NOLA Jazz Fest: Gambit’s picks for music to see April 25 | Jazz Fest

With hundreds of performances out at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, it’s hard to know where to start. So Gambit has some suggestion for bands and musicians to see on the festival’s first Saturday.

The Deslondes

11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m., Gentilly Stage

Named for the 9th Ward street that serves as the band’s home base, The Deslondes have been kicking around the city’s Americana music scene for around 15 years, and next month, they release their newest album, “Don’t Let It Die: Vol. 1.” The collection of covers features influences both old and new, from songs like “Lawdy Mama” by 1950s New Orleans guitarist Edgar Blanchard to recent material written by friends Kiki Cavazos, Nick Woods and Pat Reedy. — BRAD RHINES

Little Freddie King Blues Band

12:45-1:35 p.m., Blues Tent

When he was 14, Little Freddie King rolled off of a train from McComb, Mississippi, and made New Orleans home. Seventy years later, King is a New Orleans icon and a gutbucket blues legend.

In September, though, King took a bad fall from his electric bicycle and injured his arm, hand and leg. The fall left lasting damage, and unfortunately, King’s guitar-playing days may be behind him. Still, he can sing, and he’s bound and determined to keep up his Jazz Fest streak, so King and his band are taking the Blues Tent stage with two guest guitarists. Along with King on vocals, the band will include drummer “Wacko” Wade Wright, harmonica player Bobby Louis, bassist Robert Snow and guitarists Ryan Scully and Tony Dios.

Keep an eye out, too, for King’s recently released album “Live at BJ’s Lounge.” The record captures the storied bluesman in his element at his longtime Bywater haunt shortly before his accident. “Live at BJ’s Lounge” is available on vinyl at Louisiana Music Factory, Euclid Records and BJ’s and be found on streaming platforms. — JAKE CLAPP

Samantha Fish

1:55-3:05 p.m., Festival Stage

Two-time Grammy-nominated blues rocker Samantha Fish released her latest album, “Paper Doll,” last year around the time she hit the Festival Stage for a set full of swagger and fire. The guitarist and vocalist mostly plays originals, like the catchy, passionate “Sweet Southern Sounds,” but she’ll occasionally throw in her take on ’60s rhythm and blues, like Barbara Lewis’ “Hello Stanger.” The Kansas City, Missouri-born, New Orleans-based Fish releases “Paper Doll Live” in early June to capture the evolution of her 2025 album into raw, soulful, crowd-revving crescendos. — LIAM PIERCE

Lutan Fyah

2:10-3:10 p.m., Cultural Exchange Pavilion

4:45-5:30 p.m., Jazz & Heritage Stage

Jamaican musician Lutan Fyah is known for his work with reggae stars like Beenie Man and more recently Ky-Mani Marley, one of Bob Marley’s sons. His up-tempo reggae and smooth vocals cover a range of topics. Songs about Rastafarianism and cannabis are chief among them — “Weed Oooooh” is one of his top streamers — but his 2025 release, “Strength and Resistance,” gets political and a lot more serious. — JENNIFER ODELL

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

3:30-4:50 p.m., Gentilly Stage

Tyler Childers

5:20-7 p.m., Gentilly Stage

Much respect to the Jazz Fest schedule-makers who managed to book the one-two punch of Jason Isbell and Tyler Childers, two of the biggest names in independent country music, to close out the Gentilly Stage on the fest’s first Saturday.

After an early 2000s stint with alt-country rockers Drive-By Truckers, Jason Isbell launched a solo career with his own outfit, the 400 Unit, releasing two albums to modest acclaim. It was the 2013 album “Southeastern,” partly inspired by Isbell’s newfound sobriety, that really took off thanks to the emotional songcraft of numbers like “Cover Me Up” and excellent musicianship. While some thoughtful introspection is to be expected with Isbell’s latest record, last year’s “Foxes in the Snow,” fans can also count on the 400 Unit to raise a ruckus on older material and maybe even a surprise throwback tune or two from the Truckers days.

