The NOLA Crawfish Festival will return for its second incarnation during this year’s Jazz Fest season. Much like last year’s debut, the event will take place during the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday between both weekends of Jazz Fest (May 1-3). Unlike last year’s debut, the party will go down at the The Smokeyard at Central City BBQ instead of the NOLA Brewing Company.

At the top of the lineup is the Crawfish Fest All Stars, a supergroup comprised of George Porter Jr., John “Papa” Gros, June Yamagishi, Terence Higgins and special guests. Unique collaborations appear to be a theme, as other acts on the bill include Alvin Youngblood Hart’s Muscle Theory with Luther Dickinson, NCF Funk Squad (Porter, Higgins, Eric Krasno and John Medeski) and MVP (Jon Cleary, Nigel Hall, Tony Hall, “Big D” Perkins and Raymond Weber).

The lineup also features Neville Jacobs, Khris Royal & Dark Matter, Boukou Groove, Good Enough for Good Times, Corey Henry & The Treme Funktet, Eric Lindell, Raw Oyster Cult feat. Darcy Malone + special guests, and Organ Freeman. More artists will be added in the coming months.

Of course, crawfish will be an integral part of the NOLA Crawfish Festival. Those duties will primarily be handled by Chris “Shaggy” Davis (aka The NOLA Crawfish King), who will boil 5,000 pounds of crawfish over the course of the event.

Additionally, the festival’s Ultimate Crawfish Cook-Off will return on Wednesday, May 3, the final day of the event. Twenty teams will compete for title, with the winners determined by a panel of celebrity judges (last year’s panel included musicians like Anders Osborne and Dave Malone, along with chefs like Kristen Essig). Details regarding registration for the crawfish cook-off will be revealed in the coming weeks.

General admission tickets grants you one beer and guarantees two pounds of crawfish with all the fixings, while VIP and Super VIP passes will offer extra amenities. Additional crawfish, as well as BBQ dishes, will be available for purchase. Ticketing information can be found via the festival’s website.

A portion of all ticket proceeds will support Anders Osborne and the CAN’d Aid Foundation’s new Send Me a Friend initiative, which assist touring musicians who are in recovery by connecting them with temporary sponsors while they’re on the road.

As previously reported, Jazz Fest will take place at the Fair Grounds Race Course from April 28-30 and May 4-7. Stevie Wonder, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Maroon 5, Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds, Kings of Leon, Usher & The Roots, Harry Connick, Jr., Meghan Trainor, Lorde, Snoop Dogg, Alabama Shakes, Pitbull, Widespread Panic, Trey Anastasio Band, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave. and many more will perform at the festival.

NOLA Crawfish Festival Daily Music Lineups:

May 1 
Khris Royal & Dark Matter + special guests
Good Enough For Good Times (Robert Mercurio, Jeff Raines, Simon Lott & Joe Ashlar)
Eric Lindell
Neville Jacobs (Ivan Neville, Cris Jacobs, Tony Hall, Brady Blade)

May 2
Boukou Groove
Alvin Youngblood Hart’s Muscle Theory With Luther Dickinson
MVP (Jon Cleary, Nigel Hall, Tony Hall, Derwin “Big D” Perkins & Raymond Weber)
NCF Funk Squad (Eric Krasno, George Porter Jr., John Medeski & Terence Higgins)

May 3 
Organ Freeman
Raw Oyster Cult
Corey Henry & The Treme Funktet
Crawfish Fest All Stars (George Porter Jr., John “Papa” Gros, June Yamagishi, Terence Higgins) + special guests