Want to see what can happen if you’re good and get vaxxed? Head to downtown Tampa this weekend when the Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival brings festy back for a two-day party at downtown’s Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park.
Contemporary jazz trio Guitar G-Force opens for ‘80s R&B acts Joyce Irby and Klymaxx on Saturday, and if you don’t know, a dance party ain’t a dance party without the all-female band’s “Meeting in the Ladies Room.”
On Sunday, Grammy-winning Gospel musician Jonathan McReynolds shares the stage with former Prince drumming disciple and music royalty Sheila E. (The E is for Escovedo as in her uncle Alejandro Escovedo and her dad is drummer Pete Escovedo). Sheila E. made her own career outside of her family name, with the help of the great Prince Rogers Nelson. Her singles “The Glamorous Life” and “The Love Bizarre” are timeless jams of purple-tinted goodness. When Sheila E. played before Morris Day—another one of Prince’s people—at the 2018 Clearwater Jazz Holiday, her high-energy performance made Day’s performance fall flat.
As a special treat for fans of Tampa hip-hop, the festival is bringing back Dynasty, who moved to Los Angeles in 2018 and never looked back. Dynasty plays on Saturday and joins a local lineup that includes an Al Downing Jazz Association showcase, DJ Sandman and Kyle Schroeder.
If you’re not quite ready to get back to that fest life, there are virtual tickets available—$10 for single days or $15 for the whole weekend. Gates open at 11:45 a.m. each day, but health screenings start at 11:30 a.m.
Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival: Shelia E. w/Joyce Irby & Klymaxx/G-Force/Jonathan McReynolds/Kyle Schroeder/Dynasty/more. Saturday-Sunday, May 8-9. 1 p.m. $20& up. ($10-$15 virtual options). Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, Tampa. tampablackheritage.org
See a list of Tampa “Safe & Sound” live music venues here.
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This article appears in May 6-12, 2021.