Kentucky son Tyler Childers makes his Jazz Fest debut this year, touring behind his latest album “Snipe Hunter.” The singer-songwriter isn’t afraid to ruffle the feathers of country music traditionalists with his outspoken views on social and civic issues, like the pro-Black Lives Matter fiddle tune “Long Violent History” from 2020. The new record, a collaboration with influential producer Rick Rubin, puts Childers’ twang-and-holler approach to modern country front and center, from the winking ode to success “Eatin’ Big Time” to the lonesome lament on substance addiction, “Nose on the Grindstone.” — BRAD RHINES

BrukOut Sound System

3:35-4:35 p.m., Cultural Exchange Pavilion

The Jamaican sound system has an important history in the country’s culture. Made up of a group of DJs and emcees and stacks of speakers, the sound system rose out of necessity to become a party staple, playing dancehall, reggae, hip-hop, dub and remixes. BrukOut Sound System was founded by London-born producer and DJ Seani B, and at Jazz Fest, he’ll be joined by musicians Nesta, Laa Lee and Izzy Bossy. BrukOut also performs Sunday at 1:15 p.m. in the Rhythmporium and at 3:35 p.m. in the Cultural Exchange Pavilion. — JAKE CLAPP

Kr3wcial

4:45-5:30 p.m., Rhythmpourium

New Orleans-born rapper and producer Kr3wcial has been carving out a unique place in Crescent City hip-hop. He’s a dynamic vocalist, turning on a dime from smooth flows to gruff phrasing, and he’ll roll gospel, soul, jazz and string instruments into his sound. Last fall, he released the meaningful full-length album “God is With Us,” which for now can be found on vinyl at Peaches Records. He’s performed at Jazz Fest before with the glbl wrmng collective, but he makes his solo festival debut on Saturday. — JAKE CLAPP

Dave Koz & Friends Summer Horns

5:20-6:50 p.m., WWOZ Jazz Tent

Saxophonist Dave Koz has played smooth jazz and soft rock-inspired instrumental pop in a variety of contexts since he left Richard Marx’s band in 1989 to go solo. He’s released multiple holiday albums and recorded with artists as diverse as Xian aTunde Adjuah, Barry Manilow and Eric Benet. But his go-to touring act is Summer Horns, which he debuted in 2013. Recent performances have focused on familiar ’70s pop and jazz hits arranged for a 5-piece horn section. — JENNIFER ODELL

Rhiannon Giddens

5:25-6:55 p.m., Blues Tent

Grammy-winning banjoist and vocalist Rhiannon Giddens could recently be found in the movie “Sinners,” for which she also was a music consultant, and playing on Beyonce’s “Cowboy Carter.” Those projects are just the latest in the work done by MacArthur Genius since her days with the Carolina Chocolate Drops: promoting the Black musical traditions at the foundations of American roots music. Giddens last year released her latest album, “What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow,” a collaboration with fiddler Justin Robinson. — LIAM PIERCE

Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers

5:25-6:55 p.m., Fais Do-Do Stage

From the radio hits of the ’80s, to a touring member of the Grateful Dead and forays into bluegrass and jazz, Bruce Hornsby’s 40-year career has taken some unexpected twists and turns. And the 71-year-old pianist and songwriter continues to innovate. His new album, “Indigo Park,” released earlier this month, is another step forward. It’s an eclectic collection of snappy pop songs with unpredictable melodies, wide-ranging instrumentation and thoughtful lyrics that should translate well to the Fais Do-Do stage. — BRAD RHINES

Stevie Nicks

5:30-7 p.m., Festival Stage

Stevie Nicks has been inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, first for her part in Fleetwood Mac, whose eponymous and “Rumors” albums helped define the sound of 1970s pop-rock, and then for her prolific solo work, which extended far beyond the famously drama-addled band. Nicks wrote a number of Fleetwood Mac’s songs, so her sets often roll classics like “Landslide” and “Rhiannon” next to solo hits like “Edge of Seventeen.” — JENNIFER ODELL

Nas

5:55-7 p.m., Congo Square Stage

East Coast hip-hop legend Nas still attacks the mic with the same focus that made “Illmatic” a landmark album more than 30 years ago. The son of jazz and blues player Olu Dara, the emcee came out swinging in 1994 with his debut album, and last year, he released his latest album, the long-awaited collaboration with DJ Premier, “Light-Years.” It’s been a few years since Nas’ last time at Jazz Fest, his 2017 set featuring The Soul Rebels. — LIAM PIERCE