San Diego Weekend Guide: Feb. 23-25 – Riffs & Reggae

Music festivals take centerstage this San Diego weekend. Explore jazz, reggae and hiphop and enjoy tasty bites at some of the fests too.

The San Diego Jazz Party offers an unabashed look back, with a focus on popular songs and jazz standards from the early 20th century and the Great American Song Book. The three-day event opens Friday at the Hilton San Diego Del Mar. Performers include Dan Barrett, Peter Washington, Yve Evans and Jason Wanner. Limited evening tickets at $50 remain, with daily tickets starting at $85.

Southwestern College in Chula Vista hosts its first annual PowWow at 10 a.m. Saturday. The day includes Native American traditional drumming and dancing, along with food, vendors, arts and crafts. Admission is free.

People tend to seek out crafts at year’s end for the holidays, but creators create all year round. See what they’ve conjured up at the Carlsbad Creatives Market beginning at noon Saturday at Pizza Port Brewing Co. at Bressi Ranch, 2730 Gateway Road. What will you get? “Eats, treats and creative deeds,” organizers say.

The movie, Bob Marley: One Love got you in a reggae mood? Good Timing. The WorldBeat Center at Balboa Park hosts the 43rd annual “Tribute to the Reggae Legends” at 2 p.m. Saturday. See Johnny Clarke with the Soul Syndicate Band, Wailing Souls, Triston Palmer and four other acts. Tickets start at $57.

Chef Fest SD 2024 begins at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Port Pavilion at Broadway Pier. The hiphop festival will feature local chefs serving up dishes with multiple performers on the bill, including Rob49, RJMRLA, Serani and Mitchy Slick. The culinary village will feature demonstrations and competitions. General admission costs $150.

Want to try some of the best the South Bay has to offer? Novo Brazil Brewing in Imperial Beach has the Taste of South Bay at 2 p.m. Sunday with all-you-can-eat food and drinks from eateries in IB, Chula Vista and more. Tickets for the San Diego Magazine event cost $55.

Two last-chance weekend opportunities (though the events continue through the end of the month):

• Don’t want to miss “the biggest and most diverse San Diego Museum Month ever,” with more than 70 sites offering half-off admission? Museum Month ends Thursday. Grab a pass at your local library and present it at a participating museum or venue for your discount.
• “Give Peace a Chance: The Art of John Lennon” exhibition has returned to San Diego at the EC Gallery in the Gaslamp, but the newly curated show wraps up Wednesday. The former Beatle had a creative life before becoming a rock icon – he studied at the Liverpool Art Institute, and examples of his work are in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The art in this free show is available for purchase.