued. “She opened her doors to everyone–young musicians trying to find their voice, travelers passing through, kids needing a safe place to dream. Her club wasn’t just a stage. It was a home. A sanctuary. A piece of living Black history,” she added.
Minner’s family is doing what they can to keep her legacy alive. They’ve launched a GoFundMe to help keep the Down Home Blues Club and the Oklahoma Blues Hall of Fame open.
What Happened to Selby Minner?
According to The Oklahoman, law enforcement officials responded to a call at the Honey Springs Battlefield historic site near Rentiesville. Concerned citizens reported a man who had been sitting at the site for hours. When they arrived on the scene, he was “visibly covered in what appeared to be blood and in possession of a hammer.”
The man was 68-year-old Louis Carl Guenther, Selby Minner’s younger brother. He immediately confessed to killing Minner and directed the authorities to her body. Guenther was then arrested on one count of first-degree murder.
More About Minner
Selby Minner met her future husband and longtime musical collaborator, D.C. Minner, in 1969. Seven years later, the pair started performing together. Then, they tied the knot in 1979. They formed the duo Blues on the Move and toured the United States for more than a decade.
After moving to D.C. Minner’s hometown of Rentiesville, Oklahoma, in 1988, they founded the Down Home Blues Club. Two years later, they started the Dusk ‘til Dawn Blues Festival. Selby Minner had been keeping the club and Hall of Fame going since D.C. died in 2008.
The Minners were also educators, taking music to schools via the Blues in the Schools program. This endeavor earned them the Keeping the Blues Alive Award from the International Blues Foundation. Minner also gave music lessons in Rentiesville.
Featured Image via YouTube
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