This festival will have a new attitude!
Legendary soul queen Patti LaBelle will rock the Prospect Park Bandshell on June 4 as the opening act for the Bric Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival, the borough’s longest-running, mostly-free summer concert series, according to the media maven producing the show.
“We are thrilled to kick off our summer concert series at the Prospect Park Bandshell with R&B icon Patti LaBelle,” said Bric President Kristina Newman-Scott. “This year’s festival will open with a renewed sense of energy and commitment to the artistry that defines Brooklyn.”
The Philadelphia-born crooner rose to fame following the release of the 1974 disco hit “Lady Marmalade,” which she sang with her band Labelle. After the group broke up in ’76, the Philly vocalist’s solo career took off — her eponymous solo album soared to number 31 on the R&B albums chart, driven by now-classic tunes including “You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover,” and “Since I Don’t Have You.”
And after numerous Grammy nominations, including for her 1984 crossover hit “New Attitude,” and a pair of wins her 1991 R&B album “Burnin’ ” and 1994 dance number “When You Talk About Love,” LaBelle’s name was immortalized in American music history with the 2004 induction of her version of “Lady Marmalade” into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
LaBelle’s blowout concert event will kick off Bric’s 41st annual Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival summer-music series. The arts organization plans to announce the remaining line-up of free and paid acts sometime in May, according to spokesman Ron Gaskill.
Before LaBelle’s free 8 pm performance at the Prospect Park Bandshell, Bric will host a decidedly not-free opening night gala, which has been dubbed “The Revel,” open to well-heeled music lovers who can afford tickets that start at a whopping $750. The gala, which will honor longtime Bric board member Hilary Ackerman, will also help fund the remainder of the concert series, Gaskill said.
Patti LaBelle at Bric Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival [Prospect Park Bandshell, enter at Ninth Street and Prospect Park West in Park Slope, (718) 683–5600, www.brica
