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Threatening storms force Stevie Wonder and
others to cancel Jazz Fest appearances

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival - Day #6
Fair Grounds Race Course
New Orleans, LA
April 30, 2016

JazzFest First Weekend

JazzFest Day 4

JazzFest Day 5 & 7

Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder

Review and photos by Mary Andrews

This was a first time in the last ten years of Jazz Fest that the festival was cancelled before the big name artists ever got to hit the stage! No Beck, No Snoop Dogg and no Stevie Wonder because of threatening storms and rains.

The storms appeared about three o'clock on Saturday. The stout of heart withstood the pouring rain in front of the Acura Stage. Dr. John and the Nite Trippers took the stage and the wind pushed the rain directly on the artists. Jon Batiste had just finished joining the band for a song and everyone and everything on stage was getting wet. The set was stopped.

The thunder and the lightning made an appearance at this point. The stagehands were rapidly unplugging everything electrical. All instruments were pulled to the back of the stage and covered up. After 45-minutes, the rainfall lightened up. However, no one was setting the stage back up. Quint Davis, the festival producer, was having multiple conversations with other festival managers waving his hands with a lot of "cutting" motions. Finally, at the set start time, Stevie Wonder appeared on stage with Quint Davis to deliver the bad news.

Stevie and Quint both said that it was too dangerous for the show to proceed. Wonder was very apologetic to the disappointed crowd. It was considered way too dangerous and there was no power! They managed to acquire a bull horn so the audience was better able to hear Stevie.

He said that the show was going to be dedicated to Prince. To appease the crowd, Stevie decided to do an a cappella version of "Purple Rain." The crowd joined Stevie. Then he was gone as soon as he appeared. Day 6 of Jazz Fest was over.

Earlier in the day, Jon Batiste with Stay Human delivered a great set. Batiste and his band are enjoying a regular gig on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in New York. However, they made it back home for Jazz Fest. Batiste's exuberance was infectious and he was able to take the crowd's attention from the bad weather and flow into the music!

Related articles:

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2015
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2014
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2013
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2010
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2009
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2008
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2007
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2006

Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste
Jon Batiste

JazzFest First Weekend

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JazzFest Day 5 & 7

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