New Orleans Jazz Fest 2025 Review: Weekend 2 Highlights & Memorable Moments
Wesley Hodges captures highlights and more from the second weekend of Jazz Fest.
By Wesley Hodges May 7, 2025 • 1:51 pm PDT
“New Orleans: the kind of place you go to feel everything will be alright” – Jim James of My Morning Jacket at Jazz Fest 2025
The annual escape from whatever is transpiring in the world to be among so many friends, in a place bursting at the seams with so much incredible music and food was especially tonic in 2025. Beginning from the ending of the 2025 Jazz & Heritage Festival and reflecting on this year’s “Eight Days of Louisiana Joy,” I recalled that my first ever set (of at least a couple hundred) at the Fairgrounds was My Morning Jacket in 2010, playing on a very muddy Saturday at the Gentilly Stage.
In 2025, MMJ played an afternoon headlining set at Gentilly, marking the band’s first time closing out the Fest’s final “Sacred Sunday.”
Weekend One was a major and (mostly) sunny success, Weekend Two had some different heavy hitters and a whole fresh batch of local and international performers (unlike other two-weekend mega fests featuring nearly identical programming across each weekend, such as ACL and Coachella), in addition to the continuation of the immersive and ebullient celebration of Mexico’s vibrant and essential culture at the Expedia Cultural Exchange Pavilion.
Below are highlights from the second half of the 2025 Fest and daze between.
Thursday, May 1
Photos by Susan Weiand
Despite prognostications and forecasts, even the most astute weather forecasters would luckily be proven wrong, the doomsday predictions of major thunderstorms for Friday and Saturday were a big talk of the town throughout the days between, and never materialized.
At the outset of the weekend, the long-standing “Locals Thursday” tradition was fittingly the only guaranteed (hot) sun-scorcher of a day, with iffy weather forecasted for Friday and Saturday and a cooler sunny closer slated for Sunday. With steeply discounted tickets offered for Louisiana residents, Santana headlining and a generally more New Orleans and Acadiana-themed lineup for the day, Thursday proved to be a successful and gorgeous afternoon.
Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band | Fais Do Do Stage
After a later mid-day arrival, it was over to check out the scene at Fais Do Do, already notably packed with fans revved up for a zydeco trifecta of Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band > Lost Bayou Ramblers > Dwayne Dopsie. Carrier and his youthful band were performing the apropos “Zydeco People” under the blue skies with a small blanket of clouds over the wooden stage. Carrier would then pay tribute to Clifton Chenier as countless artists undoubtedly do each and every day on this hallowed zydeco stage to the happy always dancing Fais Do Do scene.
I’m lookin over here, I’m looking over there
I need a shot of zydeco somewhere
I’m a junkie, a zydeco junkie
I’m lookin up high, I’m lookin down low
Got to find some high grade zydeco
I’m a junkie, a zydeco junkie
Chubby Carrier (and likely countless fans at Fais Do Do, no doubt)
Anders Osborne | Festival Stage
Playing to a notably massive crowd, songwriting maven and guitar sensation Anders Osborne (along with Dumpstaphunk) has generally been given coveted slots prior to main stage headliners that pair well over the years.
Osborne has set the table for Phish and Widespread Panic in year’s past, and this year, the longtime NOLA import’s broadly appreciated catalog was on the front and center display rack, as he and the band dialed up “Back on Dumaine” from the immediate post-Katrina era and the newer 2024 powerhouse jammed out “Real Good Dirt,” cutting through the stiff breeze with Crazy Horse level power and wattage, with help from local sax legend Brad Walker and frequent bandmate Eric McFadden trading solos with Osborne.
Osborne, always good to spin a yarn or two between songs, told a story about living on Decatur Street on the edge of the French Quarter in 1990 and begging the owner of Checkpoint Charlie’s for a slot to play weekly on Tuesdays in exchange for 20% of the bar and making a whole $0.16, before performing “Dark Decatur Love” from 2024’s LP Picasso’s Villa.
Christmas Eve to Mardi Gras
We slept in that abandoned car
Smoking cigarettes and drinking hard
Dark Decatur love
Morris Day & The Time | Congo Square
While Santana drew one of the larger crowds of the entire festival, having been luckily enough to see a number of Fest appearances led by Carlos, I was most intrigued by Morris Day & The Time's headlining slot at Congo Square and the 75-minute set was relentlessly fun, mostly well-choreographed, kinda hilarious and another joyous Congo Square occasion for fans of Morris Day, The Time and 1980s-era Prince (or all of the above, together or separate).
