Latest news with #NewOrleansJazzandHeritageFestival
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joe Louis Walker, Revered Electric Blues Musician, Dead at 75
Joe Louis Walker, the virtuoso guitarist and electric blues musician whose work captured the breadth of the genre, died late last month. He was 75. Walker's family confirmed the musician's death, adding that the cause was cardiac-related illness. He was surrounded by his wife of 16 years, Robin, and two daughters, Leena and Bernice. Revered by his peers as a 'musician's musician,' Walker enjoyed a lengthy career, during which he worked with artists like Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, Mark Knopfler, and Steve Cropper, while earning praise from the likes of Herbie Hancock ('the Chick Corea of Blues') and Aretha Franklin (who called Walker 'The Bluesman'). He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, named a USA Fellow by United States Artists, received multiple W.C. Handy and Blue Music Awards, and a lifetime achievement prize from the Mississippi Valley Blues Society. More from Rolling Stone Jill Sobule, Singer of History-Making 1995 Single 'I Kissed a Girl,' Dies in House Fire at 66 Alarm Frontman Mike Peters Dead at 66 Stan Love, NBA Player and Brian Wilson's Caretaker, Dead at 76 Walker was born and raised in San Francisco, began playing the guitar as a kid, and by the late 1960s was gigging around the Bay Area as a teenager. He found himself dabbling as much in the blues as the burgeoning psychedelic rock scene, hanging out with Jimi Hendrix, playing with Mississippi Fred McDowell at the legendary rock club the Matrix, and befriending — and later rooming with — Michael Bloomfield. But Walker's efforts to build a career of his own faltered. He drank, did drugs, and eventually landed in jail in the early Seventies. 'I was a wild kid,' he told Rolling Stone in 1990. 'I was just into making money for a drink or getting high.' By the mid-Seventies, Walker was working odd jobs and soon started playing with the gospel group, the Spiritual Corinthians. But a performance with the group at the 1985 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival drew him back to the blues. In a 2023 interview with Premier Guitar, he recalled the revelation he had at the festival's gospel tent. 'I just said, 'You know what? I'm a restless soul with music.' Anybody listening to the 30-plus albums I've got, they'll hear me doing all kinds of stuff. It was just a sign of things to come for me.' Walker released his debut album, Cold Is the Night, in 1986, and over the next four decades, exhibited that adventurousness with albums that explored the vast world of the blues alongside strains of electric blues, jazz, soul, rock & roll, and R&B. In 2016, he was nominated for his first (and only) Grammy, Best Contemporary Blues Album, for Everybody Wants a Piece. Walker released what would be his last album of new material, Weight of the World, in 2023. Earlier this year, he returned to his debut album and re-recorded it as Cold Is the Night Reimagined. 'We reimagined it because of all the excitement we had making it,' Waker said in a clip explaining his decision to return to the album. Speaking with Rolling Stone in 1990, just as his career taking off — albeit belatedly — Walker said serenely, 'If I keep doing what I like to do and keep getting enjoyment out of it, then that to me is the main thing.' Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Axios
30-04-2025
- Climate
- Axios
Jazz Fest 2025: Your guide to weekend 2 in New Orleans
The rain returns for weekend two of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Why it matters: Grab your ponchos before you head out to see Lenny Kravitz, Pearl Jam and Patti LaBelle. The big picture: Rain is in the forecast every day of Jazz Fest this weekend, according to the National Weather Service. The days are expected to be mostly sunny with storms possible in the afternoon. Saturday looks like it could be the wettest with about an inch of rain, says NWS meteorologist Jacob Zeringue. They'll have a better idea about hourly timing on Friday, he says. ☔️ If you go: Handheld umbrellas are allowed, as long as they are smaller than 63 inches. (More rules) Shrimp boots AKA rain boots are good, along with rain ponchos. 🎶 Weekend headliners:
Toronto Star
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Star
Student gospel singers take stage at New Orleans festival known for celebrity acts
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival each spring is known for hosting some of the world's most famous jazz, funk and rock acts. Yet it's also become a showcase for lesser-known talent: local schoolchildren. Gospel choirs from area high schools took the stage Friday at the festival's famed Gospel Tent, continuing a decades-long tradition for Louisiana students.
