The 66th edition of the annual Newport Jazz Festival is heading to Rhode Island this summer and has a stacked lineup. The festival is…
The 66th edition of the annual Newport Jazz Festival is heading to Rhode Island this summer and has a stacked lineup.
The festival is set to take place from August 7 through 9 at Fort Adams State Park. Up-and-coming artists as well as industry veterans will take the stage, including headlining performances from Norah Jones, Wynton Marsalis, and Diana Krall. Pianist Robert Glasper will play during all three days, drummer Makaya McCravern will return for a second year, and a Japanese jazz-composer, Hiromi Kidjo will debut at the fest. Other performers include Charles Lloyd Kindred Spirits, Chris Potter Circuits Trio, Joe Lovano, The Comet is Coming, Nubya Garcia, and Vince Giordano & The Night Hawks, among others. More performers will be announced in the coming weeks.
Newport Jazz Artistic Director Christian McBride noted in a press release that all eyes and ears in the jazz world will be focusing on Newport during the three-day festival. McBride said the festival is welcoming back “old friends” like Lloyd and Glasper, while bringing back Krall, who is making her first appearance at the fest in 20 years.
“Newport Jazz has always featured artists from all areas, from Check Berry to Mahalia Jackson to Aretha Franklin to James Brown to Led Zeppelin to the Allman Brothers,” McBride said. “Since 2017, artists like The Roots, Common, Living Colour and George Clinton and more have all played at the festival. This year, Newport Jazz presents reggae legend, Jimmy Cliff. Oh yes, this year’s going to be deep.”
Since the festival first opened back in 1954, its hosted several award-winning artists. Now, it will feature more than 50 individual jazz ensembles during the 2020 event across four stages. Tickets are on sale now. Head over to for more information.
See the full list of the first wave of artists below:
