Next weekend, a massive free jazz festival is coming to the Fillmore District, bringing talented performers, food, and artist vendors. The festival is a decade-long tradition, celebrating the neighborhood’s long history with jazz music.
Fillmore Jazz Festival 2026
The annual Fillmore Jazz Festival is returning next weekend, July 4-5, 2026, with an exciting lineup of performances, community events, and more. The festival has over 25 free performances scheduled throughout the weekend, including the Black Joy Choir, Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Mood String Orchestra with Mike Young, and many more.
The festival features five stages with multiple performances each day. Along with the music, the festival offers many food vendors, including Bao Bao Express, a Gumbo Social, and more. Local bar, the Sheba Piano Lounge, will be serving drinks, along with pop-up festival bars throughout.
Finally, you can explore a massive market featuring the work of artisans and creatives. You can browse art, jewelry, clothing, and more for sale. The free festival takes place on Fillmore Street, covering 11 blocks between Jackson and Eddy Streets.
History of the Fillmore Jazz Festival
The Fillmore Jazz Festival officially launched in 1986 by a neighborhood merchants association, but the area had a long history of jazz dating back well before the 1980s. During World War II, Fillmore Street had dozens of jazz clubs that hosted some of the biggest jazz musicians of the time. Performers included Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Billie Holiday, and the audiences were equally star-studded with celebrities like Marilyn Monroe and Sammy Davis, Jr. Today, the festival honors both the past and present of the neighborhood’s impact on Jazz music.
Don’t miss the Fillmore Jazz Festival on July 4-5 on Fillmore Street between Jackson and Eddy. We recommend taking public transit to the festival, as parking may be difficult to find with the closed streets.
If you’re looking for more live jazz shows in the city, check out The Jazz Room at The Palace Theater. The show features local jazz musicians in a 1-hour tribute to iconic performers Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong.
