The complete guide to the 30th annual 2nd Street Festival in Jackson Ward

For the past 30 years, thousands have gathered for the 2nd Street Festival. The festival takes place in Jackson Ward which at one time was referred to as the “Harlem of the South”. Traditionally the 2nd Street Festival takes place the second weekend in October. This year the festival is presented by Altria, Dominion Energy, and produced by Venture Richmond. The fun takes place Saturday-Sunday, October 6-7th.

The free festival is a celebration of the rich culture of the Historic Jackson Ward neighborhood and features an amazing lineup of music and entertainment throughout the weekend. There will be four stages of music, food vendors, a marketplace, a Kidz Zone programmed by the Children’s Museum of Richmond, balloon twisting by Balloons By Extreme and Artists Row featuring David Marion with Liberated Flow, creator of this year’s festival poster.

There are three new events this year:

FREE Walking Tours
New this year, Venture Richmond Events will provide FREE guided walking tours led by Gary
Flowers who has a four-generation family connection to Historic Jackson Ward. “Educating the
public to the place Historic Jackson Ward holds in commerce, education, and dismantling racial
segregation in the United States of America is critically important to me,” Mr. Flowers said.

Hippodrome in Jackson Ward – Photo courtesy of Valentine Museum.

“Renaissance Roll Call”
Also new this year, and in addition to walking tours, Mr. Flowers will also conduct a “Renaissance
Roll Call.” This will allow attendees to be drawn to a special recognition of the many
religious, benevolent, fraternal, and sororal institutions which were organized in the 1800s and early
1900s to uplift Richmond’s Black community during the Jim Crow era in Jackson Ward.  A
“Renaissance Roll Cal”; will be conducted for current members – as well as people whose families were members – of organizations such as, but not limited to: The Independent Order of St. Luke, Independent Order of the True Reformers, Historic churches in Jackson Ward, The Richmond
Planet, The Astoria Beneficial Club, The Theban Beneficial Club, Masonic Lodges, The Order of
the Eastern Star, Divine 9 historically Black fraternities and sororities, among many others. Participants are asked to wear uniforms, insignia, medallions and paraphernalia representing the
respective organizations.

Community Cubes Project
The Community Cubes project, sponsored by Art on Wheels, will showcase how our everyday
living is an individual as well as a shared experience. Their belief is that art is a tool to help
transform and build happy and healthy communities. A cube bench is created from castings of
everyday objects that people carry with them. During the 2nd Street Festival, clay slabs will be
available and festival attendees will be asked to press something they are carrying into the clay to
make an impression. The clay will be used as a mold to cast into a cube bench for sitting. This will
be installed at the bus stop located near 2nd and Broad Streets.

The festival features two headliners, Stokley on Saturday and The Art of Noise on Sunday.

Saturday’s Headliner, Stokley
Stokley, former lead vocalist for hit-making R&B band Mint Condition and two-time Grammy
Award nominee is Saturday’s headline performer.

Photo Credit: 2nd Street Festival

In the mid-1980s Stokley became a founding member of Mint Condition, and after several years of
gigs, the band crossed paths with that of lauded multiplatinum producers and his Minneapolis
hometown heroes Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Fresh off the success of Janet Jackson’s Rhythm
Nation, Jam & Lewis recruited Mint Condition to their label’s roster and released their debut, Meant
to Be Mint,in 1991. The group soon found success in their Billboard Top hit classics “Breakin’ My
Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes),” “U Send Me Swingin’,” “Forever in Your Eyes” and “What Kind of
Man Would I Be,” to name a few.

Stokley charts a new course with his debut solo album, Introducing Stokley, featuring guest
appearances by the likes of GRAMMY-winning jazz pianist Robert Glasper and Estelle.
Introducing Stokley offers listeners a fresh perspective of a dynamic voice that has resonated with
core fans around the world for over two decades. Some of his hit songs as a solo performer include
“Level,” “Organic” and “Not My Daddy,” with Kelly Price.