Associated Press
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Student gospel singers take stage at New Orleans festival known for celebrity acts
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival each spring is known for hosting some of the world's most famous jazz, funk and rock acts. Yet it's also become a showcase for lesser-known talent: local schoolchildren. Gospel choirs from area high schools took the stage Friday at the festival's famed Gospel Tent, continuing a decades-long tradition for Louisiana students. First up to perform was the Eleanor McMain choir, jolting the audience with a blast of musical joy, from the rollicking call-and-response of 'Melodies From Heaven' to an a cappella rendition of the 'Battle Hymn of the Republic.' Choir member Chloe Bailey, 18, said the performance is about pride. 'Not only do I get to make myself proud, my parents proud, I get to make the whole world proud and have a look of how beautiful it is to see Black people and Black children thriving and going up higher, because we don't get a lot of opportunities like this,' she said. In a city with a rich music heritage, the festival is a prized opportunity to celebrate arts that teachers say do not receive the attention they once did in schools. Music education suffered in New Orleans in the 1990s due to funding cuts, said Matthew Sakakeeny, a professor of music at Tulane University. Up until then, majority Black schools typically had at least one full-time music teacher, even when schools were segregated, but dozens of teachers lost their jobs and offerings were 'drastically cut back,' he said. Hurricane Katrina was another blow, leading to the city's traditional public schools being replaced with charter schools. Sakakeeny said there's enormous pressure to focus on core academics, rather than arts, as they'll get shut down if their test scores are not good enough. 'It's just ironic that we're the birthplace of jazz, yet middle school students, elementary school students might not even go to a music class,' said Emeka Dibia, the choir director McDonogh 35, the first public high school established for Black students in New Orleans. Gospel has been an integral part of Jazz Fest since it began in 1970, headlined by gospel legend Mahalia Jackson. Students from McDonogh 35 started performing in the 1970s, and more schools followed, Dibia said. It's now tradition for Jazz Fest to have a day featuring student gospel choirs. Even the artist featured on this year's official Jazz Fest poster, Tarriona 'Tank' Ball of Tank and the Bangas, performed in the Gospel Tent when she was in ninth grade. Choirs from another historic Black public high school, L.B. Landry, as well as two local Christian schools performed Friday, while McDonogh 35 will perform next week. McMain soloist Tyree Arso, 18, said it's amazing to think about performing at the same festival as artists like Lil Wayne. 'It makes me recognize the people who have come before me, and it reminds me to try to do my best to honor them,' said Arso, who will attend the Boston Conservatory at Berklee next year. Gospel choir is an extracurricular activity at schools like McMain, where choir director Clyde Lawrence has been mentoring young singers for decades. He said religious music is allowed in a public school setting because there's educational value to learning about a variety of musical styles. 'I want to expose them to our heritage, to gospels, to hymns,' he said. Choirs are paid to perform at Jazz Fest, which provides funding for arts education. But the opportunity matters for other reasons to students like Leah Hawkins, a sophomore at McDonogh 35. Leah says she's been surrounded by gospel her whole life, but in front of an audience she'd shake with stage fright. Her mom told her to join choir anyway: 'You're going to sing.' Since then, Leah, 16, said her confidence has blossomed. 'You can't care about what people think. If you have a voice then use it, it doesn't matter what it's for,' said Leah. Her choirmate Wesley Whitsett, 17, said he also needed an adult to push him to get over his nerves. Both students sang with a student choir at the opening of this year's Super Bowl, performing 'Lift Every Voice and Sing' with Ledisi. 'I didn't know I could do that. I thank God that he gave me the opportunity to sing,' said Wesley. Yet even for kids who have performed at the Superdome, there's something about the Gospel Tent stage. There may have been millions of people watching the Super Bowl, but Jazz Fest represents New Orleans' soul. 'I don't even know what kind of feeling it is,' said Leah. 'It's a very big feeling, I can say that.' ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
