Downtown Durham Inc. will launch its free “Find Your Cool” Summer Concert Series at CCB Plaza, Thursday, May 9, 7 p.m. From soul to salsa, African to Americana, “the plaza with the bronze bull” will be bustling with local bands, locally-brewed beer from Bull City Burger and Brewery and people of all ages, ready to start the weekend a day early.
Twenty years ago, when Downtown Durham Inc. was a young organization, formed to serve as a catalyst for downtown revitalization, an after-work concert series was one of its first projects to revive the city center. Today, Durham is “America’s #1 Creative Class Metro” according to The Atlantic. “Downtown Durham is thriving with new restaurants, bakeries, shops and venues opening every month. I’m thrilled DDI is bringing back a regular music series, and honored, as a long-time Durham resident and fan, to be a part of it all” says Downtown Durham Inc. Special Events Coordinator and series organizer Tess Mangum Ocaña.
Find Your Cool Summer Concert Series
Thursday Nights, 7-8:30pm, CCB Plaza
- Jo Gore & The Alternative (Soul) – May 9
- Onyx Club Boys (Gypsy Jazz) – May 16
- Sarah Shook & The Devil (Rockabilly) – May 23
- Virgins Family Band (Pop) – May 30
- The Pinkerton Raid (Pop/Americana) – June 6
- Mel Melton & the Wicked Mojos (Blues) – June 13
- Dark Water Rising (Rock) – June 20
- Orquesta GarDel (Salsa) – June 27
- Cyril Lance Collective Arkestra (Blues) – July 11
- Jonathan Byrd (Americana) – July 18
- Birds & Arrows (Alternafolk) – July 25
- The Fair and the Four (Americana) – August 1
- Khalat Africa featuring Diali Cissokho (West African) – August 8
The “Find Your Cool” Summer Concert Series is made possible in part by Downtown Durham, Inc., Friends of World Music, MHAworks, the City of Durham and Bull City Burger and Brewery. Concerts are at CCB plaza, 201 N. Corcoran Street, between the Marriott and SunTrust building, from May 9-August 8, with the exception of July 4. Free on-street parking is available within the City Center District and paid parking is available at the Corcoran Street deck.
In case of rain, concerts will be moved indoors, right around the corner, at The Pinhook, 117 W Main Street.
For more information, ways to volunteer during the series, or information on tax-deductible sponsorship opportunities, contact Tess Mangum Ocaña, Special Events Coordinator, (919) 682-2800 or tess (at) downtowndurham (dot) com.