Sunday’s Headliner, The Art of Noise
The Art of Noise draws music lovers of all ages, races and genders who have a true appreciation for
the art that is music. The pictures are painted as each DJ, artisans in the skill of hip hop, feed and
vibe off each other’s groove and rock the crowd. The Heavy Hitter DJ Lonnie B and DJ Marc
transform the noise of the streets into nostalgia. The experience is like colorful impulses stimulated
by the record scratching, the base booming and the vibration of the treble. Mad Skillz and Kelli
Lemon help the audience come together as bodies move like fluid and voices sing in unison. Their
performances produce “a magnetic energy flowing throughout the room when they play that one
song and the crowd erupts as people start to remember exactly what they were doing when that song
came out.”

The poster this year is by Richmond based artist David Marion. This David’s fourth year as the returning artist.

Featured Poster Artist

Every year a new poster is revealed. We haven’t seen it yet but the artist is Richmond based David Marion. A graduate of Hampton University, with a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, he always found time to continue following his passion and practicing his craft. Using oil as his medium of choice he has specialized in figurative art and portraiture for nearly a decade. He has exhibited in galleries and museums in New York, Chicago, South Carolina, and Virginia, and is on his way to becoming a nationally-recognized artist.

2^nd Street Festival 2018 Stage Schedule

WAVERLY R. CRAWLEY MAIN STAGE (sponsored by Virginia Union University)

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6

11:45 – 12:30pm                                 Corey El and the Fam

1:00 – 2:00pm                                     Mighty Joshua

2:30 – 3:15pm                                     Comedian Antoine Scott

3:45 – 4:45pm                                     Legacy Band

5:30 – 7:00pm                                     Stokley

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7

1:00 – 1:50pm                                     F.A.B.C. Music Ministry All Stars

2:30 – 3:30pm                                     Debo Dabney

3:45 – 4:00pm                                     Elvatrice Beslches, Historian

4:30 – 6:00pm                                     The Art of Noise

JOE KENNEDY JR. JAZZ STAGE

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6

12:00 – 12:50pm                                 Marsha Meekins & Company

1:10 – 2:00pm                                                 Debra Dean & The Key West Quartet

2:20 – 3:10pm                                                 Richard D’Abreu & Jazz in the Spirit

3:30 – 4:30pm                                                 Fabian Lance Project

4:50 – 6:00pm                                                 Quintessential Jazz

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7

1:00 – 1:50pm                                                 Matthew Steele & The Revolution

2:10 – 3:10pm                                                 Tonya & The Groove Mastas

3:30 – 4:30pm                                                 Bassist Mike Hawkins

5:00 – 6:00pm                                                 Curv Appeal

NINA’S BISTRO STAGE

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6

12:30 – 1:00pm                                   Fitness Warriors

1:30 – 2:30pm                                     Hip Hop Karaoke

3:00 – 3:30pm                                     Dynamic Angels Dance Team

3:45 – 4:10pm                                     Jump Starzz Jump Rope Team

4:40 – 5:40 pm                                    Rodney The Soul Singer

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7

1:00 – 2:00pm                                     Guitarist Zack Artis

2:20 – 2:50pm                                     Crown’s Fashion Show

3:20 – 4:10pm                                     We Don’t Know Yet Band

4:40 – 5:40pm                                     The Quinton Jones Band

EGGLESTON HOTEL COMMUNITY STAGE

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6

12:00 – 12:30pm                                 Minds in Motion

1:00 – 1:30pm                                     Bhangra Dancers – Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School

2:00 – 3:00pm                                     Carlos Viera “The Line Dance Prince”

3:25 – 3:45pm                                     Community Roll Call with Gary Flowers

4:00 – 4:30pm                                     Astounding Divas – Youth Creative Dance Academy

4:45 – 5:10pm                                     Happiness Dance Studio

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7

2:30 – 3:00pm                                     Sixth Mt. Zion Baptist Church Music & Movement Ministries

3:30 – 4:30pm                                     Guitarist Zack Artis

4:40- 4:50pm                                      “Not the Average Black Girl” presented & adapted by Dr. Bert

5:00 –5:45pm                                      D & G Line Dancing

Visit the 2^nd Street Festival’s Facebook page or website.