New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival Schedule, Friday, May 2, 2025

9:15a-10:10p Tribute to Luther Kent with Trickbag ft. Jonathon “Boogie” Long (Recorded Sun Apr 27 at the Blues Tent)

10:40-11:35 Seva Venet & New Orleans Legends, live from the Economy Hall Tent

11:40-12:35 Meschiya Lake & The Little Big Horns, live from the Blues Tent

1:15-2:15 Gerald French’s Tribute to George French ft. Phillip Manuel, live from the Economy Hall Tent

2:35-3:30 Aurora Nealand & The Royal Roses, live from the Economy Hall Tent

4:00-4:55 Sporty’s Brass Band (Recorded Thur May 1 at Jazz & Heritage Stage)

*All start times are approximate. Start times have been delayed by as much as 5 minutes sometimes

About the Artists

Recorded Apr 27 at the Blues Tent
9:15-10:10
Tribute to Luther Kent with Trickbag ft. Jonathon “Boogie” Long
Luther Kent
• Soulful voice and versatile repertoire – ranging from gospel to swing to traditional jazz
• Born Kent Rowell in 1948, the New Orleans native came of age listening to Bobby Bland,
Etta James, and Ray Charles, and he channeled their stylings into his burgeoning singing
career.
• He sang with The Greek Fountains, Cold Grits and others, and spent a short time with
Blood, Sweat & Tears in the mid-1970s, but was forbidden to record with the group due to
contractual restrictions
• Luther Kent recorded his first solo album, the 1977 World Class, in part at Abbey Road
Studios with the Brecker Brothers and members of the London Symphony Orchestra
• Back in New Orleans, he showed off his gospel side in recording with John Lee and the
Heralds of Christ alongside Pete Fountain and Allen Toussaint
• In 1978, he formed the blues-based Luther Kent & Trick Bag with Charlie Brent, and the
band performed actively and released several albums during the 1980s and 1990s
• Trick Bag became a favorite late-night sit-in band for visiting luminaries, including Stevie
Winwood, Maynard Ferguson, Billy Eckstein, Etta James, B.B. King, Boz Scaggs, Jimmy
Page, Jimmy Buffett, and Greg Allman.
• He worked with The Forever Fabulous Chicken Hawks and, since 2005, The Dukes of
Dixieland. He recorded with numerous artists, including David Torkanowsky, Herman Ernest,
the Bonerama Horns, Dr. John, and the legendary producer Wardell Querzeque
• Kent has also had a successful career in voiceover work, earning Clio, Addy, and other
advertising awards along the way.
• He has been heard in commercials for the Louisiana Lottery, The Louisiana Tourism
Commission, and Harrah’s Casino, among others, and in television shows such as Cop
Rock. He tours world-wide, and is a popular performer at the New Orleans Jazz and
Heritage Festival, the French Quarter Festival, the Baton Rouge Blues Festival, and others.
• Luther Kent has earned numerous awards and honors, and is an inductee into the Louisiana
Music Hall of Fame and the Louisiana Blues Hall of Fame

Economy Hall Tent
10:40-11:35
Seva Venet & New Orleans Legends
• Traditional banjoist and guitarist who channels the spirit of Django Reinhardt
and Danny Barker in his traditional jazz stylings
• Venet was raised in Los Angeles, and learned musical craftsmanship from his
father, a songwriter and producer, and his uncle Nik, a legendary record
producer
• Venet was a professional musician and teacher in Southern California
throughout the 1990s, but his love affair with the banjo – and the traditional jazz
of New Orleans – drew him to the Crescent City at the turn of the century
• He began playing with Tuba Fats, Shannon Powell, and Greg Stafford, at
second lines, festivals, and clubs
• Venet joined the Treme Brass Band in 2006, working with Benny Jones and
Uncle Lionel Batiste
• He also played with Lionel Ferbos’s bands, the Louisiana Shakers and the
Palm Court Jazz Band, for several years
• Today Venet can be found performing with his own Storyville String Band or
with one of Dr. Michael White’s various bands, with Greg Stafford’s Jazz
Hounds, or with Lars Edegran, Clive Wilson, and other traditional New Orleans
groups
• He is a sought-after educator, and has been an integral part of the annual
Danny Barker Guitar and Banjo Festival since its inception
• He has performed from Frenchmen Street to France, and his half-dozen CDs
celebrate New Orleans string bands and banjo music

