The detailed lineup of all performers at the 2014 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival was announced during a special presentation on March 25, 2014. Before the “cubes,” as they are known, were released, Jazz Fest executive producer Quint Davis took a moment to marvel at the fact that Jazz Fest turns 45 this year.
Photo by: Stephen Maloney
“To have kept this festival going, and have it be just as strong and just as relevant today as when it started, when you think about all the changes that have gone on through society, through culture, through the economy – it’s really the City of New Orleans that we have to thank,” Davis said. “It’s the people of New Orleans, it’s the culture of New Orleans – that’s an advantage we have over the rest of the world.”
Davis said the festival has made it through some extremely tough times, from after September 11 when people were afraid to fly to after Hurricane Katrina when the city was on its knees. Throughout it all, the vibrant culture of New Orleans has helped the festival prevail, he said.
“It’s the leadership of this city, and it’s the people of this city that stick with this festival through thick and through thin,” he said. “Fortunately, we are in the golden age of New Orleans where we come back not to be as good as we were, but as good as we can.”
Photo by: Stephen Maloney
Davis thanked Mayor Mitch Landrieu, City Council President Jackie Clarkson, and council members Susan Guidry and James Gray for their support.
He also said sponsors like Shell, Miller, Coca Cola, and People’s Health have enabled the festival to stay afloat after Katrina and into the future.
Beyond this year’s music lineup, which includes headliners like Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, Phish, and Bruce Springsteen, Davis touted the food options, which he called “the best food festival in the world,” as well as the multiple cultural activities throughout the festival.
“The cubes are designed to get us beyond the big names that we know and love,” he said. “This festival has 27 brass bands, 45 Mardi Gras Indian tribes, and 40 social aid and pleasure clubs.”
There has also been a cultural exchange with the country of Brazil this year that Davis said has resulted in the most widespread cultural cross pollination in the festival’s history. Add that to the artist’s villages, and the overall festival has something for everyone.
“If you get to come here and go to a party with New Orleans people dancing to their music, you get to go to the best cultural party in the world,” Davis said.
Click here to get to the cubes for every day of Jazz Fest 2014.
Check out a photo gallery from the event here.
