Plenty of Zakk Knight’s classmates are rappers aspiring to be the next Lil’ Wayne, but he’s a guitarist in tune with the “three Kings” of electric blues.

Albert, B.B. and Freddie King were stars in the 1960s. Zakk, a 15-year-old sophomore at Lawrence Central High School, says he’s OK with being a blues musician in a hip-hop world.

“It doesn’t bother me,” he said. “There’s always going to be people who like your stuff, no matter what.”

Without selling a record or even booking a show, Zakk already has found high-profile support.

The Robert Johnson Blues Foundation selected Zakk as the winner of the 2009 New Generation Award, based on a written essay and a video in which the guitarist played a rendition of Freddie King’s “Hideaway” and “They Call Me Guitar Hurricane,” popularized by Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Zakk traveled to Mississippi in May to collect the award and participate in festivities celebrating the 98th anniversary of Johnson’s birth.

He says his favorite Johnson tune is “Come On in My Kitchen,” a song the late bluesman recorded in 1936.

“How he can play and do three parts at one time is amazing,” says Zakk, who began playing guitar at age 12.

He credits his stepfather, Mike Burke, for instructing the basics.

Vocal talent — which Zakk cultivates as a member of the Lawrence Central choir — can be traced to his father, Steve Knight, a former Colts offensive lineman who sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” before two games in the late 1980s.

Zakk’s mother, Debra, ranks as his No. 1 fan.

“I listen to him play and either I can cry or just feel the greatest sensation,” she said.

The self-proclaimed “Blues Blaster on the Stratocaster” says he plays guitar eight hours a day, and he’s often found trading riffs at the Guitar Center store in Castleton.

Aside from a cameo appearance with Indianapolis-based band the Twin Cats last summer at the Mousetrap nightclub, Knight’s public performances have been limited to school functions and his trip to Mississippi.

He’s eager to play more stages with Powerhouse, his blues-rock trio that features Byron Boler on drums and Brad Kossmann on bass.

“I’m more comfortable in front of a bigger audience,” Zakk said. “I’ll go down to Guitar Center and be nervous playing for three people.”