Kermit Ruffins & Cyril Neville in New Orleans

Kermit Ruffins is an American jazz trumpeter, singer and songwriter born in New Orleans in 1964. He co-founded Rebirth Brass Band as a high-school student in 1983, then built a solo career around traditional jazz, swing and brass-band music. His best-known work includes “Drop Me Off in New Orleans,” and he appeared as himself in the HBO series Treme. In 1992, Ruffins left Rebirth Brass Band, formed the Barbecue Swingers and began a long-running Thursday-night engagement at Vaughan’s Lounge. Later local engagements included Bullet’s Sports Bar and the Blue Nile, while repeated appearances at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival placed his trumpet and vocals at the center of the show.

Cyril Neville is an American singer, percussionist and songwriter born in New Orleans in 1948. He performed with the Meters and was a founding member of the Neville Brothers, placing his voice and percussion at the center of New Orleans funk, soul and rhythm and blues. His recorded work includes the Meters’ “Fire on the Bayou,” the Neville Brothers’ “Sister Rosa,” and the solo albums Brand New Blues and Magic Honey. The Neville Brothers played dates opening for the Rolling Stones during their 1981 American tour, introducing the family group to arena audiences. Decades later, Cyril Neville co-founded Royal Southern Brotherhood and returned to sustained club and festival touring after the group’s self-titled debut, led by Cyril Neville, Devon Allman and Mike Zito.