Chicago Blues Festival | Chicago, IL
Billed as the largest of the city’s summer festivals, the Chicago Blues Festival draws nearly 1 million people to Grant Park (near to the Lake Michigan waterfront) to enjoy four days and six stages of Hall of Fame performances Chicago blues, swing, boogie woogie and delta blues. Past performers include Ray Charles, Taj Mahal and Ruth Brown. Admission to this the City of Chicago sponsored event is free!
The 2008 festival will celebrate the centennials of Louis Jordan, Robert Petway and Tommy McClennan. To find out who will be performing where, check out the the official Chicago Blues Festival website.
If you can’t wait until June to get your blues fix, the city also features a variety of activities and free concerts (called the Blues Season) throughout the month prior to the greatest Blues fest on the planet.
For more information on black travel destinations world wide be sure to visit Discover Black Heritage, A Travel Guide to Black History and Culture.
Chicago Gospel Music Festival | Chicago, IL
Billed as the world’s largest free outdoor gospel festivals, the Chicago Gospel Music Festival (at Millennium Park) features three days of entertainment and more than 90 live performances on three stages from some of the top gospel acts in the world. See the festival’s offical website for schedule of events and other information.
For more information on black travel destinations world wide be sure to visit Discover Black Heritage, A Travel Guide to Black History and Culture.
Jazz Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
The Jazz Institute of Chicago was founded in 1969 by a small band of jazz fans, writers, club owners and musicians who came together to preserve the historical roots of the Chicago’s jazz music when rock ‘n roll had become the reigning cultural and financial force in American music. The Institute sponsors the world renown Chicago Jazz and Heritiage Festival, as well as student workshops (”Jazz Links”) that pair promising high school jazz musicians with their world class professional counterparts. Definitely a must visit for hard-core jazz enthusiasts.
Address: 410 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60605 USA
Phones: (312) 427-1676
Official Website. www.jazzinchicago.org
Map & Driving Directions
Harold Washington Cultural Center, Chicago, IL
Named after Chicago’s first Afro-American Mayor, Harold Washington Cultural Center is a 1000 seat performance theater located in the Grand Boulevard community area of Chicago. It was originally to be named the Lou Rawls Cultural Center, but Alderman Tillman changed the name without telling Rawls.
The Center is located on a historical corner in the historical Bronzeville neighborhood. The intersection at 47th Street and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive (formerly South Park) was at one time one of the most storied intersections in the Afro-American culture. As the location of the former Regal Theatre, it played host to the most prominent icons in African-American music such as Count Basie and Duke Ellington regularly. The corner provided fodder for national gossip columnists and for the dreams of Black American youth. The Bronzeville neighborhood was at one time the city’s center of Black cultural, business and political life. It was also the former home to famous musicians such as Scott Joplin, Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton and Fats Waller, as well as legendary blues artist Willie Dixon and many more.
Address: 4701 S. Martin Luther King Drive, Chicago, IL 60615
Phone Number: (773)373-1900
Official Website: haroldwashingtonculturalcenter.com
Map & Driving Directions
