One Book One New Orleans (OBONO), an organization that works to provide literary resources to adults while promoting equity and inclusivity, has announced their full lineup of speakers and performers for this year's Words & Music Festival taking place Nov. 16-19.
The festival will begin on Nov. 16 with a virtual event meant to honor Sylvia Plath's 90th birthday, and will include poets Toi Derricotte, Carolyn Hembree, and Kay Murphy. This celebration will be followed by three days of in-person events, beginning on Nov. 17. During these in-person sessions, attendees can look forward to hearing presentations and readings from writers, musicians, and artists such as The Stooges Brass Band, Bruce Sunpie Barnes, Jarvis DeBerry, Daniel Jose Older, and many more. In addition, the event will feature a conversation between music journalist Alison Fensterstock and New Orleans-born singer-songwriter Joy Clark, after which Clark will give an acoustic performance for attendees.
An Inclusive Music and Literary Event
In honor of OBONO's values of inclusivity and equitability, this year's Words & Music Festival has been made as accessible as possible to the public. The event's venues, including The New Orleans Jazz Market, the TEP Centerm, and the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, will all provide a generous amount of free parking spaces nearby and first-floor access to all sessions in ADA-compliant spaces.
"We welcome all in our community to celebrate New Orleans' art and artists with us," said OBONO executive director Dr. Megan Holt.
In this same spirit, this year's Words & Music Festival is also steering away from traditional ticket selling tactics, and is instead encouraging a donation-based model for most of its sessions.
"Encouraging donations rather than selling tickets ensures that nobody will be turned away from Words & Music because they don't have the money to spare. This feels more like we're living up to our values," said Holt.
To learn more about the festival's full lineup and to see the daily schedule, visit the Words & Music Festival's website here.
