- [Zosette] Coming up on "One Detroit", we'll preview this weekend's Detroit Jazz Festival with Festival Foundation President, Chris Collins, and two of this year's performers.

Plus we'll talk with the Jazz Festival's Artist-in-Residence, Jason Moran.

Also ahead, in our Destination Detroit series, we'll meet a woman whose family migrated from the south to the city in search of a better life.

And we'll give you some ideas on how to enjoy the long holiday weekend in Metro Detroit.

It's all coming up next on "One Detroit".

- [Advertiser] Across our Masco family of companies, our goal is to deliver better living possibilities and make positive changes in the neighborhoods where we live, work, and do business.

Masco, a Michigan company since 1929.

- [Announcer] Support also provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit PBS.

- [Advertiser] The DTE Foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit PBS.

Through our giving, we are committed to meeting the needs of the communities we serve statewide, to help ensure a bright and thriving future for all.

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- [Announcer] Nissan Foundation and viewers like you.

(inspiring music) - [Zosette] Just ahead on "One Detroit", the Detroit Jazz Festival's 2025 Artist-in-Residence, Jason Moran, talks about the city's rich musical history and influence.

Plus our Destination Detroit series introduces us to a local woman whose family came here from Mississippi.

And we'll share some of the events taking place over the Labor Day weekend.

But first up, the world's largest free jazz festival takes place in downtown Detroit August 29th through September 1st.

Jazz artists from around the world will perform on stages in Hart Plaza and Campus Martius, as well as the Gretchen C. Valade Jazz Center in Midtown.

"One Detroit" contributor and "American Black Journal" host, Stephen Henderson, talked about the 46th Annual Detroit Jazz Festival with the Festival Foundation's President and Artistic Director, Chris Collins, and two of this year's performers, bassist Marion Hayden and drummer Louis Jones III.

(inspiring music) - Tell me about the 46th, the festival, and what people can expect.

- Yes, indeed.

Well, as always, they can expect a lot of musical and artistic surprises.

It is a true jazz festival, one of the premier jazz festivals in the world.

It is completely admission free.

- [Stephen] It is free.

- All the venues and we added the venue this year of the Gretchen C. Valade Jazz Center.

It's a perfect place, 'cause it was acoustically designed specifically for jazz, one of the few in the world of that nature.

So we have a chance to have an indoor venue and have some fun with that, along with the three stages on Hart Plaza and Campus Martius.

So, it's gonna be a lot of fun.

People can take the rail car right up Woodward to one block from the Gretchen C. Valade Jazz Center and right back to the north end of the- - You know, I hadn't thought about that, but that is a nice little bonus there, that you can come from Hart Plaza here without getting in a car.

- Indeed, and you can actually park here.

- Yeah, right.

- Go to the festival, - And go back home.

- come back for the evening things and then be on your way.

And we're even gonna have some little interesting performances on the M1, which would make it a lot of fun.

- Oh, on the M1?

- Yeah.

- There you go.

- So keep an eye out for that.

But throughout the festival, I mean as always, the great legends, our incredible world-class Detroit artists and some blending of the two, all different generations.

Some real surprises.

I mean, our Artist-in-Residence, Jason Moran, an incredible musician.

And you know, he's kicking off opening night with a set brand new to him, brand new to everybody, collaborating with a Detroit great, Jeff Mills is gonna be with him and bringing together the worlds of electronic, Detroit electronic and jazz.

- I was gonna say, techno.

- And other things throughout the festival, including working with some of our aspiring players, a very unique redoing of Duke Ellington music.

And Chucho Valdes and Paquito D'Rivera together, 80 years of a relationship.

Branford Marsalis, Marion Hayden, Louis Jones III, Allen Dennard, some real up-and-comers.

Hiromi and Sonicwonder, and Lakecia Benjamin, it's just a parade of great artists throughout the festival from all different perspectives of this great music.

- Yeah.

You know, every year I sit and I wonder where you start to plan?

- Yeah.

- The lineup of people that we see at the festival because as you point out, it is this incredible range.

I mean, jazz of course, is itself very diverse and very broad, but there's always an act or two that I'm just like, "Oh wow, I would never have thought to include that in this festival."

And yet there it is.

- Well, you know, as the musicians on the bandstand, we engage with a lot of musicians.

I travel around the world.

