Monterey Jazz Festival has always presented jazz legends from the past, present and future on its stages for 67 years. In 2024, you’ll have the opportunity to see artists you know and love and then discover the next generation of jazz and beyond, all in the same weekend! Grab your tickets and join us.
In the last three years, Samara has rocketed to the top of the charts with her warm and classic voice and her interpretations of jazz standards. You can see her Friday night on the Arena Stage and then you can discover these other contemporary vocal artists that we think you’ll love.
The 2021 first place winner of the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition (and the only male vocalist to do so), G. Thomas Allen is a singular addition to the male vocalist tradition in the fact that his extended 4-octave vocal range is rarely heard in jazz. With a soulful voice that has been compared to Earth Wind and Fire’s Philip Bailey, Allen’s work spans multiple genres from classical to straight-ahead jazz. Allen kicks off MJF67’s Pacific Jazz Café’s schedule on Friday night!
Somi made her first appearance at MJF in 2010 and again in 2016. Mentored by legendary trumpet player Hugh Masekela, her most recent release, Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba is an all-star tribute that fuses jazz, deep grooves with an African influence that creates a new direction for the art form.
Christie Dashiell has been praised by the Washington Post for her “advanced harmonies and astonishing range and precision” and “is a genuine tour de force, threading classic standards and distinctive originals with her unique blend of technique and charm. She makes her MJF debut at MJF67!
A larger-than-life vocalist, up-and-coming diva Shayna Steele has been performing across multiple genres and ensembles—soul, jazz, blues, musical theater, movie soundtracks, symphonies and more! She’s collaborated with Chris Botti, Moby, and Snarky Puppy and will debut her powerful and emotional sonic palate at MJF67!
Vocalist and bandleader Julia Keefe is an internationally acclaimed Native American jazz vocalist, actor, activist, and educator and will make her Monterey debut with her Indigenous Jazz Ensemble. A member of the Nez Perce tribe of the Pacific Northwest, Keefe has been tracing connections to Native American artists who have gone underexposed and underappreciated, with a particular focus on Mildred Bailey and others that are deserving of a wider audience. With a luminous voice and captivating presence onstage, Keefe’s debut at MJF67 is a celebration of the wider scope of jazz and its influence on popular culture.
