[1][2] The festival, organized by the New Jersey Performing Arts Center has been a fall gathering of musicians and audiences held at various Newark venues since 2012.

[6] Sites include the Newark Museum of Art, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark jazz club Clement's Place, Bethany Baptist Church, and NICO Kitchen + Bar.

The event, as of the 2020s, is open to solo vocalists of all nationalities who are not signed to a major record label.

The competition judges contestants on criteria "that includes vocal quality, intonation, ability to swing, individuality, and improvisation.

[12][13] Winners to date are:[14] 2012: Cyrille Aimee 2013: Jazzmeia Horn 2014: Ashleigh Smith 2015: Arianna Neikrug 2016: Deelee Dubé 2017: Quiana Lynell 2018: Laurin Talese 2019: Samara Joy 2020: Gabrielle Cavassa, Tawanda Suessbrich-Joaquim 2021: G. Thomas Allen 2022: Lucía Gutiérrez Rebolloso 2023: Tyreek McDole