The second annual Booker T Live music festival will feature a mixture of established local artists alongside students from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
The event, which launched in 2021 amid the pandemic, has shifted from its socially distanced origins to an annual benefit for and showcase of the renowned Dallas school’s talented student population.
Headliners for this year’s Booker T Live, set to unfold Friday, Oct. 25 at Annette Strauss Square in downtown Dallas — just steps from the school’s campus — will include Ishi (an acclaimed Dallas act, currently working on its fourth studio album, due out for release next year), Tippy Balady, Kole and Remy Reilly, John AQUA, DJ Amarji and Southern Ballroom Princess.
Booker T. students on the bill include AKA+2, Death by Monkey, i45, KAATII, RJ and Friends, Session07 and WIMEC.
According to press materials, funds raised at Booker T Live “close the opportunity gap to ensure this public school and [its] students reach their highest and best potential … nurturing and launching more artists, like our very own alumni Norah Jones, Erykah Badu, Edie Brickell and the late Daniel Jones and Shaun Martin.”
The festival is open to the public, and in addition to the music on tap, attendees will be able to purchase food and beverages, browse merch tents, sample tarot card readers, tooth gem artistry and lawn games, as well as buy artisan wares from Booker T. students on site.
Booker T Live at Strauss Square, Dallas. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 25. Tickets are $30 for general admission, $10 for student admission.
Preston Jones is a North Texas freelance writer and regular contributor to KXT. Email him at [email protected] or find him on X (@prestonjones). Our work is made possible by our generous, music-loving members. If you like how we lift up local music, consider becoming a KXT sustaining member right here.
