Headliners Unveiled for the 2025 Chicago Jazz Festival!
Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) announced today the headliners performing at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion for the 2025 Chicago Jazz Festival, taking place Thursday, August 28 through Sunday, August 31.
The Chicago Jazz Festival, a Labor Day weekend tradition, returns to Millennium Park and the Chicago Cultural Center to celebrate all forms of jazz through free, high-quality music programming. Over the course of four days, the festival continues its legacy of showcasing Chicago’s vibrant jazz community alongside national and international artists to raise awareness and appreciation for one of the city’s most beloved art forms - all completely free to the public.
Produced by DCASE and programmed by the Jazz Institute of Chicago (JIC), the world’s largest free jazz festival returns with a powerhouse lineup of global icons and rising stars - honoring Chicago’s legacy as one of the top jazz capitals in the world. This year’s festival presents an extraordinary gathering of genre-defining artists. Headliners include the boundary-pushing bassist and vocalist esperanza spalding, piano legend Monty Alexander, charismatic trumpeter and vocalist Kermit Ruffins, Afro-Cuban guitar virtuoso Eliades Ochoa of Buena Vista Social Club, and the visionary saxophonist Gary Bartz with his revolutionary ensemble NTU Troop. WDCB is again a major media sponsor for the festival.
The Jay Pritzker Pavillion will also spotlight an impressive roster of Chicago’s finest jazz treasures and talents, including Patricia Barber, Ari Brown, Ernest Dawkins, Sarah Marie Young, Ava Logan, G. Thomas Allen, the Natalie Scharf Quintet featuring Paul Asaro, and Silvia Manrique & Marcel Bonfim.
The festival will also include daytime programming at the Chicago Cultural Center on August 28, with additional concerts at the Von Freeman Pavilion, and the Harris Theater Rooftop Terrace. For the fourth straight year, WDCB will also add to the official fest lineup by offering multiple daily sets featuring top-shelf Chicago jazz musicians at the “WDCB Jazz Lounge” in Millennium Park.
The full lineup for the 2025 Chicago Jazz Festival – including the schedule for the WDCB Jazz Lounge – will be announced in the coming weeks.
2025 Chicago Jazz Festival Schedule – Jay Pritzker Pavilion
All performances are free and open to the public. Schedule subject to change.
Thursday, August 28
6:30–7:30pm – Henry Johnson
7:45–9pm – Esperanza Spalding
Friday, August 29
4–4:45pm – Sarah Marie Young
5:05–5:50pm – Silvia Manrique and Marcel Bonfim
6:10–7:25pm. – Patricia Barber
7:45–9pm – Monty Alexander
Saturday, August 30
4–4:45pm – Ava Logan Quintet
5:05–6:05pm – Ernest Dawkins Ensemble New Horizon Redux
6:25–7:25pm – Gary Bartz & NTU Troop
7:45–9pm – Kermit Ruffins
Sunday, August 31
4–4:45pm – Natalie Scharf Quintet featuring Paul Asaro
5:05–6:05pm – G. Thomas Allen
6:25–7:25pm. – Ari Brown Quintet
7:45–9pm – Eliades Ochoa
The Chicago Jazz Festival programming is generously supported by the following sponsors: 90.9fm WDCB, Chicago Transit Authority, Chicago Jazz Magazine, DownBeat Magazine, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Millennium Garages, and Millennium Park Foundation.
