Big wait in town for teen sensation

But he's already jammed with Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton, Los Lobos, The Roots, Foo Fighters, Derek Trucks and opened for BB King. He was three when his parents gifted him a First Act acoustic guitar for Christmas. By five, Sullivan was doing shows around his hometown, New Bedford, Massachusetts. And at six, he was invited to perform on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Sullivan got his big break at eight after a backstage meeting with iconic bluesman Buddy Guy , who was performing at the Zeiterion Theatre in New Bedford. “I had my little

Squier Fender Strat

and he signed the guitar for me,“ says Sullivan, who was a huge fan of the blues legend. Guy asked him to play a few lyrics and was taken aback by his talent. A few months later, Guy called him onstage. “He played so well, I thought he was Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton,

Jeff Beck

and whoever else the way he was playing,“ Guy told TOI in an earlier interview. After playing together for almost a decade, Sullivan has learned to anticipate Guy's improvisations during a set. “But there'll still be times when he just does something out of the ordinary. It's fascinating,“ he says.

Sullivan, who will graduate from high school this year, has toured the US and Canada and appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Oprah and The

Tonight Show

with Jay Leno. He struggled a little when his voice changed, but overcame the awkward phase with the help of a vocal coach.

Since his last visit to the Mahindra Blues Festival in 2015, Sullivan has toured Europe with Guy and released his third album `Midnight Highway'. “It kind of describes the path I'm on as a musician and a person.The title track, 'Midnight Highway', is about being on a path-it's a metaphor for what I've been aiming for.“

A few of the tracks, like `Eyes For You' and 'Going', have been inspired by a girl, admits Sullivan. “I do have a girlfriend,“ says the teenager.