The direct sun hitting the band can be brutal when it’s blazing hot, and The Time were sweating through their thighs and knees in 1930s gangster-style suits and top-hats while going through lots of Prince tunes and originals, all while flowing in syncopated, mostly airtight, fashion. Later in the set, the pairing of their hit “Jerk Out” with “777-9311” (a song written by The Purple One and later made popular by The Time) was a big highlight to round out the day.
The constant mirror man (who held up a circular mirror to Morris Day so he could check himself out during the set, was hilarious, and had an ’80s comic book or WWE villain flair to it, a reference to Morris Day’s heel turn in the film Purple Rain.
Mo: New Orleans! Is anybody hot?
Crowd: NO!
Mo: Does anybody know why?
Crowd: NO!
Mo: Because we cool … everybody get naked!
It was that kinda set, ya dig?
Thursday Bites, Sights, Night Moves & Lagniappe
Overheard somewhere in transit from Festival Stage to Congo Square: Louisiana’s 1990s rock breakouts Better Than Ezra covering INXS “Never Tear Us Apart,” a song BTE debuted just a little more than a year ago. This festival links several generations together better than any.
A very last-minute miracle ticket to LCD Soundsystem allowed me to catch the second night of their two-night run. Additionally, frontman, Brooklyn restauranteur and DFA Records mastermind James Murphy was spotted enjoying dinner at Herbsaint in the Central Business District during the days between.
Daze Between festival featured a 1-2 punch of moe. (who played a lengthy super set with horns and an array of covers peppered throughout) and Umphrey’s McGee (playing a special Led Zeppelin set) at the Mahalia Jackson Theatre.
Ireland’s Fontaines D.C. made a stop on Monday during their completely sold out U.S. Tour, playing to a rabidly energetic and packed Civic Theatre.
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Friday, May 2
Friday was yet another later afternoon arrival for yours truly, so a brief day at the Fairgrounds. The day’s big stage offerings was one of the only toplines I wasn’t very interested in. These rare days always ensure a little more time for exploration of food and some of the smaller venues around Fest. Could be worse, as the saying goes…
Son Rompe Pera | Cultural Exchange / Jazz & Heritage Stage
The weekend’s big winner from the Cultural Exchange offerings by my (and many others’) accounts was the heavily-tattooed Son Rompe Pera of Mexico, a marimba-led ensemble who played a few sets around the Fest (in addition to a night show) on Friday and Saturday. With a look and energy that would feel just as welcomed at a pop-punk fest (a la When We Were Your Young or Warp’d tour), their fusion of punk, cumbia is impossibly danceable, with infectious energy and lighting up the tent with at meter-busting bpm clips.
On Friday, the troupe kicked tires/lit fires within the early afternoon crowd. Son Rompe would later return a couple hours later for an even more fantastical performance at the Jazz & Heritage Stage.
Think whimsical grooves, dueling marimba battles, guitar, percussion, bass, drums, dancers, pageantry, costumes, the whole bit. Perhaps cumbia is the new punk – or Son Rompe is just cutting an entirely new path. One of the marquee performances of the weekend, without question.
Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience featuring Marcella Simien | Congo Square
Terrance Simien and his krewe brought the Carnival energy, replete with deep accordion-led rhythms, boundless joy and one of the most booming (and Creole-twanged) voices one could hear at Jazz Fest 2025. Throwing out beads during “Iko Iko,” this “Zydeco Experience” included a couple of guest washboard players and Simien was flanked by a youthful horn section of next gen Louisiana players.
The swagger-filled set bounced between well-worn classics “When The Saints Go Marching In” and deeply soulful ballads. Simien has been added to the list of annual Louisiana artists I won’t miss going forward.
Beausoleil avec Michael Doucet | Fais Do Do
Playing their 50th(!) Jazz Fest, the world’s most famous living cajun bands BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet at the Fais Do Do has become a long-standing can’t-miss tradition. The mostly melodic and meandering zydeco sounds and mainly Cajun-French lyricism create beautiful music as a unit.
