This year marks the birth of a new New Orleans Mardi-Gras tradition with the first Algiers Mardi Gras Festival on the Westbank. In true Mardi Gras spirit, the daytime neighbourhood festival will include food and beverage booths, arts and crafts, classic Crescent City music, and a foot parade. 

The festival is scheduled for Saturday, February 1 near the Algiers Courthouse. Festival founder, Oscar Rainey, is looking to bring more of a citywide Carnival celebration to Algiers early in the Carnival season. 

When choosing the date, he didn’t want to conflict too much with other parades in the City. He said, “We didn’t want to go too deep into parade season.” However, this date presents the perfect opportunity to get everybody in the Mardi-Gras spirit early.

Set to be an all-day Carnival extravaganza, the festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. with various musical performances. Featured throughout the day are the Marine Corps Reserve band, Dj Jubilee, the Algiers Brass Band and others. To culminate the celebration, the Brass-A-Holics will perform at 4:20 p.m.

The Brass-A-Holics are no strangers to a New Orleans party. They have a plethora of well-written originals such as, “Let It Roll” that instantly make you want to be dancing down the street and celebrating Mardi Gras in style. They were featured at this year’s Fried Chicken Fest on the main stage curated by OffBeat, and their performance showcased their natural gift to deliver an authentic groovin New Orleans celebration. With horn-heavy instrumentation, backgrounds in modern jazz and a talent for innovative funk and hip-hop, this New Orleans household name will surely bring the Mardi Gras spirit to this new festival. 

The idea for the festival was born when Oscar Rainey’s father, George Rainey, became king of the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club in 2019. As the Zulu flag was raised at the Algiers Courthouse, Oscar Rainey began to see the future for a new and exciting annual Algiers Carnival festival. The festival is finally here.