Juneteenth Day w/ Syleena Johnson

If you’d never before heard of Juneteenth Day but happened upon Martin Luther King Drive on June 19, you could easily believe that you’d forgotten it was the Fourth of July. The annual commemoration of emancipation is celebrated with particular enthusiasm in Milwaukee, so these four long blocks between Burleigh and Center fill up with a parade and thousands of people as dancers take to the streets and the smell of barbecue fills the air. Music has always been a part of the 38-year-old local tradition, but recent years have seen the addition of national headliners. This year culminates in a 5:15 p.m. performance from R&B singer Syleena Johnson, a neo-soul-leaning R&B singer who introduced herself with an R. Kelly-penned single, “I Am Your Woman,” in 2001, but attracted greater attention singing the hook on Kanye West’s 2004 single “All Falls Down.”