About River Fest
Celebrating the cultural, economic, environmental & inspirational impacts and contributions of the Mississippi River to the Crescent City.
NOLA River Fest is an annual celebration of the Mississippi River’s cultural, economic, environmental, and inspirational influence on New Orleans and the greater Gulf South.
More than a festival, River Fest invites our community to experience the river as a living force—one that has shaped our music, food, neighborhoods, commerce, environment, and identity for generations. Through live music, local cuisine, educational conversations, art, family activities, wellness experiences, and community partnerships, the festival celebrates the many ways the river connects us while inspiring a deeper investment in its future.
Hosted by the New Orleans Jazz Museum on Saturday, September 12, 2026, this free, all-day festival brings together musicians, historians, artists, poets, environmental leaders, educators, and local organizations for a day of exploration, celebration, and connection.
This year’s theme, Sounds of the River: Water as the Collective, positions the Mississippi River as more than a geographic landmark. It is a living archive of stories, traditions, creativity, resilience, and movement—a force that connects people, cultures, and communities across New Orleans, Louisiana, and the world.
Music flows throughout River Fest, beginning with a vibrant second line led by the N’awlins D’awlins Baby Dolls, Big Queen Mary K, and Treme-Lafitte Brass Band. The procession begins at Jackson Square, travels down St. Peter Street to the Mississippi River, follows the Moonwalk and the newly expanded Goldring Woldenberg Riverfront Park, and makes its way back to the New Orleans Jazz Museum.
Throughout the day, the Main Stage features Grayhawk Perkins, Coralai, Jenna McSwain, Sari Jordan, Kumasi, Yusa, Kinfolk Brass Band, and an all-day set from DJ Archivist Joseph Makkos.
As the sun begins to set, River Fest culminates with a second line led by Kinfolk Brass Band, carrying festivalgoers from the New Orleans Jazz Museum to Goldring Woldenberg Riverfront Park. There, the celebration continues with programming presented in partnership with the Audubon Nature Institute, bringing music, nature, and community together as festivalgoers gather along the riverfront and experience the Mississippi at sunset.
On the third floor “River Currents” Stage, River Fest explores the river from historical, environmental, artistic, technological, and literary perspectives.
Programs include Miss Calliope: An Oral History with Debbie Fagnano, celebrating the musical traditions of the Mississippi River; The State of Green Infrastructure in New Orleans, examining how the city can shift from moving water away to learning how to hold, absorb, and live with it; and City of Canals, exploring the often-overlooked waterways that have shaped New Orleans.
The festival also features “The River Bends and So Must We,” an artist and curator talk with the Kolaj Institute; “Beaucoup Water!”: A.I. and Water in Louisiana with Drew Hawkins; and Voices of the River, a reading with Louisiana Poet Laureate Gina Ferrara celebrating the landscapes, stories, and spirit of Louisiana.
The River Rest room will make space for stillness.
Located in the Education Center, The River Rest Room offers a series of accessible wellness experiences throughout the day, including Jazz & Breathe, Stretch Like the Mississippi, Family Breathe & Fleaux, and Sound Bowls & Jazz with Big Eas’e Wellness.
Inspired by the movement of the Mississippi, these experiences invite festivalgoers to pause, breathe, stretch, and reconnect amid the energy of the festival. No prior experience is necessary—just come as you are.
From second lines and brass bands to poetry, environmental conversations, wellness, and riverfront programming with Audubon Nature Institute, River Fest brings together the many currents that make New Orleans what it is.
Admission is free and open to the public, with the festival also livestreamed on Facebook.
Join us as we celebrate the river that continues to move our city, our culture, our communities, and our future.
More information coming soon. For questions and sponsorship opportunities, please contact info@nolajazzmuseum.org