I have a couple of European releases, so I'm over there all the time.

Asia, we have exchange programs and things.

So I'm always listening.

I'm always talking to people.

But, we also have an open submission from February to June so I can hear from anybody.

And we get about 1,500 of those that come to my ears.

And it's all attempts, a lot of old school attempts to know what's going on out there and bring the very best and those in an artistic threshold and a life to the festival.

But the first thing we have to do, literally the week after the festival, is we have to begin raising the...

It's about $5 million a year to produce the festival.

And 85 cents of every one of those dollars, according to our auditors, goes directly to programming.

So it's not like there's... We're keeping big overhead.

We don't do free on the backs of the artists or the incredible thousands of crafts folks that work there.

It's about infusing the art along the way.

So it's all about generous donors and sponsors and everyone that steps up when they can in order to keep it free for future generations, which is not easy.

So unfortunately, the financial side has to be first and foremost in order to avoid that $20, $50 ticket at the door.

So, that's really the first effort.

And then, the music is sort of like planning a record.

You plan the tracks, it's just a joy, (artists chuckling) - Yeah, yeah.

Marion, you know this, but I'm gonna tell our viewers that you are one of my absolute favorite Detroit artists.

I just swoon- - Thank you.

- When you are on stage.

- Aw.

- And so, I'm really excited that you're a part of the festival.

Tell me about what you're doing this year.

- Well, first of all, I'd like to say thank you very much for having me this year, Chris.

This is a really great year for me.

I was chosen as the 2025 Kresge Eminent Artist.

And so that, it just means so much to be able to be recognized in my hometown and to also be a part of the festival.

And I'll just say, it's kind of a little mini homecoming for me.

I'm having with me someone who is near and dear to my heart as my featured artist with me, a man named Kamau Kenyatta.

Kamau is a fantastic... First of all, Kamau is actually my God brother, so we've known each other since birth.

- Oh, I didn't know that.

- Yes.

Yes.

His father's my godfather.

- Wow.

We've just been in each other's lives since we were born.

And he's also, what I like to say, a peer mentor.

He's someone that I tell him, he's my shadow producer on all of my projects.

So, we talk a lot about music and everything and he's a fantastic saxophonist, pianist.

He's a producer of several records for the great vocalist, Gregory Porter, for which he has Grammy for that.

And so, we're gonna do a set that includes some things that we just really love.

We're gonna do some Herbie Hancock.

We grew up listening to a lot of Herbie.

We're gonna do some originals from Kamau, from my book, and just kinda sprinkle it in with some Detroit.

I always like to lift up our great Detroit artists.

We're gonna do some Kenn Cox work.

And then, I have with me, two people that are in my regular band, my band Legacy, the great Steve Wood, a fantastic saxophonist and educator.

And Tim Blackman on trumpet.

And then, we have with me two of the young folks coming up.

The next ups.

One being my son, Tariq Gardner, on drums.

So I'm always happy to have that generation, all the 20 somethings.

And then, even younger than he, Kamau's great protege, Kahlil Childs.

A wonderful, wonderful saxophonist from San Diego, since Kamau's been in San Diego for many years now.

So, I'm really looking forward to this band.

And we're gonna do what Detroit does, you know?

- Right.

Right.

- Let's present everything and authentically.

- Louis, Chris was talking about the inclusion of many different generations of artists in the festival.

And maybe you are on the sort of smaller, younger end of that.

(chuckles) I guess.

- Yeah.

- But interestingly, I learned before the interview that you came up through the program that the Jazz Festival runs to make sure that young people in Detroit have the opportunity to learn music and get into the history of it and all of that.

Tell me about your music and your journey.

- Yeah, so to start back a little further, my dad is a great jazz lover and one of my number one supporters.

He supports me through everything.

But his birthday is around Labor Day weekend, and he's always going to the jazz fest and I've always accompanied him- - You go with him, right.

- And it was a great experience for me, seeing all the musicians and all... Just everything that happened at the festival.

- Yeah.

- And then they started...

The Jazz Fest started coming in our schools and started exposing us to some of the mentors in the city.

And then I started to hear about some of their programs.

And like since eighth grade, I've been Jazz Fest.

(both laughing) I've been right there.

- Yeah.

- And it's a full circle moment to be there with my own group.

- Yeah.

- What drew you to the drum?

I will admit that I was a high school drummer.

