Mayor Eric Adams To Attend Harlem Concert, Speak At Midtown Gala

NEW YORK CITY — Mayor Eric Adams will be in Harlem to deliver remarks at the Rise Up Concert Series, a free musical event that is being held in the city through Sept. 12. The event is meant to help lift the morale of New Yorkers during the COVID-19 pandemic and help them reconnect with the Big Apple, as reported by TimeOut.com.

The mayor will make his address during the musical event at 5:15 p.m. at St. Nicholas Park at 135th Street and St. Nicholas Ave, according to the Mayor’s Office.

Artists Freddie Jackson, EMPD, Donell Jones and Wyclef Jean will perform hip-hop and R&B hits from 4-8 p.m. Deejay Funkmaster Flex is also set to attend, according to the city Parks Department.

A second Harlem R&B and hip-hop concert will be held Sunday at the same location and time. The concert will feature Dru Hill, Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh.

Doors open at each concert at 3 p.m.

Staten Island will host a Rise Up Concert at Midland Beach Park Lot 8 on Sept. 1 from 7-10 p.m. Performers include Stevie B, Lisa Lisa, Shannon, Lisette Melendez, Corina, and Soave, according to Rise Up NYC Concerts. Doors will open at 6 p.m.

Previous concerts were held at Brooklyn’s Wingate Park in July and Queens’ Roy Wilkins Park earlier this month.

Adams will later be at the Marriott Marquis Hotel at 7:30 p.m. for the Jamaica 60 Diamond Jubilee Gala, which will feature Northwell Health’s Sandra Lindsay, the nurse who took the first COVID-19 vaccine as a way to advocate for public health. She was also a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in July.

The gala is in celebration of Jamaica’s 60th year of independence as a commonwealth country from the United Kingdom, which is typically celebrated on Aug. 6.

Over 165,000 Jamaican immigrants reside throughout the city, according to 2020 data from the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. Jamaicans are the third top foreign-born immigrants who reside in the Big Apple, falling only behind Dominican and Chinese-Americans.

“I am pleased that a team from our diaspora has come together to ensure that we will have a celebration that is worthy of Jamaica’s Diamond Jubilee of Independence,” Adams told Jamaica Gleaner, a news outlet from the island country. “We are committed to ensuring that members of our community will feel the pride of being Jamaican as we celebrate together. I thank all the members of the team that have come together to make this a reality.”

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, who is Jamaican-American, told Patch earlier this month that he was happy to recognize the 60th anniversary.

“Jamaicans and all people of Jamaican heritage are a distinguished people who have a rich cultural legacy they have shared around world, including here in ‘The World’s Borough.’ As someone who is the son of a Jamaican immigrant father, I am proud to share in this noble heritage, and I wish all the best for my fellow Jamaican Americans and for the people of Jamaica,” Richards said via email.

Monty Alexander, a jazz pianist, Basil Anderson, Dr. Maurice Wright, Jeffrey Flaks, and Mart Newman will also be recognized at the event.

Proceeds from the gala will go towards purchasing six dialysis machines to benefit hospitals in Jamaica and provide six scholarships for students at tertiary institutions as well as benefit charities in New York and Jamaica, reported the Gleaner.

Tickets for the event are on sale at Jamaica60.org.

To learn more about Rise Up and its upcoming free concerts visit Rise Up NYC Concerts.