“It’s all very honest and real,” - Offbeat Magazine 

 

Born in a hurricane in October of '85, 

Jourdan Thibodeaux is the guy you picture when someone says the word “authentic.” Straight from the blackjack boggy woods of Cypress Island, Louisiana,  Jourdan is widely regarded as a driving force in the modern preservation of Cajun culture, and is one of only a small number of young people speaking Louisiana French today. His soulful singing and fiddling are the perfect medium for his ever-growing repertoire of original Louisiana French songs. His musical ability and his crafty songwriting which is at once classic and progressive has afforded him a band comprised of some of the finest artists in Acadiana.

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"Cajun music's equivalent of a rock star" - CBS News's 60 Minutes

 

Jourdan Thibodeaux is a torchbearer for the Louisiana French language and culture. Through his music and story telling, he brings the vibrant traditions of the bayous to a global audience, offering immersive lessons that go beyond the textbook. Jourdan’s mission is to preserve the soulful heritage of his roots while providing the tools to connect people with their own histories.

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“I have seen the future of Cajun music and its name is Jourdan Thibodeaux.” - Acadiana Profile Magazine

 

Thibodeaux is one of a small number of younger people who grew up speaking Louisiana French naturally, having learned it from his grandmother. In his early twenties, he was diagnosed with throat cancer. Fearing he would lose his voice, he urgently began composing and recording original songs in Louisiana French to pass the language down to his children. After making a full recovery, he has dedicated his life to cultural preservation. He heavily promotes Louisiana French immersion programs, shares language resources on social media, and famously notes,

"Tu vis ta culture, ou tu tues ta culture, il n'y a pas de milieu"

(You either live your culture or you kill your culture—there’s no in-between.)

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   Jourdan remains true to his roots in just about everything he does. Tucked away in the swampy woods of St Martin Parish, sits his 200 year old cypress home. Originally built in Washington, La, he spent three years disassembling, moving, and reconstructing it in his spare time, always making sure to maintain its original character. From it's front porch, he makes his Louisiana French du jour videos, while watching over his livestock.

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"Sausage-making, violin-playing, French-speaking cowboy"- BP Arts Media

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  He has earned a living in Cajun and Creole food manufacturing with Comeaux's Inc, beginning at the age of 15, processing deer. His latest venture, Cypress Cove Landing, a massive passion project with partner Scott LaGrange, is what he hopes to become a cultural hub. 

"We came into this with the idea of carrying on all of the facets of our culture. We offer weekly cultural dances, language lessons, guided alligator hunts, houseboat rentals, educational swamp tours, music history with Soko Tours, and a lot more to come. A place for our community, that you can bring your children to live their culture, while also offering outsiders an oppurtunity to experience our area authentically. Not the commercial, overproduced, cartoon version of who we are as a people. A place that prioritizes real experience over profit."

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  As Capitaine of the Faquetaique Courir de Mardi Gras, a role he considers one of his greatest honors, he leads upwards of 700 runners annually, carrying on centuries old traditions, deeply rooted in his Catholic faith.

 

His approach is anchored in the belief that a culture is a living, breathing entity, best learned firsthand through music, cuisine, storytelling, and real life experience.

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He has been featured on 60 minutes, and programs on Travel Channel, Discovery, TV5, France24, PBS, CBC, CNN with Anthony Bourdain, several documentaries, including the award winning “Roots of Fire”, and more.          

   Whether he is playing music festivals across the US and internationally, or being the Capitaine of the traditional courir de Mardi Gras, catching alligators in the Atchafalaya Basin, or teaching Louisiana French online, Jourdan is always a dedicated ambassador of Cajun and Creole culture.