Friday Bites, Sights, Night Moves & Lagniappe
Jonathon “Boogie” Long | Blues Tent: Was only able to catch the final 15-20 minutes of this set, but Long sounded better than ever, shredding his way through the aisles of a packed Blues Tent during a lengthy and heavily-improved segment, before returning to the stage to close with the National Anthem, Hendrix-inspired, but with his own Boogie tilt.
The Wailers featuring Julian Marley | Congo Square: Stopping for a performance during a year-long celebration of the late-legend Bob Marley‘s 80th birthday year, The Wailers played to a sizable late afternoon crowd to close the Congo Square, hitting on all the songs you know by heart, was able to catch the “Rastaman Vibrations” into “Stir It Up” segment before making a rare early exit from the Fairgrounds.
Wesli of Haiti/Canada | Cultural Exchange: Reggae rapper and guitarist Wesli of Haiti / Canada was notable both stylistically (Wesli sported a look that seemed inspired by D’Angelo) and for the crowd interaction / immersion (his sax player jumped into the pit to solo with the raucous crowd).
Ajun Cajun’s Yakiniku Po Boy – one of the top tier bites (although I wouldn’t recommend trying to tackle this hearty rib eye packed roll in a single go) of Jazz Fest, every year.
Caught the first set of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead at The Fillmore before seeing legendary DFA Records house/techno/disco DJ Juan Maclean at The Rabbit Hole in Central City. Maclean has been a fixture on the Brooklyn (and global) dance scene for nearly two decades, was big fun to mix in a warehouse club vibe amongst all the other fare of the weekend, big fun on OC Haley on Saturday.
Saturday, May 3
If the previously-mentioned gloomy forecasts affected turnout for Saturday, it was barely noticeable – the two main gates were swarming by noon with weekend patrons arriving early. Although the second Saturday was an unlikely contributor, total Jazz Fest attendance was slightly down in 2025 overall at 460,000 total passing through the gate (relatively lighter when compared to 2022, 2023 and 2024, which were all north of half-million).
Instead of thunderstorms and cooler temps, it remained a smidge warmer on Saturday and from sheer observation, it seemed at least half the crowd was out to stake out spots for the duration of the afternoon in anticipation for Pearl Jam, making their first appearance in nine years at Jazz Fest (previously appearing in 2010 and 2016) to close out the Festival Stage on the penultimate day of the 2025 edition.
Gitkin | Rhythmporium
Playing in the newly-expanded and still-cozy Rhythmporium tent, Gitkin brought their deeply tonal and well-rounded guitar sounds and eastern psychedelic rhythms back to Jazz Fest, after a much buzzed about set at the Lagniappe Stage in 2024.
Dumpstaphunk | Festival Stage
Much like Anders Osborne’s platform prior to Santana on Thursday (see above), Dumpstaphunk again set the stage for a massive headliner on the main stage (in 2024 they were the sole opener for The Rolling Stones) and, never shying from the biggest of spotlights, ran through a nod to The Stones (“Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)” from Goat’s Head Soup), their New Orleans love letter postcard “The Greatest Place on Earth” and sealed the deal with “Dancin to the Truth” and “Put it in the Dumpsta” as revelers began to pack in for Pearl Jam to follow.
While much of the founding core unit (Ivan Neville, Tony Hall and Ian Neville) remains (following the passing of bassist/guitarist Nick Daniels last year just before Jazz Fest), it has been exciting to watch the band evolve and grow their sound over the last two decades, adding guitar savant Ari Teitel plus of the finest horn sections in the world (Ashlin Parker on trumpet, Brad Walker on tenor saxophone, Alex Wasily on trombone).
The legend of Dumpsta only continues to grow, with such monumental performances for tens of thousands at Jazz Fest each year only further spreading the gospel.
Pearl Jam | Festival Stage
Perhaps one of the stronger examples of a band seemingly enjoying themselves as much as crowd, Pearl Jam kept things loose with setlist selections, and lots of playful banter and showering(s) of appreciation by Eddie Vedder for the City of New Orleans.
The veteran rock band offered up a considerable lot of fan service (taking a rare request of “Love Boat Captain” for a lucky couple) and delivered an array of hits from their peak commercial heyday (notably opening with “Corduroy” and peppering in “Daughter,” “Even Flow” (which they dedicated to famed former New Orleans Saints football player and PJ superfan Steve Gleason) “Black,” “Jeremy” and “Yellow Ledbetter”) among more recent tunes from last year’s Dark Matter album.
