Concert of Colors: festival turns 35, doubles as tribute to its founder
DETROIT. The Concert of Colors marks its 35th year running July 15 through July 19, and this edition also serves as a send off for co-founder Ismael Ahmed, who died earlier in 2026. Njia Kai, who now organizes the free festival, is carrying the lineup forward: Sheila E, Steel Pulse, Martha Redbone, Dengue Fever, Charity Ward, Kasan Belgrave, and the Don Was Detroit All Star Revue.
The week adds a memorial for Ahmed, a community forum at the Majestic Theatre Complex with NPR's Neda Ulaby and the Arab American National Museum, a grant writing workshop, youth programming, and a story circle at the N'Nambi Center for Contemporary Art. Kai's summary of what Ahmed believed: "We are all brothers and sisters, and we should all take care of each other."
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