10th Annual Southern Miss Jazz and Blues Festival Set for March 31 at Gulf Park Campus
Fri, 03/23/2018 - 08:55am | By: Jenny Tate
Bring your lawn chairs, family and friends for a day of music and fun on the Mississippi Gulf Coast as The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) hosts the 10th Annual Jazz and Blues Festival on the University's Gulf Park campus in Long Beach.
On Saturday, March 31, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m., on the South Lawn of the Gulf Park campus, festival goers will have an opportunity to enjoy live music performances, local vendors and cuisine, and family- and child-friendly activities.
“The 2018 Jazz and Blues Festival is extremely special as it is the 10th year,” said Dr. Steve Miller, Vice President for the Gulf Park campus. “We look forward to hosting the Gulf Coast community for our largest, family-friendly event on our beautiful beachfront campus.”
The festival is headlined by Tom “Bones” Malone, musician, arranger, producer and member of the Southern Miss Alumni Hall of Fame. Malone's work includes “Saturday Night Live,” “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “The Blues Brothers” movies.
The festival will also feature performances by popular musicians from the Gulf Coast region, including 20-piece big band orchestra Coast Big Band, fusion band Salseros del Sur, guitarist and composer Jimmy Robinson, and percussionist Dr. John Wooton.
Approximately 40 vendors will be on site at the event, offering arts and crafts and food throughout the festival grounds. 2018 Southern Miss Jazz and Blues festival T-shirts and posters will also be available for purchase during the event.
Student organizations at the USM Gulf Park campus will provide a number of children's activities, including carnival games, face painting, a dunk tank and a bounce house. Children will also have an opportunity to meet Seymour and the Easter Bunny and participate in an Easter egg hunt featuring 10,000 plastic eggs, beginning promptly at 11 a.m. for ages 12 and under.
The music lineup for the 2018 Southern Miss Jazz and Blues Festival is as follows:
Main stage:
- 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m., Coast Big Band
- 12:45 – 2 p.m., Salseros del Sur
- 2:30 – 4 p.m., Tom “Bones” Malone
Side stage:
- 12 – 12:45 p.m., Dr. John Wooton Steel Pans
- 2 – 2:30 p.m., Jimmy Robinson
- 4 – 4:30 p.m., Jimmy Robinson
The 2018 Jazz and Blues Festival is made possible by a number of community partners and sponsors. This year's gold sponsors are Eley, Guild, Hardy Architects; Friendship Oak Village; and Lamar Advertising. Silver sponsors are American Medical Response and Mainspace Office Solutions. Bronze sponsors include Butch Oustalet, McCarty Architects, and Redd Pest Solutions. Friend of Southern Miss sponsors are Coast Transit Authority, Coca-Cola, Gazebo Gazette, Long Beach Breeze, Pickering Engineering, Regions Bank, and South Mississippi Planning and Development District.
The USM Gulf Park campus is located at 730 East Beach Boulevard in Long Beach. For more information on the 2018 Jazz and Blues Festival, visit www.usm.edu/jazz-blues or call 228.214.3296.