This is not just a festival …it honors the lives and works of masters like Watts and Sam Rivers, by providing opportunities for young people to experience this artistic heritage, and to find the artists within themselves.

In 2011 the African American Museum of the Arts and the MainStreet DeLand Association joined together to create a multi-cultural event for the West Volusia area. Their goal was to present an annual event that brings together the white and black communities in a celebration of our common cultural heritage. The event is also intended to attract diverse ethnicities to Central Florida, so the local area sees an economic benefit. The “Annual Thin Man Watts Jazz Fest” resulted from this collaboration.