Blues Tent
11:40-12:35
Meschiya Lake & The Little Big Horns
• Powerful singing and infectious, danceable repertoire have made her a favorite
of both old and young traditional jazz fans from Frenchmen Street to France
• Lake was born in Oregon and raised in Rapid City, South Dakota, where she
won a singing contest when she was nine years old. The prize included $500
and a weekly club gig, and Lake was hooked
• She spent her early 20s as a member of a touring renegade circus group –
glass-eating was her specialty – and fell in love with the troupe’s nomadic
lifestyle and camaraderie
• The troupe spent its off-season in New Orleans, Lake realized that she’d found
her spiritual home, and she ‘ran away from the circus’ to establish herself as a
professional musician in the Crescent City
• In 2007 she connected with the Loose Marbles, a traditional jazz band and
dance group known for their exuberant French Quarter busking
• They eventually wound their way to a performance residency in New York City’s
Washington Square Park and into the hearts of enthusiastic swing dancers
across the country
• Lake soon broke out with her own band, The Little Big Horns, the name an
ironic tip of the hat to her home state’s most famous landmark
• In 2010 Lake and the Little Big Horns issued their debut album, “Lucky Devil,”
to a host of accolades, and the band began touring across the country and to
international trad jazz hotbeds like Europe and Japan
• NPR named “Lucky Devil” one of its Top Ten albums of the year, and Lake and
the band began filling their trophy shelves with Best of the Beat and Big Easy
awards

Economy Hall Tent
1:15-2:15
Gerald French’s Tribute to George French ft. Phillip Manuel
George French (passed in 2024)
• As a bassist, George French appeared on a slew of rhythm & blues recordings
in the 1950s and ‘60s, including Robert Parker’s “Barefootin,” Earl King’s
“Trick Bag” and an early version of the Wild Magnolias’ “Handa Wanda”
• As the leader of his own ensembles, he showcased his captivating voice with
a velvety smooth tambre
• French was born in 1943 into a prominent New Orleans music family. His
father was banjoist Albert “Papa” French, longtime leader of the Original
Tuxedo Jazz Band
• His brother was drummer Bob French, who also led the Original Tuxedo Jazz
Band and was a well-known deejay on WWOZ 90.7 FM.
• George was largely a self-taught musician who honed his chops alongside his
father and brother. He was a working musician who traveled internationally but
was primarily a fixture at local clubs, hotel bars and festivals.
• He backed jazz singers Germaine Bazzle and Wanda Rouzan, James Rivers,
zydeco and blues accordionist Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes and many, many others
Gerald French
• Carries the mantle of jazz on his giant shoulders as the current leader of the
Original Tuxedo Jazz Band (took over the Original Tuxedo after Bob French’s
health declined)
• Gerald brings his impeccable drumming and jovial personality to many other
bands, notably Charmaine Neville and the Dixie Cups, and has worked with a
Who’s Who of New Orleans talent ranging from Harry Connick Jr. to Dr. John
• He can also be heard on WWOZ as DJ Giant and as the Jazz Police
Phillip Manuel
• Vocalist
• Aaron Neville was among the first to recognize a young Phillip Manuel’s talent
• A native of New Orleans, has performed with such greats at Terence Blanchard
and Bill Summers

• His recorded music career is known for classic interpretations of the Nat “King”
Cole songbook as well as tackling intimate takes on James Taylor’s “Fire and
Rain” alongside Ellington and Gershwin compositions

Economy Hall Tent
2:35-3:30
Aurora Nealand & The Royal Roses
• Aurora Nealand is an accomplished saxophonist, clarinetist, flautist,
composer, bandleader, and instigator
• Whether playing with her traditional jazz band, The Royal Roses, dueting with
ace pianist Tom McDermott, or forging experimental music with her Monocle
project, Nealand brings impeccable musicianship, warm emotion, and an
adventuresome spirit to any stage
• Nealand was raised in a Bohemian, music-loving family in California and
Colorado, and only began studying formally when she attended Oberlin
Conservatory
• After a stint with the Jacques Lecoq School of Physical Theatre in Paris and
time spent cycling across America, she landed in New Orleans in 2004, where
she absorbed traditional jazz while performing in the streets
• Post-Katrina, she joined the Panorama Jazz Band and did stints with the New
Orleans Moonshiners and other trad bands
• She launched The Royal Roses in 2010, releasing an acclaimed tribute to
Sidney Bechet recorded live at Preservation Hall
• That same year she began making regular appearances on the HBO series
“Treme,” and Downbeat named her one of its Top Ten Rising Stars
• Over the past decade Nealand has stretched her musical curiosity in many
directions, while still remaining rooted in the traditional jazz realm. She fronts
the punkabilly band Rory Danger and the Danger Dangers

(Recorded Thur May 1 at Jazz & Heritage Stage)
4:00-4:55
Sporty’s Brass Band
• Based in New Orleans, Louisiana, Sporty’s Brass Band is led by trombonist
Maurice “Sporty” Craig, a one-time member of the Stooges Brass Band
• Their music is infused with the unmistakable New Orleans sound, and echoes
through the streets during beloved festivals in town such as New Orleans Jazz
and Heritage, French Quarter Fest, Brass Fest and, of course, the ultimate
celebration of Mardi Gras.
• Perform at a diverse range of events – from the most joyous of weddings to the
most sombre of jazz funerals.
• They have a standing Friday residency at Celebration Hall 9pm