Jacksonville Jazz Festival returns to downtown, celebrates 40 years

DUVAL COUNTY, Fla. — The highly anticipated Jacksonville Jazz Festival returns after taking a year off because of the pandemic.

This year it is celebrating 40 years of jazz music and its impact on history and society.

You can catch Sheila E, Stanley Clark, Bob James and more, just to name a few.

The biggest change this year is that everything is going to be cashless, so you’ll want to take your credit cards.

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Unlike previous years, you’ll notice that this event — while still free — will be gated.

Jazz Fest is taking place at Riverfront Plaza with the Swingin’ Stage and Ford on Bay at the Groovin’ Stage, near the Hyatt Regency and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

The city says both locations where the stages are set up have plenty of space to roam around and check out the vendors and see the performers.

Theo Croker, a Grammy-nominated trumpeter, composer, and producer, is taking the stage on Friday.

He has been playing music for over 20 years.

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“I grew up listening to Stevie Wonder and Sly Stone and my grandfather and Dizzy Gillespie and Gloria Estefan, OutKast, and Bjor, all these kinds of things,” Croker said.

Jazz Fest normally brings in hundreds of people but last year the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Croker said this weekend is a good excuse to get out of the house and make up for lost time.

“Music is very powerful and very healing and its very unifying and that’s what we’re here to do,” he said.

This gifted musician learned how to play music at the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville.

It’s also where he found his lifelong passion that he’ll be sharing with everyone tonight.

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“I’m really looking forward to bringing that music back to the people full circle,” Croker said.

Sian-Day Lewis normally attends Jazz Fest, but this year will be the first time she’s participating as a vendor.

You can catch her selling some of her mixed media artwork.

“This would actually be one of my biggest events that I’ve ever done so I thought it would be a good opportunity as an artist to showcase my work,” Sian-Day Lewis said.

Jazz Fest is free for everyone to attend.

For the full lineup of performances, you can click HERE.

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