Not great, but good.

But I loved playing the drums.

I play a lot of different instruments, but that one was kinda special for me.

What's special about the drums for you?

- Well, I was destroying houses and anything I could get my hands on is getting beat.

- Just beating on it?

- I really couldn't stop myself.

But I think for me, when I play drums, it's just the freedom of expression.

Whatever comes to my head, I can just play it.

And be happy and be proud of what I played.

I played saxophone through high school.

I can do blues scale.

(Stephen laughing) That's about it.

But drums, I really feel like it's an extension of myself.

- Yeah.

- So I love it.

- I'll just add too that Lewis is also a wonderful composer, which is one of the reasons I wanted to have him this year.

He's about to release his first record.

It's a lot of his original music.

And he was selected as a member of the All Star Generations band that just a couple months ago, toured Japan.

- [Stephen] Oh wow.

- Yeah, he's really out there.

- Yeah, no, that's really great.

(all laughing) And Chris, he's been working PR for you as well.

(Louis laughs) - Right.

- So Chris, we have this tradition here on "ABJ", you and I do, where when we do this show each year- - The dance number?

- Well, we're gonna skip that this year.

(all chuckling) But the poster.

We always reveal the poster here on "ABJ".

And I love that we do that, 'cause I never see it before the show either.

So, I'm in the same seat as the viewers here.

- Well, great.

- But before you unveil it, tell me about this year's poster, 'cause I know there's always a story.

- There's always a story and there's always an artist, which is what generates the story.

And we go... You know, there's international artists, the youth artist, we've done open artist calls and things.

This year, Laura Hilbert, she's with the pets creative group, incredible graphic designer and artist.

And we've talked about her doing a piece for a long time.

And she told me about the things that inspired her to do the piece and some of the vintage color elements that were important to her.

And this was entirely her design.

And it brought out something that is very unique in our 45-46 year collection.

And as I tell everyone, and we can point it out if you like, but there's a very subtle cue that we've been through 45 years and we're up to our 46.

And the piece is just beautiful, artistic, meaningful, but still very descriptive of the moment.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

They're always great, so I'm sitting here just anticipating- - Yes, all right.

- What it's gonna be.

- Well, is it time?

- It's time.

- Let's do it.

Drum roll.

(hands chittering) - Yeah, that's right.

- There it is.

- The 2025 Detroit Jazz Festival poster.

(Louis mimic cymbal clash) - Oh, look at that.

- Oh!

- [Stephen] Oh, I love that.

- [Marion] Fabulous.

- [Louis] I love the O.

- I love the O, right?

- Yeah, the O is awesome.

- Right?

With the O record?

- [Chris] So the O is the cue, right?

- Yeah.

- For 45 years.

- [Stephen] For 45.

- Anyone who's into vinyl.

- [Zosette] Earlier this year, the Detroit Jazz Festival's 2025 Artist-in-Residence, pianist and composer, Jason Moran, held a workshop for music students on Wayne State University's campus.

"One Detroit" contributor, John Penney, of 90.9 WRCJ, sat down with Moran to talk about his advice for the aspiring musicians and his plans for the festival.

- [Jason] What's happening on the bass?

- [Bass Player] Yeah, it needs (indistinct).

(jazzy music) Yeah, I think I made- - Make that sound now.

- Okay.

(jazzy music continues) - I'm here this afternoon with the Artist-in-Residence for the 46th Annual Detroit Jazz Festival, Jason Moran.

- It's a pleasure and honor to be back in this city and also to be here to share more music with this city.

So, I'm completely honored.

- Well talk a little bit about what this city means to you and what the festival means to you.

- I grew up in Houston, Texas, and when I was in high school, I went to a performing visual arts high school.

And there was a band of students who came from the new school in New York City to try to recruit people.

And in this band was a young piano player named Carlos McKinney.

And Carlos McKinney is of the famous... What I learned, famous McKinney family of musicians.

And I remember meeting him and being like, "Oh my God, who is that?"

And it was something about meeting a musician from Detroit.

He was like the first musician I met from Detroit.

And then, every musician I met from Detroit, they told me they were from Detroit.

And you heard it in the way they sound.

You heard it in the way they talked.

And you heard it in the way they played.

And so, I know this city creates such an environment that it sprouts all these musicians, all these really creative thinkers who think about history, they think about progress, and they make it.

