Music lovers who attend the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Competition in 2026 might be handled to the sounds and flavors of Jamaica on the Cultural Alternate Pavilion, an effort to assist the island nation following Hurricane Melissa’s devastating blow in October.
“Entitled One Love Jamaica, this particular presentation celebrates Jamaica’s vibrant music, wealthy cultural traditions, and indomitable spirit within the wake of the devastation attributable to Hurricane Melissa within the fall of 2025,” the occasion’s web site reads.
Competition organizers launched particulars of the pavilion Wednesday together with the 2026 musical lineup, which options dozens of beloved native bands and big-name acts like Stevie Nicks, St. Vincent, the Eagles, T-Ache and Lorde. Organizers additionally launched the official Jazz Fest poster and opened ticket sales.
In an homage to Jamaica, subsequent 12 months’s pageant will host a few of the largest names in reggae and dancehall, together with Ziggy and Stephen Marley, Sean Paul, Protoje and Authentic Koffee, amongst others, together with ska, mento and gospel performers.
A pop-up boutique contained in the pavilion’s artwork demonstration tent will supply a curated collection of items crafted by artists affected by Hurricane Melissa, together with banjos, rumba containers, Ludi boards, straw baskets, colourful dancehall-style indicators and complicated lacework.
And, in fact, pageant goers may have the possibility to feast on genuine Jamaican delicacies and a specifically crafted signature cocktail — particulars but to be decided — on the Cultural Alternate Meals Stand close to the pavilion.
Whereas the U.S. and Louisiana made it out of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season largely unscathed, Jamaica confronted a a lot completely different destiny. Packing Class 5 winds of 185 mph, Hurricane Melissa tore by way of the Caribbean island on Oct. 28 as one of the highly effective storms in historical past, killing at least 45 people and displacing thousands.
No strangers to such pure disasters, many Louisianans jumped into motion to assist Jamaica following the storm, deploying members of the United Cajun Navy and internet hosting reduction fundraisers. Jazz Fest organizers mentioned they stand in solidarity with residents of the island of their time of want.
