Celebrate Brooklyn – a fabulous diva will soon grace New York

A Jamaica-born diva is headed back to Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Grace Jones is booked to headline the Blue Note Jazz Festival on May 27 and join Janelle Monae at Prospect Park’s Lena Horne Bandshell on June 9.

Celebrating her 77th birthday on May 19, the fashion-forward singer/songwriter/actress/model/ acclaimed “amazing” by fashionistas, music insiders, and film buffs, plans to celebrate Brooklyn with her unique, unapologetic performance.

Often described as energetic, androgynous, and provocative, the Spanish Town native caused near hysteria when she last performed in Kings County at Commodore Barry Park.

She also created a crowd-pleasing frenzy at an outdoor screening in a Harlem Park of her documentary — “Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami.”

The film, chronicling her emergence from humble beginnings to international trendsetter, broadened her profile to generations who might have been unaware of her reputation for delivering spectacle at the exclusive, hot-spot Studio 54 nightclub.

Since those early years, the always uncompromising diva has transformed herself to attract new audiences, like a Phoenix.

In 1985, Jones portrayed May Day in the 14th installment of a James Bond film titled “A View To To A Kill.” Jones rivaled actor Roger Moore for box office billing.

She later followed a similar playbook co-starring with Eddie Murphy in “Boomerang.”

When disco music dominated radio playlists, Jones etched her signature on the music charts with a club hit titled “Pull Up To The Bumper.”

Then, trendsetters acknowledged that Jones might be a multi-talented, no-holds-barred entertainer. Needless to say, Jones never abandoned her principal allure as a model to imitate.

Her classic features, inimitable style, savvy fashion sense, fluency in French, and iconic personality may find longtime friends and newfound fans waiting inside and outside to test their senses with a legend who knows how, when, why, and where.

Jones is also booked to headline the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland on July 12.

No Reggae billed for Central Park Summerstage in 2025

The usual parade of reggae music lovers to Central Park’s Rumsey Playfield during the Jamaica independence weekend will have to find a new venue to revel. This year’s Summerstage lineup shows that reggae is not on the calendar this summer. The annual marathon VP Records showcase has been nixed for the 2025 free concert season. No official explanation was issued about the Caribbean showcase. However, billed during the timeframe is a hip hop session emceed by Ralph McDaniels, host of Video Musicbox. Rapper Rakim and a slew of reputable names are billed for Aug. 9.

For details, check the City Parks web portal.

Catch You On The Inside!