Wayne Toups books a December Saturday at the Texas Club

The Crowley-raised "zydecajun" accordion man returns to Donmoor Avenue on Saturday, Dec 5. Tickets are on sale now.

In Baton Rouge, a Wayne Toups night at the Texas Club is close to a holiday tradition. The new date is on the calendar: Wayne Toups plays the Texas Club on Saturday, Dec 5, with music at 9 p.m. The show was announced Oct. 19, and tickets run $27.35 to $202.35 through Ticketmaster.

That spread in price tells you what kind of night it is. The Texas Club holds about 1,000 people, and a Toups show tends to bring dancers who want floor space along with people who want a seat. Decide which you are and buy early. A Saturday in December, a few weeks before Christmas, is exactly when people book a night out with the whole crew.

For newcomers, the background is worth knowing. Toups grew up in Crowley on his rice-farming family's land. His older brother taught him Cajun accordion when he was 13, and he was soon competing in local contests. He went on to blend Cajun music with zydeco, R&B and rock into a style he named zydecajun, which also became the title of his 1980s breakthrough album. His 1995 record Back to the Bayou became the fastest-selling album ever for the independent Louisiana label Swallow Records. Country fans have heard him too, even if they didn't know it: he played accordion on Mark Chesnutt's "It Sure Is Monday."

The accordion leads, but the band hits like a rock show.

The honors have followed. The Acadian Museum inducted Toups into its Legends on Dec. 29, 2001, and he is also listed in the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame and the Gulf Coast Hall of Fame. Plenty of hall-of-famers have slowed down by this point. Toups is still playing dance halls like this one.

Why this room? The Texas Club on North Donmoor Avenue has been a home base for him in Baton Rouge for years. 225 Baton Rouge has listed his Texas Club shows more than once, and he has another date there in August 2026 on the books. It's a big, plain dance hall built for a working band, a bar and a floor, which is exactly what this music needs. Nobody comes to a Toups show to stand still.

When to buy: now, if you care where you stand. Tickets went on sale with the announcement, and the cheaper tier is the one that goes first at a show like this. The 9 p.m. start means a late night, so plan your ride home before the second set.

Wear shoes you can dance in. Bring the friend who swears they can't two-step. By the end of the night they'll be out on the floor with everyone else.

Sources: Wayne Toups (Wikipedia) (en.wikipedia.org); Acadian Museum: Wayne Toups (acadianmuseum.com); Wayne Toups (Qobuz) (qobuz.com); Wayne Toups at the Texas Club (225 Baton Rouge) (225batonrouge.com); Ticketmaster: Wayne Toups w/ Dustin Sonnier, Baton Rouge, 12-05-2026 (ticketmaster.com); JamBase: Wayne Toups at Texas Club (jambase.com)