Because the summer season season winds down, there’s nonetheless time for music lovers to jaunt to a jazz competition throughout Labor Day weekend, and loads of time to mark your calendars and plan forward for a number of widespread upcoming fall festivals.
DC Jazz Pageant (Washington, DC)
August 27–31, 2025
This annual competition envelops DC’s southwest waterfront neighborhood with the sound of music. Highlights embody Cécile McClorin Salvant at Area Stage (Aug. 28), Lalah Hathaway on the Anthem (Aug. 29), Marcus Miller and the Branford Marsalis Quartet on the Wharf (Aug. 30), and the Jazzmeia Horn Quartet on the Wharf (Aug. 31). Ticket costs fluctuate. The Wharf additionally has loads of profitable eating choices.
Hathaway, whose newest album, “Vantablack,” facilities the African American expertise, spoke with the AmNews earlier than her DC Jazz Pageant engagement. The daughter of singer Eulaulah Hathaway and late nice singer-songwriter Donny Hathaway mentioned the District holds a particular place in her coronary heart since her dad and mom met at Howard College.
“I really feel like an honorary Howard child,” she mentioned. “My mother is from Virginia, so I’d spend time there, and my first massive gigs have been within the DMV.”
For more information, go to dcjazzfest.org/.
Scenes from the DC Jazz Pageant, (Josh Brown images)
Chicago Jazz Pageant (Chicago, IL)
August 28–31, 2025
Produced by the Jazz Institute of Chicago and the Division of Cultural Affairs & Particular Occasions, this free competition on the lakefront Millennium Park is an annual crowd pleaser. This 12 months’s lineup boasts bassist and singer-songwriter Esperanza Spalding and jazz vocalist Ava Logan together with her quintet.
For more information, go to choosechicago.com.
Blue Be aware Jazz Pageant Presents the Black Radio Expertise (Napa, CA)
August 29–31, 2025
Curated and hosted by Grammy Award-winning pianist and producer Robert Glasper, the profitable roster for this 12 months’s “Black Radio Expertise” consists of Jazmine Sullivan; the Roots; Willow; Stokley Williams; D-Good that includes Slick Rick; Anthony Hamilton; and Earth, Wind & Fireplace.
At press time, single-day competition passes have been nonetheless accessible. For more information, go to bluenotejazz.com.
Detroit Jazz Pageant (Detroit, MI)
August 29–September 1
Billed because the world’s largest free jazz competition, this 12 months’s occasion will current an eclectic array of jazz luminaries on 4 levels in Detroit’s downtown and in midtown on the campus of Wayne State College. Featured artists embody artist-in-residence, pianist, and composer Jason Moran; the Branford Marsalis Quartet; Lakecia Benjamin; and Detroit native Endea Owens and the Cookout.
For more information, go to detroitjazzfest.org.
Monterey Jazz Pageant (Monterey, CA)
September 26–28, 2025
In the case of jazz fests, the west has among the best. Monterey is the world’s longest repeatedly working jazz competition, and annually, 1000’s of music lovers flock to the 20-acre, oak-studded Monterey County Fairgrounds. Headliners scheduled for the 68th annual occasion embody Dianne Reeves, Ledisi, Gregory Porter, Christian McBride & Ursa Main, and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue.
At press time, single-day and three-day ticket packages have been nonetheless accessible. For more information, go to montereyjazz.org.
BRIC JazzFest (Brooklyn, NY)
October 17–18, 2025
Brooklyn is in the home for the eleventh annual BRIC JazzFest. Curated by producer and composer Adrian Younge, the 2025 JazzFest brings collectively legends, innovators, and rising stars. Main girls of jazz dominate the lineup, together with vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, London saxophonist Nubya Garcia, and bassist and bandleader Endea Owens.
For more information, go to /bricartsmedia.org.
Arizona JazzFest (Glendale, AZ)
November 7–9, 2025
There’s no scarcity of various expertise with singalong hits at this outside, three-day music competition with reserved seating. The lineup highlights embody Al Inexperienced, Stephanie Mills, Babyface, Kem, Dru Hill, After 7, CeCe Peniston, and Charlie Wilson.
For more information, go to azjazzfest.com.
