The Mississippi Folklife Area & Stage celebrates and showcases the traditions held deeply in the state's diverse communities. With a different theme each year, the Folklife Area will shine a spotlight on the distinctive music, rituals, crafts, occupations, foodways, and other traditions at the heart of Mississippi's cultural heritage, expressing both the state’s deep history and its evolving character.
 

From the Gulf Coast to the Delta and the Prairie to the hill country, this area will present the best traditional musicians, artisans, and foods in Mississippi, in curated programs that celebrate the state’s rich, diverse, and distinctive culture. Performances, demonstrations, displays, exhibits, and narrative presentations will explore a wide range of topics, including the traditions of its First Peoples, the cultural legacies of families who have called the state home for generations, and the expressions of the newest Mississippi residents whose cultural roots are in far-flung places around the globe.

​

Mississippi Flavor: At the Crossroads of the American Story

For 250 years, Mississippi culture has flowed continually outward to shape the nation. The state's folk traditions speak to the heart of America, particularly when it comes to food and music. From church hymns to juke joints, and kitchen tables to gameday tailgates, Mississippi's traditions are meant to be shared and continually remade.

​

Mississippi Flavor: At the Crossroads of the American Story, a special program curated by the Mississippi Arts Commission, honors the state's contributions to the nation's artistic and cultural excellence. It celebrates artists, musicians, cooks, friends, and families who carry the past forward and communities where creativity is a shared act. Here, traditions remind us that Mississippi's cultural soul does not simply belong to one state but enriches the entire nation.