By Sitha Maliwa:
When the stars align and the trumpets call, Johannesburg answers. And this spring, the city will be bathed in brass and brilliance as the one and only Wynton Marsalis – a living legend, a jazz philosopher, and a cultural force – returns to South Africa to headline the 2025 Standard Bank Joy of Jazz Festival.
Yes, it’s official: Marsalis, alongside the esteemed Jazz at Lincoln Centre Orchestra (JLCO), will take center stage at Africa’s premier jazz celebration this September. The announcement, embargoed until the stroke of midnight on July 29, has ignited waves of excitement across jazz circles, arts institutions, and cultural corridors on both sides of the Atlantic.
From Friday, 26 September to Sunday, 28 September 2025, the Sandton International Convention Centre will host more than just music—it will host history. And Marsalis, who will perform only on Friday and Sunday, is bringing with him more than a horn. He’s bringing a legacy.
The trumpet virtuoso’s appearance at the festival is part of a global journey celebrating the African continent’s enduring jazz legacy. At Joy of Jazz, this journey will include a heartfelt homage to South African jazz great Bheki Mseleku, with the prodigious Nduduzo Makhathini, a Standard Bank Young Artist for Jazz alumnus, leading the tribute.
This is not just another performance. It is a homecoming of sorts – an artistic pilgrimage that connects New Orleans to Johannesburg, from the birthplaces of jazz to its living, breathing heart in Africa.
Marsalis is no stranger to milestones. Over a career that has stretched across 40 years, he has done what few could ever dream: 120+ albums, 9 Grammy Awards, including dual wins in both jazz and classical music in the same year – two years in a row. And if that wasn’t enough, he shattered ceilings in 1997 by becoming the first jazz musician ever awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
Still, it’s not just the accolades that matter – it’s the purpose. “Adding Wynton Marsalis to the 2025 Programme firms up the straight-ahead jazz element in our curatorial vision. Inviting him also signals our commitment to the shared cultural and democratic values that connect South Africa and the United States. Marsalis is also a friend of the festival and we could not miss an opportunity to host him in Joburg at this time,” says Mantwa Chinoamadi, CEO of T-Musicman and Producer of the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz Festival.
There’s no overstating what this means. The Joy of Jazz is no ordinary gathering – it is a three-day immersion into the soul of sound, showcasing over 60 artists from 15 countries across three continents. Four stages. Three nights. Infinite moments. And at the heart of it, the unmistakable voice of Marsalis’s – @NewsSA_Online
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