DECATUR – The DeKalb County 7th annual Blues & Jazz Festival attracted more than 40,000 attendees during the 3-day event held July 18-20 at Wade Walker Park. The festival featured music from Hip-Hop to Blues, showcasing artists such as: Whodini, Con funk Shun, Heat Wave, Kurtis Blow, Tammy Allen, Ken Ford, Chick Willis, Theodis Ealey and Warren Hill just to name a few.

The three - day music extravaganza was the culmination of Chief Executive Officer Vernon Jones’ brain-child and a salute to the end of his two-term tenure in office. “The Blues & Jazz festival was started in 2001 to give families in DeKalb an opportunity to enjoy music and fun at an affordable price,” said Jones. “Every year, we have kept DeKalb residents in mind by keeping the price the same and residents respond by continuing to support this event.”

CEO Jones started the Blues and Jazz Festival in 2001 as a community give-back event. The first Blues & Jazz festival was held at the Southeast Athletic Complex Stadium in Lithonia.