Los Angeles Latin funk and salsa ensemble La Verdad takes the stage at Pasadena's Memorial Park tonight for a free concert, the ninth of ten shows in the Levitt VIBE Pasadena Music Series. Doors open at 6 p.m., with the show beginning around 6:30 p.m. at the Memorial Park band shell, located at 85 E. Holly St., and no ticket or registration is required to attend.
The concert, as reported by Pasadena Now, is led by Gabrielito Gonzalez, a former member of the East Los Angeles Chicano ensemble Quetzal, a Grammy-winning group known for blending music with social justice activism. La Verdad has spent more than a decade fusing salsa and funk with jazz and contemporary urban rhythms, and the band has previously played Grand Performances, the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts and Levitt Pavilion Los Angeles. Beyond the stage, Gonzalez and other La Verdad members conduct residencies and songwriting workshops in schools, community centers and correctional facilities, according to Long Beach City, work done through the Alliance for California Traditional Arts. The Midnight Jazz Project opens tonight's show with a Vibe Set warm-up slot sponsored by the Rose Bowl Stadium ahead of the main performance.
A WPA Landmark Finds Its Voice Again
The Levitt VIBE Pasadena Music Series returned free concerts to the WPA-era band shell in July, ending eight silent summers after the local nonprofit running Levitt Pavilion Pasadena exited the national Levitt network in 2017, unable to sustain its 50-concert annual schedule. Memorial Park was the birthplace of the national Levitt Pavilion network when the venue first hosted the program from 2003 through 2017, per the seed story's account. The gold band shell itself dates to 1930, built during the Great Depression under New Deal public works initiatives, and it was restored with a $250,000 Levitt Foundation grant before ever hosting its original concert series, according to the historical account preserved at Overton Park Shell.
The series is presented by the Pasadena Recreation and Parks Foundation and produced with the city's Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department. Its return follows a three-year matching grant from the Levitt Foundation, awarded in November 2025 after a nationwide public voting competition, providing $40,000 annually — $120,000 total — through 2028, according to the City of Pasadena. Pasadena's award was part of a larger cycle in which the Levitt Foundation distributed over $7 million across 66 U.S. communities for 2026-2028, its largest grant distribution ever, funding 34 new nonprofits alongside 32 returning recipients, per PR Newswire.
Grassroots Push Behind the Revival
Pasadena District 3 Councilmember Justin Jones has said residents repeatedly asked for the return of free park concerts during community meetings, a push that led to a successful city-run pilot series in 2025 and ultimately the Levitt grant application. Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger has said her office supports the series and has urged residents to attend the show. The 2026 lineup is built around Pasadena's Latin, African American, Asian Pacific and Armenian traditions and is part of the national Levitt VIBE — Vibrant Inclusive Beats for Everyone — pilot program launched in 2024 to bring multi-year matching concert grants to major U.S. cities with populations over 250,000.
Organizers designed this year's lineup to support Northwest Pasadena's recovery from the January 2025 Eaton Fire, which killed 19 people and destroyed or damaged more than 9,000 structures across Altadena and Pasadena, as Hoodline has reported. An 18-month joint investigation by Cal Fire and LA County Fire concluded the blaze was sparked by electrical arcing on an out-of-service Southern California Edison power line, and the City of Pasadena, Los Angeles County and the Pasadena Unified School District have since filed lawsuits against the utility over alleged equipment failures. Free outdoor concerts like tonight's are increasingly framed as a form of communal recovery, even as rebuilding continues nearby through efforts such as the first modular rebuild in Altadena.
Season Finale Brings Altadena's Own Jon B. Home
The Levitt VIBE season finale arrives September 12 with R&B singer-songwriter Jon B. and 1990s R&B group Troop, opened by Angie Fisher. Jon B., raised in a musical family in Altadena, earned a 1996 Grammy nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for his duet “Someone to Love” featuring Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, according to entity background compiled via Apple Music. His albums Bonafide and Cool Relax both went platinum. Troop, started by five Pasadena teenagers, won a television talent show, received a record deal and scored No. 1 R&B singles with “Spread My Wings” and “All I Do Is Think of You.”
What to Know Before You Go
Concerts continue rain or shine except in extreme weather, and the Levitt Foundation says its free summer concerts nationally draw more than 75,000 people a year. Attendees can bring lawn chairs, blankets, coolers and outside food, but pop-up tents, glass containers and alcohol are not permitted, and pets are barred from the seating area. ADA seating is limited and first come, and the venue has no dedicated parking lot; a kid zone is also part of tonight's event.
