Polyrhythms' 12th-Annual Bill Bell Jazz & Heritage Festival, August 21 and 22

Friday, August 21

Martin Luther King Jr. Center, 630 Seventh Avenue, Rock Island IL

Saturday, August 22

MLK Park, 601 Ninth Street, Rock Island IL

With this year's musical guests including Nina Nicole Little, the Pippi & Daniel Music Experience, and Erech Bruce, Polyrhythms proudly presents the 12th-annual Bill Bell Jazz & Heritage Festival at Rock Island's Martin Luther King Center and neighboring MLK Park, an August 21 and 22 celebration of cultural heritage in the Quad Cities named after the late musician, educator, and East Moline native lovingly known as “The Jazz Professor.”

Throughout the weekend's events, there will be vendors on-site, merchandise, cultural and community displays, and a number of thrilling live performances. On Friday, August 21, the weekend's activities begin inside the Martin Luther King Jr. Center at 5 p.m. with an opening reception, followed by the festival's Black Authors Forum lasting from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Then, at 8 p.m., singer, public speaker, and entertainer Nina Nichol Little will take the stage, celebrating Black artistry through her unique and lauded musical talents.

With the events on Saturday, August 22 largely taking place in the Martin Luther King Jr. Center's neighboring MLK Park, the fun begins at noon with vendors, a black-authors book fair, drumming, dancing, and the beats of DJ Charles Swift. At 2 p.m. inside the MLK Center, a prostate-cancer health forum will be conducted, as well as a zine workshop for youths. An interactive modern- and traditional African-dance movement workshop led by Taliah Thomas is scheduled for 3 p.m.

A jazz performance by the genre greats of James Culver & the Kuchina Collective will begin at 4 p.m., while 5:30 p.m. brings with it a set by the Pippi & Daniel Music Experience, the married artists' jazz project that delivers electrifying, emotionally-charged performances that fuse jazz, soul blues, gospel, and R&B into one unforgettable sound. And at 7:30 p.m., the Peoria-basred sensation Erech Bruce takes the stage. A multi-instrumentalist whose style incorporates R&B, jazz fusion, neo-soul, hip hop, and blues, Bruce is traditionally a familiar face at the Peoria Blues & Heritage Music Festival. Over the course of his nascent career, the artist has opened up for legends including Buddy Guy, Musique Soul Child, and additional blues and jazz talents, and Bruce says he hopes to reach and encourage others through his music, as he understands that "music connects all."

Cultural-heritage exhibits and displays will also be on site throughout the August 21 and 22 fest, admission is free all weekend, and more information on Polyrhythms' 12th-Annual Bill Bell Jazz & Heritage Festival is available by visiting Polyrhythms.org.