(with Related Events Thurs-Sun)
20 years old... and still rockin'! Don't dare miss our 20th annual Juke Joint Festival & Related Events — Thursday-Sunday, April 13-16, 2023, y'all. This is the amazing "half blues festival, half small-town fair and all about the Delta" event that you've seen featured in global media such as The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist, 60 Minutes, PBS NewsHour, and countless travel and music publications. It is like no other event in the world with over 100 blues performances plus real-deal juke joints, monkeys riding dogs, racing pigs, arts & crafts, music workshops, children's events, Southern food and much more. It's now wonder that it has become Clarksdale and Coahoma County's biggest blues and business week of the year. Once again, we anticipate excited attendees from nearly every U.S. state, a majority of Mississippi counties and some two-dozen countries.
The “Juke Joint Festival ®” name and logo are registered trademarks and cannot be used by outside parties without the express written consent of the Clarksdale Downtown Development Association/Juke Joint Festival. All rights reserved. Third parties may not create unauthorized “Juke Joint Festival®” products (e.g. T-shirts and apparel) or advertising (e.g. event banners and print ads). Please be cool, y'all. We've worked really hard to build this brand. Obviously, our 501c3 nonprofit needs to protect it. Thanks for your support.
Thursday, April 13th, will feature a big, FREE JJF Kickoff with live blues and more, starting at 5pm. Friday the 14th will feature a number of FREE daytime events culminating with a special FREE 6pm event. Plus, Sunday will feature a FREE mini blues fest and more. (And keep in mind that every venue and musician in town will be running their own "Related Events" all week long!) Of course, the "main event" is Saturday: The actual JUKE JOINT FESTIVAL itself.
During the DAYTIME on Saturday, April 15th, you can expect over 15 FREE outdoor stages of blues and roots music spread over 8 blocks in historic downtown Clarksdale. Events that day kick off early, and most of our daytime music stages and street vendors operate between 10am and 5/6pm. (Saturday night-time requires a JJF wristband.)
For NIGHTTIME on Saturday, a required JJF wristband gets you into a participating collection of 20+ local juke joints, blues clubs and restaurants for live music without additional cover charges. Limited quantities; first come, first served. Details on Wristband page. Our official nighttime JJF venues feature slightly staggered start times but basically start around 6pm and end as late as 1am. Daytime is FREE; Saturday nighttime is a wristband (pre-sale wristbands sold via the "WRISTBANDS" link in the website menu above; all details are on that page).
Consider bringing lawn chairs, sunblock, mosquito spray and maybe an umbrella. Please DO NOT bring coolers or outside food/beverages. (We have plenty of street vendors and restaurants.) Please DO NOT bring dogs or other pets (except for professional "guide dogs"). Sorry, but we have had issues with animals in the past. Also, please pick up after yourself. Look for our recycling bins and trash receptacles. If you litter, you will be asked to leave. Thanks, y'all.
Can't make it this year? Plan for the future years listed above. Regardless of the year, BOOK YOUR ROOMS ASAP! While Clarksdale, Mississippi, has more hotel rooms, overnight apartments and AirBnB/VRBO offerings than ever before, our town's rooms all book up well in advance of JJF for Thursday through Sunday night. Don't get left out. A full lodging list at VisitClarksdale.com. (Also, if you camp, please check the JJF INFO tab above for options.)
Historic Clarksdale, Mississippi, is 80 minutes south of the Memphis International Airport and was once home to such blues greats as Son House, John Lee Hooker, Junior Parker, Ike Turner, Eddie Boyd, Sam Cooke, Muddy Waters, Pinetop Perkins, Earl Hooker, Big Jack Johnson and many many others. It's the land of the proverbial Crossroads! Come for a visit, but beware. Many former "tourists" now live here.
The Clarksdale Downtown Development Association is the 501c3 nonprofit that puts on the Juke Joint Festival (April) as well as the Clarksdale Film Festival (last weekend in January). CDDA wishes to thank all of the amazing sponsors, volunteers, musicians, artists and attendees that make our events possible. If you'd like to become a sponsor or make a donation to either festival, please email pba@clarksdale.com.
GENERAL INFORMATION
PO BOX 1030
Clarksdale, MS 38614
Phone: 662-624-5992
EMAIL: info@jukejointfestival.com
EMAIL: office@jukejointfestival.com
MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT & BOOKING
Blues musicians interested in applying for performance consideration at our 2023 JJF can submit via a button on our homepage that appears from 10/15-12/15, 2022. That is the only way to submit. Even if your act isn't chosen, please consider attending, anyway. There will be plenty of pop-up gigs and jams around town that Thursday, Friday and Sunday. Thanks, y'all.
Juke Joint Festival® name and logo are registered trademarks of Clarksdale Downtown Development Association. All rights reserved.