The Independent
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Student gospel singers take stage at New Orleans festival known for celebrity acts
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival each spring is known for hosting some of the world's most famous jazz, funk and rock acts. Yet it's also become a showcase for lesser-known talent: local schoolchildren. Gospel choirs from area high schools took the stage Friday at the festival's famed Gospel Tent, continuing a decades-long tradition for Louisiana students. First up to perform was the Eleanor McMain choir, jolting the audience with a blast of musical joy, from the rollicking call-and-response of 'Melodies From Heaven' to an a cappella rendition of the 'Battle Hymn of the Republic.' Choir member Chloe Bailey, 18, said the performance is about pride. 'Not only do I get to make myself proud, my parents proud, I get to make the whole world proud and have a look of how beautiful it is to see Black people and Black children thriving and going up higher, because we don't get a lot of opportunities like this,' she said. In a city with a rich music heritage, the festival is a prized opportunity to celebrate arts that teachers say do not receive the attention they once did in schools. Music education suffered in New Orleans in the 1990s due to funding cuts, said Matthew Sakakeeny, a professor of music at Tulane University. Up until then, majority Black schools typically had at least one full-time music teacher, even when schools were segregated, but dozens of teachers lost their jobs and offerings were 'drastically cut back,' he said. Hurricane Katrina was another blow, leading to the city's traditional public schools being replaced with charter schools. Sakakeeny said there's enormous pressure to focus on core academics, rather than arts, as they'll get shut down if their test scores are not good enough. 'It's just ironic that we're the birthplace of jazz, yet middle school students, elementary school students might not even go to a music class,' said Emeka Dibia, the choir director McDonogh 35, the first public high school established for Black students in New Orleans. Gospel has been an integral part of Jazz Fest since it began in 1970, headlined by gospel legend Mahalia Jackson. Students from McDonogh 35 started performing in the 1970s, and more schools followed, Dibia said. It's now tradition for Jazz Fest to have a day featuring student gospel choirs. Even the artist featured on this year's official Jazz Fest poster, Tarriona 'Tank' Ball of Tank and the Bangas, performed in the Gospel Tent when she was in ninth grade. Choirs from another historic Black public high school, L.B. Landry, as well as two local Christian schools performed Friday, while McDonogh 35 will perform next week. McMain soloist Tyree Arso, 18, said it's amazing to think about performing at the same festival as artists like Lil Wayne. 'It makes me recognize the people who have come before me, and it reminds me to try to do my best to honor them,' said Arso, who will attend the Boston Conservatory at Berklee next year. Gospel choir is an extracurricular activity at schools like McMain, where choir director Clyde Lawrence has been mentoring young singers for decades. He said religious music is allowed in a public school setting because there's educational value to learning about a variety of musical styles. 'I want to expose them to our heritage, to gospels, to hymns,' he said. Choirs are paid to perform at Jazz Fest, which provides funding for arts education. But the opportunity matters for other reasons to students like Leah Hawkins, a sophomore at McDonogh 35. Leah says she's been surrounded by gospel her whole life, but in front of an audience she'd shake with stage fright. Her mom told her to join choir anyway: 'You're going to sing.' Since then, Leah, 16, said her confidence has blossomed. 'You can't care about what people think. If you have a voice then use it, it doesn't matter what it's for,' said Leah. Her choirmate Wesley Whitsett, 17, said he also needed an adult to push him to get over his nerves. Both students sang with a student choir at the opening of this year's Super Bowl, performing 'Lift Every Voice and Sing' with Ledisi. 'I didn't know I could do that. I thank God that he gave me the opportunity to sing,' said Wesley. Yet even for kids who have performed at the Superdome, there's something about the Gospel Tent stage. There may have been millions of people watching the Super Bowl, but Jazz Fest represents New Orleans' soul. 'I don't even know what kind of feeling it is,' said Leah. 'It's a very big feeling, I can say that.' ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
