The ninth annual NOLA River Fest on Saturday, October 23, at the New Orleans Jazz Museum celebrates the cultural, economic, and environmental impacts of the Mississippi River and its inhabitants on the Crescent City and the entire Gulf South region. The daylong celebration from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. will include live music, local food and craft vendors, and a  full bar. This year’s theme explores Caribbean connections, specifically the tradition of rum and sugar production and trade and their immense impact on international economies.

The N’Awlins D’Awlins Baby Dolls and the Original Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians led by Big Queen Mary K. Stevenson will start the day off with a second line parade beginning at 11 a.m. at Jackson Square and disbanding at the New Orleans Jazz Museum.

“As we navigate the COVID pandemic and recover from damage caused by Hurricane Ida, it’s all the more important we keep our cultural traditions alive,” said Greg Lambousy, director of the New Orleans Jazz Museum. “Fortunately with our large grounds that take up an entire city block, the museum is uniquely positioned to make this happen.”

The festival is free and open to the public. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the festival will allow limited in-person access but programs and concerts may be viewed online through Facebook Live.

The performance lineup includes:

10:30 – 11:30 am | The Luther Gray Drum Circle is led by Luther Gray (born 1952) who founded the Congo Square Preservation Society in 1994, which successfully campaigned for the New Orleans site to be added to the National Register of Historic Places. Since then Gray has worked to bring drumming and other cultural activities back to Congo Square. Bamboula 2000, a percussion group Gray founded, performs regularly in Congo Square and across the country, educating school groups and the general public about the traditions of African-style drumming and percussion.

12 – 1 pm | The Tremé-Lafitte Brass Band with special guests the N’Awlins Dawlins Baby Dolls and Big Queen Mary Kay of the Original Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians. The Tremé-Lafitte Brass Band takes New Orleans’ traditional style and adds on funk with new original songs written and performed by the award-winning Broadway star Palonco Jones. Iconic bandleader Vernon Severin has performed since he was in middle school, melding the music from the New Orleans streets he grew up on with the sounds he heard traveling the world.

1 – 2 pm (Chi Chi Millman Stage) | New Orleans-born Grayhawk Perkins, who is of Native American Choctaw and Houma Nation descent, is a well-known cultural figure in Louisiana. In his career, he has worked professionally as an educator, historian, and a musician. As a musician, he has been involved with the New Orleans music industry for decades, having shared the stage with many notable acts such as Dr. John and Coco Robicheaux. He performs regularly at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the Voodoo Experience Music Festival, and has worked as a Jazz Fest Coordinator for over 25 years.

1:30 – 2:30 pm | Bo Dollis Jr & The Wild Magnolias offer a modern musical face of Mardi Gras Indian culture, helping to unite the Mardi Gras Indian nation with performing artists throughout New Orleans. Bo Dollis Jr.’s new album, My Name Is Bo, released in August, represents the sounds of Indian practices with some of New Orleans’ best musicians and vocalists.

3- 4 pm | Formed in 2016, the Jason Neville Funky Soul Band compiles a mix of covers and originals to showcase a creative combination of funk and jazz. Jason Neville, son of world-famous vocalist Aaron Neville, and lead vocalist and percussionist Lirette Dabney Neville, known as “The First Lady of Funk,” head the band.

4:30 – 5:30 pm | Casa Samba was founded in 1987 by Mestre Curtis Pierre, Bill Lennon, Chuk and Carolyn Barber. On July 21, 1993, Mayor Sidney Bartholomew proclaimed Casa Samba as the first samba school in New Orleans, one the premier cities of Carnival in the world. The group is directed by Mestre Curtis Pierre, and Brasilian master drummer, Jorge “Alabe” Bezerra.

6 – 7 pm | Sunpie and the Louisiana Sunspots specialize in their own style of Afro-Louisiana music incorporating blues, zydeco, gospel, and Caribbean-influenced rhythms and melodies. Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes is the Big Chief of the North Side Skull and Bones Gang, one of the oldest Black Carnival groups in New Orleans. He has recorded six critically-acclaimed CDs with his compositions currently featured in 16 Hollywood film productions.

6 – 7 pm (Virtual only) | Jacques Schwarz-Bart, born in Guadeloupe, is a saxophonist best known for his creation of two new surging styles: Gwoka Jazz and Voodoo Jazz. He reunites jazz music with its Afro-Caribbean and spiritual origins. A professor at Berklee College of Music, Schwarz-Bart has performed with Erykah Badu, Eric Benet, and David Gilmore, among others.

Food vendors will include Carmo, Clesi’s Seafood, Street and Soul 504 and Friends of Culture with an emphasis on Caribbean-inspired cuisine. In collaboration with the Louisiana Crafts Guild, an outdoor arts market will be set up on the museum grounds from 12 to 6 p.m.

Numerous guest speakers will discuss a wide range of topics on Facebook Live throughout the week following the festival. View the list here.

For more information about NOLA River Fest visit here.