NEW ORLEANS—Most of those listening to Erika Flowers at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival hadn't heard of her. But by the end of her set, they were asking where they could hear more.

Flowers and her band, first-time performers at the festival, opened Sunday at the Congo Square stage where the closing day's headliner, Al Green, would perform.

Flowers' jazzy, R&B sound—reminiscent of artists like Lizz Wright and Cassandra Wilson—drew several fans to the open field fronting the stage. Travis Grogan, of Laguna Beach, Calif., says her singing and the band backing her up were the reasons he and his friend Jeri McManus stopped to listen.

Renata Pearson, of San Francisco, Calif., says she is thoroughly impressed and ready to buy Flowers' CD.