Jazz In The Gardens Was Launched In A Parking Lot By The Founding Mayor Of Miami Gardens, And Now It Is One Of The Biggest Black Music Events
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, jazz was a notable form of self-expression for Black people in America. Today, it continues to have a heavy influence on the current landscape of popular music.
Since 2006, Jazz in the Gardens has been a safe space for the Miami Gardens community and those from near and far to gather and enjoy various sounds that move the soul.
“Jazz in the Gardens is not just a music festival, it’s an experience,” current Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris told Blavity backstage during the event. “And then I will use the term that FUBU used to use: This is for us, by us.”
Established on May 13, 2003, Miami Gardens is the third largest city in Miami-Dade County, and it has been committed to the Black community that it serves since its inception under its first leader, Mayor Shirley Gibson.
“Miami Gardens started 20 years ago. We just celebrated our 20th anniversary last year in 2023,” Harris said. “This city was founded by a group of residents who decided that they wanted to have a say in how their city government was going to be run, so they decided to create a city. And the first mayor, the late Shirley Gibson, we honor her always because she was our matriarch. She passed a few months ago, and she had a vision about bringing a music festival to South Florida.”
“This festival started 17 years ago in the parking lot of a little dirt field, and it blossomed into the music festival that it is today,” he continued. “And like I said, it’s not just a music festival, but an experience that everybody shares from all around the world. We just enjoy the fact that we can play our music, eat foods that you’re familiar with, and then have a big family reunion and see people you may have never met before.”
Set against the backdrop of one of America’s most underrated Black cities, the two-day event featured stand-out performances from acts like Fantasia, Kirk Franklin, Uncle Luke, Jeezy, Eric Bellinger, Babyface and a host of other talented musicians.
What’s more, beyond the performances, Jazz in the Gardens attendees witnessed Miami royalty Trick Daddy and Trina receive the keys to the city. Civil rights leader Ben Crump also received a proclamation from the city at one point during the festival as well.
“The renaissance of African Americans in America is going on right now,” Katrina Wilson, Miami Gardens vice mayor, told Blavity. “We’re not living in the past, but we’re living where the future is taking place. We’re taking some of the past with us because it gives us a roadmap.”
She continued: “Our founding mayor, Shirley Gibson, passed away this year, and she was the one who created all of this. When she started it, it was about creating a sense of community and beginning to give us an identity. Little did we know that it would grow into something like this 20 years later.”
2024’s Jazz in the Garden was proof in the pudding as far as it being a necessity in the city. This year, the festival grew drastically with 41,000 attendees at the Hard Rock Stadium across the two-day event.
“Each year we want Jazz in the Gardens to be the premiere music festival in the entire world. We really do feel that this brand is going to expand and go to heights that it has never been before,” Harris said.
