THE DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND

New Orleans isn’t just a city, it’s a way of life. It’s the birthplace of jazz and home of brass bands. It’s daytime wedding parades and all night street parties. It’s colonial and gothic. It’s inviting and intoxicating. It’s comforting and buttery. It’s incomparable.

For this past Saturday’s NOLA themed show, we pulled out all the stops to honor the rich cultural heritage of the Crescent City. Drawing upon his youth spent near New Orleans, DJ Bennett kicked things off with a mix of NOLA funk and southern soul, including several fun brass band covers of pop songs.

Next up Torrénce Brannon Reese, also a NOLA native, electrified the stage with his showmanship. Flanked by vocalists and his band, which played funky and loose, Reese had the whole crowd dancing - some even waving handkerchiefs. At the end of his rousing set, it didn’t take much prompting to get our crowd to parade around with him in a second line that weaved in and around California Plaza.

Later, our headliners the Dirty Dozen Brass Band showed Los Angeles exactly why they are living legends. The storied and trendsetting band played hit after hit, their brass melodies soaring through the night. Each band member was given ample time to show off their virtuosity during the numerous solos throughout their set, but where the Dirty Dozen really shine is the well oiled precision and nuance of them playing in unison. The crowd was rapturous and never stopped moving.

Even our neighbors at the Omni Hotel contributed to the New Orleans vibes as well, cooking up fresh batches of Chef Jeffrey’s delicious gumbo, a NOLA family recipe.

New Orleans is incomparable, but I think we succeeded in distilling the city’s essence into a bite sized sample for our downtown LA community. We thank all who made it happen!