Durham has a brand new festival to get excited about in 2025. Biscuits & Banjos, a festival curated by Grammy and Pulitzer Prize winning North Carolina legend Rhiannon Giddens is taking place April 25-27.
Biscuits & Banjos will celebrate "all kinds of derivatives of Black American music, whether it's old time, or jazz, or bluegrass, or blues," said festival producer Cicely Mitchell. "Rhiannon says it's the counterculture of what is deemed as popular Black American music."
In a press release Giddens says that "Black culture is not a monolith" and this festival will provide a space for underrepresented artists to shine.
The initial line up includes Rhiannon Giddens, Christian McBride, Dom Flemmons, Rissi Palmer, New Dangerfield, Leyla McCalla, The Legendary Ingramettes, and most notably, the reunited Carolina Chocolate Drops who will be playing together in their original line-up plus with members who joined over the years for the first time since 2014.
The festival is also a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the first Black Banjo Gathering, which took place in Boone in 2005. It was at this gathering where Rhiannon Giddens, Dom Flemmons, and Justin Robinson formed the Carolina Chocolate Drops. Giddens cited the gathering as a major inspiration and the kick start of her career. The Chocolate Drops would go on to release five full-length albums and win a Grammy in 2010 for "Genuine Negro Jig."
As the title implies, the event will combine music with food and culture. Attendees can expect literary talks and lectures from authors and chefs. There will also be a square dance, free banjo lessons, and a celebrity chef bake-off.
Biscuits & Banjos will be spread throughout downtown Durham. Festival activities will be taking place at DPAC, The Carolina Theatre, The Armory, and several other locations. A portion of both ticket sales and merchandise sales will go to benefit hurricane victims in western North Carolina.
