Le Cajun Music Awards and Festival
Lafayette, LA
August 14 – 16

There’s no better place to experience Cajun culture – food, music and lifestyle – than the city of Lafayette. And there’s no better time than during the annual Le Cajun Music Awards and Festival.

Now in its 20th year, Le Cajun brings together several of the things Cajuns love the most – food, music and dancing, to name a few – in a three-day festival highlighted by a Grammy-style awards ceremony honoring top Cajun musicians.

Le Cajun gets started Thursday, August 14, with a free show by Donnie Broussard & Louisiana Stars at Vermillionville (300 Fisher Road), on the banks of Bayou Vermillion in Lafayette. Vermillionville is a Cajun and Creole Folklife and Heritage Park that recreates the lifestyle of Acadian settlers in the area during the period of 1765-1890.

On Friday, August 15, the festivities move over to Lafayette’s Blackham Coliseum (2330 Johnston Street), a site chosen for many reasons, not the least of which its powerful air conditioning system. Friday’s events includes the main awards ceremony (Male and Female Vocalists of the Year, Accordionist of the Year, Fiddler of the Year, et cetera), as well as performances by Chris Miller & Bayou Roots and Robert Jardell & Pure Cajun. Admission for Friday is $5, with children 12 and under admitted free.

Le Cajun’s main event is Saturday at Blackham Coliseum. Beginning at 8 a.m. and running until 10:45 at night, you’ll be treated to performances by some of the brightest stars in Cajun music, including Paul Daigle & Cajun Gold, Don Fontenot & Les Amis de La Louisiane, Walter Mouton & the Scott Playboys, Wayne Toups & Friends and more.

The festival is sponsored by the Cajun French Music Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of Cajun music, language and culture. The organization was founded in 1984 and has grown to more than 2,000 member families. Food sold at the festival is prepared by the member families. So attendees get another dose of Cajun authenticity in the form of home-cooked jambalaya, gumbo, fried seafood and much more.

2008 dates: August 14 – 16

Admission Cost: Thursday – Free, Friday - $5 (Children 12 and under free), Saturday - $10 (Children 12 and under free)

Directions: Lafayette, LA is located a little more than two hours west of New Orleans. To Vermillionville: From I-10, take exit 103A (Evangeline Thruway exit – I-49 South and US 90 East). Continue south on Evangeline Thruway for about 4 miles. Take a left on Surrey Street. Go about a half mile and turn left on Fisher Road. To Blackham Coliseum: From I-10, take exit 103A (Evangeline Thruway Exit – I-49 South and US 90 East). Go about 3 miles, and take a right onto Johnston Street. Proceed about 2 miles. Blackham Coliseum will be on the right.

For more information, visit http://www.cajunfrenchmusic.org/lecajun.html

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