LOS ANGELES, Oct. 3, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- An eclectic mix of Jazz, R&B, Blues and Gospel music will fill the air at South Los Angeles' main charity event of the year as the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science celebrates its 17th year Jazz at Drew festival and charity on October 6 and 7, 2007. The weekend festival will be held on the grassy lawn of the University campus in South Los Angeles. Gates open at 10:30 a.m.
Jazz at Drew continues its mission of highlighting the healing art of music and medicine. The charity benefits groundbreaking research, scholarships, endowments and facility expansion for the University.
"Funds from this event," says Jazz at Drew Executive Director Roland Betts, "help the University to expand its education programs to increase its number of world-class health professionals trained here, who later return to serve the diverse and disadvantaged communities, such as South Los Angeles."
Actor/musician Malcolm-Jamal Warner and his band Miles Long return for the second time. "When I performed at Jazz at Drew a couple of years ago, it was a great experience," says Warner. "Sharing the stage with Freddie Hubbard, Ronnie Laws and the others was phenomenal." Warner goes on to say that what truly makes this event amazing is the fact that the Charles Drew University cultivates the next generation of minority health professionals through their pipeline programs. "I was blown away," he says. "I want to do what I can to help them with their mission."
Saturday's Line-up
Locke High 40th Anniversary Reunion Band, Charles Drew University All-Stars, Leimert Park All-Stars, Jazz on the Latin Side all-Stars featuring Jose Riso, Kenny Burrell, David T. Walker Quartet featuring Byron Miller, Clarence McDonald and Leon Ndugu Chancler, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Miles Long, Sheila E. and the E. Family Orchestra featuring Pete Escovedo, Juan Escovedo and Peter Michael Escovedo and Lakeside.
Sunday's Line-up
Demitri Noble and Nobility featuring Mike Hunter, Kamasi Washington, Darryl Harris, and Robert Turner, Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, The Soul Seekers, The Mighty Clouds of Joy, Hubert Laws featuring Debra Laws, Cedar Walton Quintet featuring Steve Turree, David Williams, Javon Jackson and Al Foster, Curtis Fuller Super B and featuring Nicolas Payton and Rene McLean with a special 50th Anniversary celebration of Jerry Butler and the Music of Curtis Mayfield and The Impressions featuring Rickey Minor Symphony Orchestra with Special Guest Jerry Butler and also The Impressions.
Tickets are on sale at all Ticketmaster locations or can be purchased at the Jazz at Drew Ticket Office trailer, located on the University campus on 118th Street. The University address is 1731 E. 120th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90059. General admission tickets are $45 in advance and $50 at the gate. You can charge by phone at (213) 480-3232 and (714) 740-2000. For more details, visit: www.jazzatdrew.com.
ABOUT THE CHARLES DREW UNIVERSITY:
The Charles Drew University is a private non-profit educational institution located in the Watts-Willowbrook area of South Los Angeles. The University has trained over five thousand college, graduate and post-graduate students since 1971 and has emerged as a national model for educating highly trained and committed physicians and other healthcare professionals who provide quality care to medically underserved communities. Research shows both that its students become more committed to the mission as they progress through their educational experience, and that 10 years after graduation 70% of Charles Drew University trained physicians are still working in underserved communities, a rate three times the national average. Charles Drew University is also widely regarded for its innovative research to eliminate health disparities. For more information, visit http://www.cdrewu.edu.