Three days of jazz, joy and Jamaican vibes in the Big Easy

It's late April in New Orleans, which means at least two things in the Big Easy. One, it's hot as hell, and two, Jazz Fest is here.

I'm attending three days of the two-week-long festival.

With headliners like Lorde, David Byrne, Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks, the word "jazz" might seem misguided, but as you read down the long list of New Orleans and Louisiana-based acts, it's clear this is still a music festival dedicated to the music the city invented.

I'm a clueless newbie, just happy to be here. I walk through the festival gates and smell fried food. I hear horns and men singing.

There's the Blues Tent, the Gospel Tent, the Jazz and Heritage stage, the Jamaican Cultural Pavilion, and nine more. Every year Jazz Fest celebrates a different culture, and this year it's Jamaica.

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival has been running since 1970. It's organised by a non-profit organisation with the same name and sponsored by Shell.

The first musicians to perform at this year's event were Mahalia Jackson, Duke Ellington, Pete Fountain, Al Hirt, Clifton Chenier, Fats Domino, The Meters, The Preservation Hall Band, The Olympia Brass Band and Mardi Gras Indians.

Fittingly, the first act I see are the Black Foot Hunters Mardi Gras Indians. They are decked out in feathers, regalia and colourful masks, playing tambourines and various drums. The Mardi Gras Indians emerged in the late 1800s as a subculture of Black Americans and Native Americans blending practices.

They are exclusive to New Orleans.

Later, at the Native Nations station nearby, I watch performances unique for their cries, banging drums and bells from the dancing feet. Different tribes graciously demonstrate their dances for attendees, while a woman at the microphone shares their stories.

She jokes that a lot of people think Native Americans invented scalping, but they actually adopted it from the French and the Indians perfected it.

Cultural and artistic demonstrations, local crafts, fashion, fried seafood, po' boys and bread pudding cocktails are everywhere. I want to see and do it all.

Stephen Marley's set fits nicely with the Jamaican vibe and I catch the tail end of Kings of Leon where I hear Sex Is on Fire.

On Friday, I watch New Orleans singer-songwriter Joy Clark belt out beautiful songs while playing electric guitar. I was moved by her cover of Talkin' Bout A Revolution by Tracy Chapman, a song she says is important to sing with everything happening in America these days.

I then hurry to see Ani DiFranco, one of my favourite folk singers. She doesn't disappoint and, like Clark, is not only singing but also talking politics. She spoke to the crowd about the importance of a woman's right to choose. I was shocked when a man behind me loudly disagreed with her.

"Dude, this is an Ani DiFranco concert, what do you expect?" someone called out. He soon found a different tent.

David Byrne's Naive Melody made me miss home in a sea of fans who felt the same, and New Orleans' own, Grammy-winning Jon Batiste, was so good I abandoned Lorde to watch his entire Friday night set. He and dozens of performers danced, rapped and played one zillion instruments with nods to Jeff Buckley, Tupac and whoever sings If You're Happy and You Know It. He finished by leading a second line into the excited crowd while playing When the Saints Go Marching In.

On Sunday he returned, this time to the Blues Tent, with a different crew and vibe: Swamp, a world premiere of 1950s southern African American nostalgia which he described as "dystopian-swamp-sci-fi-drama-musical".

Every musician was great, but Batiste made Jazz Fest for me.

After Jazz Fest, as the crowd leaves, locals put on their own show in the neighbourhood with Porch Fest: tasty home-made food, jello shots, fortune telling, live poetry, freestyle rapping and everything in-between.

Later, the trolley back to the city is packed with people who can't wait to do it again. My three days at Jazz Fest were unlike any other festival I've been to. I understand why New Orleans loves it and why everyone loves New Orleans.

Tributes & Funerals Notices

Abell, Stephen
2026

Published 2 May

Armstrong, Anne
1938 - 2026

Published 2 May

Beldham, Owen
2026

Published 2 May

Jordan, Brian
2026

Published 2 May
More Tributes & Funerals Notices