A cross-section of New Orleans musicians, culture bearers, and grassroots organizers will spend Thanksgiving night doing what the city does best: gathering around music and community. Dodie’s Jazz Club, a new jazz club, will host BREAK BREAD: Feeding Souls Through Sound, a free event created by Organize Thinkers in partnership with the 8th Ward Black Seminoles.
The evening brings together several corners of the city’s creative ecosystem. Big Chief K Young and the 8th Ward Black Seminoles anchor the lineup, bringing the spirit and continuity of the Black Masking Indian tradition to the Broad Street club. The Organize Thinkers Experience follows with a blend of hip-hop, spoken word, and live instrumentation featuring The Magicians with Kunta Fly Snooka and EazyMoney. Rounding out the bill is Jemima Joel & The Gaias, an alternative-soul collective known for weaving global influences with New Orleans rhythm.
Organizer Kebori Denson says the goal is simple: create a holiday space rooted in care. “Thanksgiving is about taking care of one another. We wanted to build something that feeds people’s spirits as much as anything else,” he says.
For Big Chief K Young, the night also highlights cultural continuity. “The culture is meant to be lived, shared, and passed on. Nights like this keep the flame burning,” he says.
BREAK BREAD is free and open to the public, with donations accepted. Dodie’s kitchen will stay open throughout the night, reinforcing the event’s emphasis on fellowship.
Dodie’s Jazz Club, the venue for this year’s BREAK BREAD celebration, is a new North Broad Street jazz spot developed by New Orleans native Sam Smith Jr. — not the British singer — and named in honor of his sister, Doratha “Dodie” Smith-Simmons, a revered activist and jazz advocate. Smith-Simmons’ legacy runs deep in the city’s music culture: she worked at Preservation Hall, co-founded the Economy Hall traditional jazz tent at Jazz Fest, and played a role in the early planning of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Positioned outside the city’s traditional jazz corridors of the French Quarter and Frenchmen Street, Dodie’s aims to bring live, accessible New Orleans jazz directly into the neighborhood. The club’s build-out includes a stage, bar, kitchen, dance floor, and outdoor seating, all designed to create a community-centered home for local music.
Feeding Souls Through Sound will take place on Thanksgiving night, Thursday, November 27, at Dodie’s Jazz Club (601 N. Broad St.). Doors open at 7 p.m. with performances beginning at 8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, with donations welcomed and Dodie’s kitchen will remain open throughout the evening.
Organize Thinkers, the New Orleans–based collective behind the event, focuses on independent art, cultural storytelling, and neighborhood programming across music, film, and youth-centered initiatives. The 8th Ward Black Seminoles, led by Big Chief K Young, continue a long lineage within New Orleans’ Black Masking Indian culture.
