The beloved community festival, Long Beach Uptown Jazz Festival, returns for its 15th year this Saturday, Aug. 1, bringing longtime music enthusiasts and casual music listeners alike.
Long Beach will be hosting the festival at Houghton Park (6301 Myrtle Ave.) from 2 to 7 p.m.
Attendees of the family-friendly event can look forward to vibrant food and beverage offerings available for purchase, a dedicated Kids Zone for family fun and a variety of vendor and community resource booths.
“For 15 years, the Uptown Jazz Festival has showcased the very best of Long Beach, bringing together neighbors, families and visitors through the universal language of music,” Mayor Rex Richardson said in a public statement. “As we celebrate this milestone year, we’re excited to welcome an outstanding lineup of artists for an afternoon that reflects the culture, creativity and community spirit that make our city so special.”
The event will be hosted by DJ Mr. Quick (DaShaun E. Quick), a Southern California DJ best known for reading the crowd and keeping the energy high by blending classic R&B, funk, soul and hip-hop.
Morris Day & The Time headlines
The 15th annual Long Beach Uptown Jazz Festival will feature headliner Morris Day & The Time, a Minneapolis-based funk-rock band formed by Prince in 1981, with his high school friend Day being the frontman.
The Time was originally created as Prince’s alter ego, envisioned as a cool, streetwise funk band that contrasted with his more soulful R&B sound.
Morris Day & The Time have released four albums, including “The Time,” “What Time Is It?,” “Ice Cream Castle” and “Pandemonium,” as well as the project “Condensate” under the name The Original 7ven.
Day’s solo work and albums with The Time have exceeded 10 million units sold.
The rest of the lineup consists of the following:
- Rush Hour Orquesta
- A high-energy Los Angeles salsa band founded by childhood friends Raul Membreno and Jonathan Patterson. The band blends classic salsa with a modern edge, bringing explosive percussion, vibrant brass and infectious grooves to every performance.
- Biscuits & Gravy Live
- A Southern California R&B, soul and Motown band spanning more than three decades, built on friends that hail from Long Beach, Compton, Watts and Carson. Known for smooth vocals, tight musicianship and crowd-pleasing performances, the band has become a favorite at festivals, celebrations and special events throughout the region.
- La Verdad
- The salsa, funk and jazz group has electrified audiences for more than a decade. Led by Gabrielito Gonzalez, a former member of the acclaimed band Quetzal, the group blends classic Latin grooves with contemporary urban rhythms, powerful horn lines and infectious melodies. The group’s dynamic performances and storytelling center on community, heritage and identity.
More details about this year’s Uptown Jazz Festival are available at longbeach.gov/uptownjazzfest.
