Soul Roots - Mardi Gras Party 2025

*** LAST MIN VENUE CHANGE - EVENT NOW FREE ENTRY *** Soul Roots is back with our 4th Annual dance jam in celebration of Mardi Gras and of New Orleans music culture! Come and join us for a night of great music from the Big Easy. You can expect to hear a "gumbo" of Jazz, Swing, Blues, RnB, Funk, Soul, Mento, Calypso, 2nd Line Brass, and Carnival tunes 🎶 ⚜️ ⚜️ ⚜️ Mardi Gras is a world famous Carnival celebration with a decidedly French-American flavour (and we all love a good excuse for a party), but we’re also hosting this event to honour the roots of the music and dances we all love. The history of New Orleans’s Congo square is the story of African music and dance living on under harsh conditions in the new world. When Jazz and Blues music emerged post-emancipation, this city in the South was the epicentre of African-American culture. Every decade new forms of music have emerged from the city… yet even when covering funk and hiphop songs of today, the 2nd line brass bands that lead Mardi Gras parades maintain a connection to African percussive styles. And while many think of Mardi Gras purely as a party, the various carnival “krewes” also pay homage to important moments in the city’s heritage (e.g. the Native American contributions to Black freedom). As dancers, we love to explore the musical cousins of the main genres we dance to, and musically New Orleans has so much to offer us! At this event, many people will be partner dancing with Swing/Lindy hop and Blues Dance steps… but you don’t need to have learned any moves to join this party. DJs will be spinning plenty of Funk, Soul, and even brass-heavy Hiphop for us, so everyone can get down in their own style! So come on down, dress up like you’re hitting the parade (wear a mask if that’s your thing), but mostly prepare to strut and shake your stuff to funky brassy sounds into the wee hours 🥳 ⚜️ ⚜️ ⚜️ The Barrelhouse, Bristol BS8 1AW Free Entry 9pm to 1am