As they often do, Pear Jam closed their set with Neil Young's “Rockin’ in the Free World” (notably played on this very stage a year prior to the day with Crazy Horse) and The Who's “Baba O’Riley.”
Saturday Bites, Sights, Night Moves & Lagniappe
Quotable: I’ve personally been to almost every Pearl Jam show there ever was. (Eddie Vedder)
Neal Francis has made a name for himself on the Jazz Fest night scene in the post-pandemic years, holding court for one early and one late show at Tipitina’s each of the last few years, and always packing (and bringing the) house down. 2025’s early set on Saturday proved no different.
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Sunday, May 4th
Saving the best for last has been a time-honored tradition at Jazz Fest, the final “Sacred Sunday” always manages to pack in a big punch and this year’s edition featured the finest weather of the eight days, with cooler temps, more Louisiana sunshine and a dream worthy lineup of Zigaboo Modeliste, George Porter Jr., The Radiators and My Morning Jacket in succession, lots of folks chose to bring their families and/or krewes and stake it out at the Fest’s second largest stage.
I hope you’re just as beautiful as you are today when I see you again …
Zigaboo Modeliste, signing off after his Gentilly set
Zigaboo Modeliste’s Funk Revue | Gentilly Stage
The first of two sets led by original members of The Meters back-to-back, drums and New Orleans rhythmic genius Zigaboo Modeliste led his band through mostly Meters fare. The set included “Soul Island” into “Look a Py Py” before “Just Kissed My Baby” (featuring special guest Vernon Black on sax) before “Africa.”
My Morning Jacket | Gentilly Stage
Making their fourth appearance at Jazz Fest and their first time closing out the Gentilly Stage on the Fest’s final day, MMJ did one of their favorite city’s proper, playing a surprisingly guest-free set. After opening with a debut cover of Fats Domino's “Walking To New Orleans,” the Jacket set was mostly comprised of originals after for the remainder (save a cover of a song made famous by Irma Thomas and later The Rolling Stones – “Time Is On My Side”).
The set also presented newer tunes from their latest LP is, including the sparkling “Time Waited,” the chunky oddball blues strut “Squid Ink” and “Die For It.” Major highlights came at outset with “Mahgeetah” and the closing segment that hit on fan favorite blowouts “Lay Low,” “Circuital” and “Wordless Chorus.”
Jim James and MMJ have vibed with New Orleans beautiful spirit for many years (taking on the road numerous times) and spending Halloween here in 2010, 2021 and 2023 (both at the downtown Orpheum Theater), so it was a long-awaited and well-executed first time performing in such a critical and time-honored slot.
Hopefully, we’ll meet again at the same time and same place with MMJ some years down the line, but if not, my 39th Jacket show the week of my 40th birthday was extra special and a lovely sign-off to another absolutely joyous Jazz Fest.
Sunday Bites, Sights, Night Moves & Lagniappe
The Sauvage Fest scene outside of the Fest’s main gate continues to expand outside of the main two-block strip leading from the exit, with at least a dozen bands playing on porches, sidewalks and around the Bayou St. John neighborhood. The future is bright too, my favorite band to see each day is a moody group of teenagers playing mostly 90s grunge and Radiohead covers, there’s truly something for everyone inside and outside the gates.
Adding Crawfish Enchiladas on Sunday (alongside Crawfish Monica & Crawfish Beignets at earlier days), there’s a veritable array of Bubba Gump style reel-em-off variety of all the classic mainstays of NOLA cuisine inside the gates. Pick your pleasure.
After hitting all eight days and taking in dozens of sets across each stage and tent throughout the Fairgrounds, the Cultural Exchange Pavilion and happenstance drop-ins at smaller tents to see new artists perform for the first time remains the main strength of this Jazz Fest.
While several past years have had a slightly stronger topical appeal at the top few lines of the bill (2024 may never be beat, and that’s OK), this year proved that once again, in the end, the top of the lineup matters less, and it’s always a wise decision for any adventurous music fan to get down to NOLA come late spring, even if your plans mainly focus on night shows, exploring the city and just being a part of the broader good vibrations and remarkable energy that surrounds this event.
See you next April down in the Big Easy.
