The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival is one of the oldest and most culturally significant music festivals in the world. Dating back to 1970, "Jazz Fest" celebrates the indigenous music and culture of New Orleans and Louisiana and encompasses every style of music associated with the city and the state, including traditional and contemporary jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, Afro-Caribbean, folk, Latin, rock, rap, country and bluegrass. It has featured such legendary names as Mahalia Jackson, Duke Ellington, Fats Domino, Joe Cocker, Pete Seeger and Neil Young, among others. It takes place over two weekends in April and May at Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans.
Austin City Limits Music Festival is tied to the popular PBS music series Austin City Limits and caters to both mainstream and indie rock fans. It takes place over three days and eight stages in September in Zilker Park, Austin, Texas, and brings together 130 major music acts, as well as food and art from local vendors. Headliners in previous years have included Muse, The Eagles, The Strokes, The Flaming Lips, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kings of Leon and the Dave Matthews Band.
Montreal International Jazz Festival in Montreal, Canada, holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz festival. Every year it features 3,000 artists from 30 countries, more than 650 concerts (including 450 free outdoor performances) and close to 2.5 million visitors over 10 days in June and July. Since its inception in 1980 the bill has featured performers such as Ray Charles, Vic Vogel, Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Dave Brubeck and Aretha Franklin.
Lollapalooza was conceived by Jane's Addiction singer Perry Farrell in 1991 as a farewell tour for his band and has come to be renowned as one of the best rock festivals in the world. The festival, held over a weekend in April at Grant park in Chicago, was such a success it ran annually until 1997 and was then revived in 2003. It features popular heavy metal, alternative rock, punk rock and hip hop bands, dance and comedy performances and craft booths. Some headliners have included Green Day, Soundgarden, Tool, Arcade Fire, The Killers, Lou Reed and Ben Harper.