OKC Jazz Fest comes home

Festival To Stage in Bricktown & Deep Deuce – OKC's Color Me Badd Headlines:

OKLAHOMA CITY (March 2, 2016) - The 3rd Annual Oklahoma City Jazz Festival will take place May 31 to June 4 in the Bricktown Entertainment District including the historic "Deep Deuce," the birthplace of Oklahoma City jazz.

"Jazz and Deep Deuce have played an important role in our community," said Mike McAuliffe, OKC Jazz Fest chairman. "In the 1940's jazz music was a unifying catalyst in bringing the entire community together in Deep Deuce.  If for no other reason, there should always be an Oklahoma City jazz festival to celebrate our jazz heritage, culture and history."

The 2016 festival will feature jazz, jazz rock, rhythm & blues and other genres of music. Local and national artists will perform on both indoor and outdoor stages during the five-day festival run. 

A highlight of this year's jazz fest will be a homecoming concert by "Color Me Badd" as part of their 25th Anniversary National Tour.  The performance will take place on Thursday, June 2 at the new Criterion in Bricktown. Color Me Badd is an American contemporary R&B group that was formed in Oklahoma City in 1991, and has sold over 12 million records worldwide. 

The festival will also feature Los Angeles singer, songwriter, violinist, producer and actress Lucine Fyelon.

The official kickoff event for the festival will take place on Tuesday, May 31 at the Aloft Hotel.  The hotel is adding an outdoor stage for festival week to accommodate music fans.  Organizers will announce the headliner for the festival in the coming weeks.

Additional information for the festival can be found at www.okcjazzfest.com.

The Gayly - 3/3/2016 @ 12:18 p.m. CST