The National Folk Festival is excited to announce a special program, to be held November 16, 2024. The one-day kickoff event will provide a taste of what’s to come at the nation’s premier celebration of the artistic traditions of all Americans. It will feature an eclectic and dynamic program, ranging from Cajun to South Asian Kuchipudi dance, and from blues to salsa dura.
This FREE event will take place at the “Welcome to Jackson” mural at the intersection of State & Pearl Streets. Seating opens at 3:30 PM, with music from 4:00–7:30 PM.
The prestigious National Folk Festival is the nation’s longest-running traditional arts event, a free, three-day, outdoor multicultural celebration of the nation’s finest traditional artists. It’s producing organization, the non-profit National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA), works with a new local host community on a three-year cycle to present the National Folk Festival. Jackson, MS, was selected this spring to host the traveling festival from 2025-2027.
“This preview provides just a glimpse of the breadth of cultures and virtuous artistry that audiences in Jackson and throughout the state of Mississippi can expect when the National Folk Festival launches downtown next November,” said Blaine Waide, executive director of the NCTA. “We’re thrilled to partner on a day of programs with leaders in the city’s arts and culture community, which demonstrates the festival’s commitment to partnerships and collaborations, something that is fundamental to its success in cities across the country.”
Prior to the late afternoon and evening program, spend the day exploring several of the sites that enrich Jackson’s cultural landscape. Visit the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Home National Monument; free tours start at 9:00 AM. Then from 11:00 AM–3:00 PM, head to the Mississippi Museum of Art’s (MMA) Of Salt & Spirit: Black Quilters in the American South exhibition opening, which will feature demonstrations, panel discussions, performances, and more.
“I’m excited by what the kickoff suggests about the potential impacts that the National Folk Festival will have for families, and our youth in particular,” said Dr. Ebony Lumumba, chair of the National Folk Festival executive committee. “To have these kinds of programs, entirely free, in our downtown will expose all of us, but especially our children, to new cultures, traditions, and ideas. It takes me back to the Jackson where I grew up.”
Read more about featured artists and performers here.
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