This Weekend at the Blue Room — Lady D, Blair Bryant & the B2 Experience, and the J Love Band Close Out May
Friday brings Lady D's Indigo Hour and Blair Bryant & the B2 Experience; Saturday, the J Love Band closes out May at 18th & Vine.
This Weekend at the Blue Room
May 29–30, 2026 · The Blue Room · 1600 E 18th St, Kansas City
The last weekend of May at 18th & Vine — three shows across two nights, anchored by two vocalists Blue Room regulars already know by name.
This Weekend’s Lineup
Friday, May 29 — Indigo Hour 5:30 PM — Lady D (free)
Friday, May 29 — Headliner 8:30 PM & 10 PM — Blair Bryant & the B2 Experience
Saturday, May 30 — Headliner 8:30 PM & 10 PM — J Love Band
Friday Indigo Hour: Lady D
Lady D is a Kansas City fixture with a voice rooted in gospel, old-school R&B, and blues. She recognized her gift at age 8 in church choirs and gospel groups, recorded a gospel album in her teens, and has since opened for an honor roll of Black American music: Roger Troutman & Zapp, Brian McKnight, Najee, Peabo Bryson, Kool & the Gang, and Howard Hewitt.
Her crowd interaction is legendary — audiences don’t just watch a Lady D show, they’re part of it. Free admission, drink specials, the right way to start a Friday night at 18th & Vine.
Friday Headliner: Blair Bryant & the B2 Experience
Blair Bryant takes the Blue Room headliner stage Friday night. A Kansas City bassist and bandleader who performs as the B2 Experience, Bryant is one of the brightest names in the city’s contemporary and smooth jazz scene — a UMKC Conservatory graduate building groove-forward, melody-first bass on the foundation his hero Stanley Clarke laid down. He’s shared stages and recordings with Najee, Eric Roberson, Mike Phillips, and Althea Rene, and his catalog runs from New Colours (2015) to 2023’s Red Tiger, a smoothjazz.com top-100 album of the year.
Two sets, 8:30 & 10 PM, in one of Kansas City’s most storied jazz rooms.
Saturday Headliner: J Love Band
J Love is one of Kansas City’s most sought-after live performers — a vocalist whose gritty, commanding voice and magnetic stage presence have made her a fixture at the Blue Room and across the city. Rooted in the traditions of Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and Etta James, she delivers her sets with a style all her own: commanding when it needs to be, tender when it wants to be, always honest.
Originally from Kennett, Missouri, J Love grew up surrounded by music — her grandfather a gospel singer, her cousin an R&B artist, the church her first stage. Her debut album, Life’s Side Effects, showcases the depth and range that have made her one of KC’s most requested live acts. As the frontwoman of the J Love Band, she brings some of the city’s finest musicians with her, moving between soulful ballads, uptempo R&B, and jazz standards with ease.
Two sets to close out May at the Blue Room.
See You at 18th & Vine
The Blue Room 1600 E 18th St, Kansas City, MO 64108 americanjazzmuseum.org/blue-room