So, when I come back here, I feel like I'm playing to the community that creates these great musicians and it's always an honor to be in front of a Detroit audience.

- Well, when you say that you can hear Detroit, when you're listening to these Detroit musicians, what exactly are you hearing?

- You know, let's say a certain bounce.

- Uh-huh?

(Jason chuckles) There's a certain bounce that Motown has.

There's a certain bounce that techno has.

There's a certain bounce that Geri Allen had when she sat at the piano.

- Yes.

- Right?

The bounce is like inherent to the nature.

And every city has a different lean on the bounce.

And it's a texture of the rhythm.

And when I think about the saxophone players, I'm thinking like James Carter and JD Allen, like they play with such broad tone.

And also broad spectrum about what they think music is too.

And so this is an open city.

You know, it's an open city.

Is it a metaphor that it sits at the border?

You know, like it sits on the water.

There's so much about the fabric of this city that gets met in these musicians.

But that bounce is one thing that I always kinda love.

And of course, I couldn't come to Detroit without saying J Dilla and what he meant to kinda revolutionizing the feel of a rhythm.

And it's a thing that has impacted the world.

(jazzy music) Right, okay, good.

For me, sometimes when I hear sections like that, then just as an experiment for me in my process, I wanna hear what happens when we leave the logic of like, harmony having its own momentum.

What if we disrupt that logic?

It's important to test, just to make sure that you're kinda out here feeling the music and learning it in a way that you also know that you can adapt it, right?

Like you all should all have different versions of the way you hear this song and say, "Oh, if I was gonna do this song, I tried like this."

- And you made a very clear point of it during the workshop today about listening to music and almost all of the great musicians who I've talked to over the years say the most important lesson you learn in schools.

Everybody wants to be a soloist and be out front.

But the most important thing you have to learn is when to lay out.

- Yeah.

- And when to listen.

- (Laughs) Yeah.

Yeah, "It's a practice," as we say.

"It's a practice."

If you wanna know what you sound like, you gotta record yourself.

You gotta spend time and listen back to it.

You gotta critique yourself.

The reason it came up is we were talking about guitar stuff and I asked him if he recorded his solos, 'cause I thought they were great.

But he would hear some things.

It's the thing we do.

We're here to study music, not play it.

We're here to study it.

And we're trying to study intuition.

That's not written anywhere.

That like comes from you all.

These decisions you make in the moment, they happen like... (fingers snapping) That's your mind working.

So, I gotta ask you about the workshop that you just did with Wayne State kids today.

You're a renowned educator.

When you come to a workshop like that, how do you approach it and what do you hope that those kids take away?

- I want students to know about flexibility.

I think, we're studying this music because there's a certain inherent nature that allows you to be flexible, to be responsive, and to respond and act.

You know, to take something in, digest it, respond.

And then the quicker that gets, I wouldn't say the better you get.

(chuckles) But at least you get that practice in.

And so sometimes, with the ensemble like this, which is working in a big band environment, it can get very into habit.

And so, I wanna make sure that they notice their habits, that they listen to them, but they're able to adjust them too.

And that adjustment is kinda like, it's actually what you get hired for.

It's in our attitude.

It's in how and what do we think is fresh?

How do we try to make sure that we keep it fresh?

I still feel like the way the backgrounds come, they sound like a broken record after three times of hearing the backgrounds come in behind every solo.

I don't think they should be behind every solo.

I think one solo should be with...

I actually think that one solo should be a totally new form.

The second solo should be on a new form.

- So as the Artisan-in-Residence this year, what are you bringing to the festival?

- I'm excited because a few things I feel like I kind of know I wanna bring my friends back who I've come here frequently with.

Nasheet Waits, the great drummer and Tarus Mateen, the great bassist, they have been my "Bandwagon" band for now, 26 or 27 years.

And we're bringing along with "The Bandwagon", Meshell Ndegeocello, the great singer and bassist, along with Akili Bradley, a young trumpeter.

And she's from Monterey, California, who's been playing with "The Bandwagon" recently.

So we're bringing that ensemble, which is quite exciting.

- That's very exciting.

- The second is a group dedicated to Duke Ellington's big band music.

And I spent the past year traveling with Duke Ellington Show around the world, pivoting between sometimes solo, sometimes big band show.

But the big band shows allow me to meet musicians who are local.

