Nate Smith, photo by @ogata_photo

The Newport Festivals Foundation has announced Nate Smith’s appointment as the new Artistic Director of the Newport Jazz Festival. Smith, the celebrated drummer, composer, producer and bandleader who just last week earned his first two Grammy Awards for 2025’s LIVE-ACTION, will work with the Newport team to support booking and artistic direction for the standard-bearing festival, as well as the foundation’s year-round music education initiatives.

“With humility and gratitude, I am thrilled to accept the appointment as Artistic Director of the legendary Newport Jazz Festival,” Smith wrote. “I extend my deepest thanks to Bruce Gordon and the Board of the Newport Festival Foundation for this honor, and I’m very excited to work with Jay Sweet and the entire programming team. I’d like to also acknowledge my predecessor, the one and only Christian McBride, who leaves behind some awfully big shoes to fill. I hope to help foster a more personal connection between fans and artists, in an effort to ensure that our beloved music continues to thrive. I eagerly approach this endeavor with my heart and imagination wide open.”

Smith will serve as Artistic Director for a three-year term beginning with Newport Jazz Festival’s 2026 staging from July 31 to Aug. 2. McBride was personally appointed as the successor to festival founder George Wein in 2015, and served through September 2025, when he resigned “with deep gratitude for the experience and pride in what we’ve built together.” McBride’s tenure in the position defined it as one facilitating the festival’s community focus, and a news post from the foundation stresses that maintaining the event’s unique intimacy, artistic community and commitment to tradition and innovation remains key.

“We were so fortunate to have such a wide and varied jazz community talent pool from which to draw,” said Bruce Gordon, the Newport Festivals Foundation’s chairman of the board. “The uniquely gifted candidates we considered made our decision incredibly difficult. It is further proof that jazz is alive and well and thriving. We were looking for someone willing and able to honor the rich traditions of jazz, staying rooted in what the genre is at its core. At the same time, we needed someone we could count on to push the envelope, keeping the music fresh and forward-looking. That person is the remarkable Nate Smith.”

Learn more about the Newport Festivals Foundation at newportfestivals.org. Listen to Smith’s LIVE-ACTION here.