A historic line-up of acts that includes jazz saxophonist Kirk Walum, Regina Belle, and Keith Washington is what you might expect from a large Juneteenth festival. However, this is a list of some of the national artists who’ve headlined Juneteenth in the Little Apple, Manhattan, KS.
The concerts kick off a two-day community celebration that this year will be held June 13 and 14 an. This year the Friday Night headliner is Heatwave, one of the most popular Soul bands of the 70s.
They’ll perform their blend of sweet Soul grooves and great Pop/Soul/Dance songs, that includes hits like ‘Mind Blowing Decisions’, ‘Boogie Nights’ and the all-time classic ‘Always And Forever’.
The Friday night concert event kicks off at 7:30 p.m.
How does a small town like Manhattan have such a long list of headliners?
“It’s boots on the ground,” says Betti O Jones, a local performer and long-term member of the Manhattan Juneteenth planning committee. “We get in touch with almost every major business in this town, we send letters and we ask for funding.”
They get support from the local chamber and community foundation, who give money, but also provide resources and help open the door for in-kind services and donations from local businesses..
“It (the Juneteenth Celebration) is a way of bringing people out to fellowship, some good music, some good food, and just to have a great time,” said Jones.
Dating back to 1989, Manhattan Juneteenth is also one of the oldest celebrations in the region. It was started by Diana Caldwell, who at that time was the coordinator of the Kansas State University Student Affairs Multicultural Student Organization. She was convinced by two K-State graduate students to hold the city’s first Juneteenth celebration in her backyard.
Over the years, the celebration grew and Donnie Slater began helping Caldwell with the event. He led the planning committee until his death in 2015. Former K-State Baseball Coach Dave Baker took the helm of the organization and took it to another level.
The festival’s growth took it from Caldwell’s back yard, to the historic Douglass Activity Center which was built in 1940 as a canteen for Black servicemen. It eventually became a recreational space for Manhattan’s Black community and Baker served there as director after retiring from coaching.
When the committee began bringing in national acts, they made the controversial decision to move the festival to City Park where there was a historic bandstand that could better accommodate the acts. The move was controversial because historically African Americans had not been allowed to use City Park.
The Friday night Juneteenth concert remains at the park’s bandstand. With its raised platform, roof and excellent acoustics, the bandstand and park prove a great venue for the festival’s opening night concert and events.
Friday, consider arriving at 5:30 p.m. for the Barbecue cook-off. For a $5 sampling kit, you get tastes of food from cook-off participants and have a vote in the People’s Choices Awards. Get there on time, the samples go fast.
Saturday’s activities begin with a Unity Walk from Long Park to the new much larger Douglass Center. Activities continue at the Douglass Center with vendors, music, speeches, games and activities for children, food vendors and free hot dogs and chips while they last.
“It (the Juneteenth Celebration) is a way of bringing people out to fellowship, some good music, some good food, and just to have a great time,” said Jones.
