Jazz fusion fans in Cleveland Heights are getting a late-summer gift. Multi Music Fest is returning to Cain Park’s Evans Amphitheater on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, with a one-night lineup that pairs the Yellowjackets, NEA Jazz Master Patrice Rushen and L.A. fusion outfit Hiroshima. Organizers say the program will weave together jazz, R&B and world-music influences, and proceeds will benefit the M C Chatman Center for Humanitarian Services, which runs youth, after-school and community programs in the region. Tickets are scheduled to go on sale Friday, March 20.
Festival announcement and producer
New Seasons Productions is behind this edition of Multi Music Fest and has booked it for Cain Park’s Evans Amphitheater, according to the festival announcement. The release touts three multi-Grammy-nominated acts and notes that tickets will be available through the Cain Park box office and the venue’s usual ticketing channels once sales open on Friday. The festival’s return and basic details were first reported by Cleveland.com.
Who’s on the bill
The Yellowjackets, the Los Angeles jazz-fusion quartet formed in the late 1970s, list the Aug. 29 Cain Park stop on the band’s official tour schedule on Yellowjackets.com. Expect the group’s trademark mix of sleek arrangements and improvisation, the kind of set that tends to turn a quiet amphitheater into a full-on groove session by the second tune.
Patrice Rushen, whose catalog includes the enduring hit "Forget Me Nots," was named a 2026 NEA Jazz Master, a capstone honor for her decades of work across jazz and R&B, as reported by WRTI. Her presence on the bill adds a bona fide legend to the summer night, with a career that stretches from club dates to major film and television scoring.
Hiroshima, led by Dan and June Kuramoto, rounds out the announced trio. The band is known for blending koto and taiko with R&B and smooth-jazz textures, a fusion that has earned gold-album success over a long career detailed on Wikipedia. Their sets often lean into atmosphere and groove in equal measure, which should play comfortably in a summer amphitheater setting.
Tickets, venue and benefit
Cain Park lists the Evans Amphitheater address as 14591 Superior Road, with the box office reachable at (216) 371-3000, according to Cain Park. The park serves as the official local ticket outlet for Evans Amphitheater shows, and Multi Music Fest is expected to follow the same setup.
The festival will benefit the M C Chatman Center for Humanitarian Services, which runs after-school help, leadership development programs, and a food and clothing pantry for inner-city residents, according to nonprofit filings and profiles from ProPublica. Expect a mix of reserved seating in the pavilion and general-admission lawn spots once tickets go live, with details such as accessibility and seating maps handled through Cain Park’s usual information channels.
Local context
Multi Music Fest has popped up at Cain Park in previous summers as both a fundraiser and a community showcase, a pattern documented in local event listings. Past editions have mixed regional performers with nationally known headliners while sending ticket proceeds to the Chatman center, turning the fest into a recurring seasonal staple at Evans Amphitheater.
Promoters say they are aiming to keep that neighborhood-friendly feel while bringing this year’s lineup to Cleveland Heights, with the combination of Yellowjackets, Patrice Rushen and Hiroshima positioning the 2026 outing squarely in jazz-fusion territory. For a look at earlier versions of the festival and how it has fit into the local calendar, see listings such as TownPlanner, and keep an eye on venue and artist channels for final set times and day-of details.
