FILE- In this Nov. 9, 2017, file photo, Lionel Richie arrives at the 2017 Patron of the Artists Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, Calif. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners for the 2018 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. On Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, organizers on Tuesday released the music lineup. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) less
FILE- In this Nov. 9, 2017, file photo, Lionel Richie arrives at the 2017 Patron of the Artists Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, Calif. Aretha Franklin, Sting, ... more
Photo: Jordan Strauss, Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
FILE- In this May 17, 2017, file photo, Sting performs during his concert at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners for the 2018 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. On Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, organizers on Tuesday released the music lineup. less
FILE- In this May 17, 2017, file photo, Sting performs during his concert at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners ... more
Photo: Marco Ugarte, AP
FILE- In this April 19, 2017, file photo, Aretha Franklin performs at the world premiere of "Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives" at Radio City Music Hall, during the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival in New York. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners for the 2018 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. On Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, organizers on Tuesday released the music lineup. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP) less
FILE- In this April 19, 2017, file photo, Aretha Franklin performs at the world premiere of "Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives" at Radio City Music Hall, during the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival in New ... more
Photo: Charles Sykes, Charles Sykes/Invision/AP
FILE- In this May 26, 2017, file photo, singer Steven Tyler, left, and guitarist Joe Perry perform during a concert of Aerosmith at the Koenigsplatz in Munich, Germany. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners for the 2018 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. On Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, organizers on Tuesday released the music lineup. less
FILE- In this May 26, 2017, file photo, singer Steven Tyler, left, and guitarist Joe Perry perform during a concert of Aerosmith at the Koenigsplatz in Munich, Germany. Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, ... more
Photo: Lukas Barth, AP
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Aretha Franklin, Sting, Aerosmith, Beck, Jack White and Lionel Richie are among the headliners for the 2018 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.
Organizers on Tuesday released the music lineup for the festival scheduled for two weekends this spring — April 27-29 and May 3-6.
Thousands of fans annually flock to the Fair Grounds Race Course where the festival features 13 stages and more than 500 acts. Festival producer Quint Davis notes the 2018 schedule includes "really special" performances by legendary artists such as George Benson, Smokey Robinson and Jerry Lee Lewis.
In addition, the festival is planning a tribute to Fats Domino and a celebration of New Orleans' 300th anniversary.