The Festival will take place in Dallas on Labor Day weekend, September 1-3, 2017 at the TEXAS HORSE PARK in Dallas, Texas. Already set to perform; Jonathan Butler, Oleta Adams, Rachelle Ferrell, Euge Groove, Jeff Lorber, Chuck Loeb, Pault Taylor, Keiko Matsui, Phil Perry, Najee, Will Downing, Alex Bugnon, Erykah Badu, Maysa, John Secada, Ruben Studdard, Kim Waters, Joseph Vincelli and many more!
Curtis King, founder and president of The Black Academy of Arts and Letters, Inc. (TBAAL), has traveled around the country for 15 years to frequent and study major music festivals, specifically festivals of a jazz nature. For almost forty (40) years, TBAAL has entertained millions of patrons from around the globe in its downtown Dallas location, the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. True to its mission, the major multi-discipline cultural arts conglomerate, fosters, cultivates, perpetuates, preserves and promotes the arts and letters of the African, Caribbean and African-American experience. TBAAL serves over 450,000 arts enthusiasts annually and is an iconic centerpiece for the city of Dallas’ artistic and cultural diversity offerings to its citizens and tourists worldwide. Dallas, known as “the can-do city” and a “city that works,” is the steady pulse and heartbeat of a major growing American metropolitan area that prides itself on being a new frontier and maverick of the southwest for exciting and creative innovations. Many people are unaware that Oscar, the Academy Award statuette, was named from Texan Oscar Pierce, whose niece worked in Hollywood for the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences. When she saw the gold statuette, she reportedly said, “Why, that looks just like my Uncle Oscar.” History like this is a testament that Texas continues to be a beacon of light and fertile ground for transplants, immigrants and settlers to hang their permanent hats on a thriving city like Dallas! Dallas, accessibly located in the center of the country, is a prime spot for an exciting national festival to attract tourists. Simultaneously, it gives Dallas/Fort Worth residents an opportunity to partake in a major music festival and to see on three stages some of the world’s best national and international mainstream, cutting-edge, traditional and contemporary jazz artists and performers. In addition to jazz performers, patrons will experience a gumbo of music featuring blues and soul artists on a separate stage. Also, a stage for Promising Young Artists from Dallas/Fort Worth and around the country will showcase youth from record companies, area schools and noteworthy jazz and music programs in day-long, back-to-back performances. For three days, festival attendees will browse and shop through vendor booths, experience diverse foods and enjoy music performances. Produced by TBAAL, the Riverfront Jazz Festival promises to be one of the city’s annual major attractions for patrons, thousands of tourists and Dallas citizens for years to come.