Congo Square (OUTDOORS)
Congo Square is one of the most hallowed sites in American music history. This area, once a grassy commons behind the original city rampart (now Rampart Street), was one of several gathering places for enslaved people from Africa and their descendants. In the 1700s, under French and Spanish colonial rule, slaves were permitted to buy and sell goods on Sundays. They also played African-style musical instruments and performed dances that originated from their native homes. After New Orleans became part of the United States in the early 1800s, a city ordinance limited gatherings of slaves to this spot, and only until sunset. Still, the weekly ritual sustained a continuum of African culture in the New World, with profound implications for the future of music.
Upcoming Shows
10:45am-7:30pm | Congo Square Rhythms Festival | Saturday March 28th & Sunday March 29th
It was in Congo Square that enslaved African people gathered on Sunday afternoons to practice their ancestral traditions. Their legacy lives on in our Congo Square Rhythms Festival, a free weekend celebration showcasing the music, food, and dance that made this city known around the world.
Entertainment Lineup for Saturday March 28th
Congo Square Rhythms Stage
10:45-11:45am: Drum Circle
11:45am-12:30pm: The Maroons
12:45-1:45pm: Higher Heights Reggae
2-3:15pm: Ado Soul & The Tribe
3:30-4:45pm: Kyle Roussel’s Church of New Orleans
5-6:15pm: Jamal Batiste Band
6:30-7:30pm: Zigaboo Modeliste Funk Revue
Tremé Stage
11am-12:15pm: Preservation Brass
12:30-1:45pm: Paulin Brothers Brass Band
2-4:15pm: Class Got Brass
4:30-5:30pm: Charmaine Neville Band
5:45-7pm: New Breed Brass Band