And so, I'm playing this show with people who are here in the city.

And like I get to meet 17 new people and play with them and pull Duke's music forward and learn how to play it together.

And then we will present that.

That's gonna be a nice little fun night.

And I'd say the third event is a tribute to techno music in Detroit.

And I invited the great musician and techno artist, Jeff Mills to do a duet with me.

And Jeff Mills has worked with many improvisers.

He has a certain kinda sensitivity in making music on the spot.

And I saw him perform in France maybe 10 years ago.

And I've been stuck with how he makes sound.

And to join our duet is the great poet, Jessica Care Moore.

- Oh wow.

- And so, we will be three JMs, Jason Moran, Jeff Mills, and Jessica Care Moore.

(chuckles) - That's awesome.

- Presenting a trio.

And so I'm excited about that because that will be brand new for me.

(jazzy music) - [Zosette] Turning now to Destination Detroit, our new series that explores the region's rich history and the people who helped shape it.

Teresa Marbury of Westland shares the story of how her sharecropper family moved from Mississippi to Detroit in the 1940s, looking for better job opportunities.

- Watching my grandfather come in the house, tap dancing through the house, okay?

He would be so happy, maybe on a Friday.

He would tap dance through the house and it was so amazing for us to watch him tap dance.

(gentle music) My family came to Detroit for a better living.

Better living.

They came to Detroit late in the '40s, like late '40s?

My grandfather, in fact, his whole family came to Detroit.

The whole Rambus, R-A-M-B-U-S family came from Moorhead, Mississippi in the late '40s to seek a better life, jobs, the whole thing.

They were sharecroppers, that's what they were.

My grandfather, when he came here, he got into the factories at Allen Industries.

And he was a worker there and raised his family on the east side of Detroit.

We all stayed together.

Ironically, we all lived in one big house together.

Watching my grandfather come in the house, tap dancing through the house, okay?

He would be so happy, maybe on a Friday.

He would tap dance through the house and it was so amazing for us to watch him tap dance.

The impact from my family moving here, migrating here, was a plus because they were so poor.

Like I said, they were sharecroppers.

And when they came here, they were able to find jobs immediately.

(gentle music continues) - Got her picture.

- [Zosette] For more Destination Detroit stories, go to onedetroitpbs.org/destinationde.

Labor Day marks the unofficial end to summer, and there are a lot of events and activities for the entire family to enjoy over the long holiday weekend.

Here's Haley Taylor from 90.9 WRCJ with today's "One Detroit Weekend".

- Hi friends, I'm Haley Taylor from 90.9 WRCJ with a packed lineup of festivals to close out August and celebrate Labor Day weekend.

Blake's Sunflower Festival continues through September 1st and are made up with stunning Sunflower Fields, photo ops, and sunshine-filled family fun.

Over in Romeo, the Peach Festival also runs through September 1st.

It's a community tradition with parades, carnival rides, peach desserts, and more.

In downtown Detroit, The Detroit Jazz Festival takes over downtown and midtown August 29th through September 1st.

It's the largest free jazz festival in the world with legendary lineups, dancing, and so much more.

Royal Oak hosts "Arts, Beats & Eats" from August 29th to September 1st.

This multi-day celebration combines art, music, gourmet food, and family fun all in one.

And finally, don't miss the Hamtramck Labor Day Festival, August 30th through September 1st.

There's the yacht club canoe races, wrestling, live music, a parade, local food vendors, and plenty of neighborhood charm in the heart of Ham-Town.

And that's just a tiny slice of what's happening.

Stick around for even more events to wrap up your summer in style.

(gentle music) - [Zosette] That'll do it for this week's "One Detroit".

Thank you for watching.

Head to the "One Detroit" website for all the stories we're working on.

Follow us on social media and sign up for our weekly newsletter.

- [Advertiser] Across our Masco Family of companies, our goal is to deliver better living possibilities and make positive changes in the neighborhoods where we live, work, and do business.

Masco, a Michigan company since 1929.

- [Announcer] Support also provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit PBS.

- [Advertiser] The DTE Foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit PBS.

Through our giving, we are committed to meeting the needs of the communities we serve statewide, to help ensure a bright and thriving future for all.

Learn more at DTEFoundation.com.

- [Announcer] Nissan Foundation, Michigan Central, and viewers like you.

(gentle music) (piano tones)