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blues
festival
Festival
proceeds keep KKJZ alive, on the air
By Brian Brannon
Summer Forty-Niner
The single largest
fundraising event for radio station KKJZ 88.1 FM is the 23rd
Annual Long Beach Blues Festival.
Formerly known as KLON, the station plays mostly jazz throughout
the week, saving the blues for weekend programs like “Nothin’
But The Blues,” hosted by Doug MacLeod, “The Atomic Lounge,”
hosted by Sean Heitkemper and “Blues in the Night,” hosted
by Gary Chiachi.
Chiachi, who also works as a special events coordinator for
the station, said the financial purpose of the blues festival
is simple.
“It’s to keep us on the air,” he said.
Proceeds from the event go to equipment, salaries, fees, licenses
“and all that good stuff,” Chiachi said.
Other events sponsored by KKJZ include the Annual Cinco de
Mayo Latin Jazz Dance Concert, the Latin Jazz Club Caravan
and the Long Beach Blues Club Caravan.
“By far, the most fun and profitable is the blues festival,”
KKJZ General Manager Judy Jankowski said of the events.
Though the blues festival is the event that raises the most
money for KKJZ, about 70 percent of its funding comes from
semi-annual fundraisers, where listeners are encouraged to
pledge their support, Jankowski said.
Still, the station relies heavily on the festival to meet
its operating costs.
“We depend on it for about half million dollars,” Jankowski
said.
But not all of the money that comes in is profit. The world-class
blues artists who perform each year must be paid, not to mention
security, sound, transportation, advertising and printing,
Chiachi said.
Then there is the cost of turning an empty grass field into
one of the largest blues events in the United States. Building
the stage, putting in fencing, toilets, sound and lighting
are just the beginning.
“There’s a mountain full of stuff that has to be done for
everything,” Chiachi said.
And when all is said and done, everything must be taken down,
the trash must be cleaned up and the field returned to its
original state.
Even with all the expenses associated with creating a venue
and an event each year on the athletic fields of Cal State
Long Beach, there is still enough left over to help keep jazz
and blues pumping across the airwaves via KKJZ.
“This is our twenty-third festival, so it’s got to be worth
something,” Chiachi said.
FESTIVAL INFORMATION
Location: Cal State
Long Beach’s North Athletic Field
Dates: Saturday,
Aug. 31 and Sunday, Sept. 1
Advance Tickets:
$40
Advance Tickets for both days: $70
KKJZ Members: $34
KKJZ Members for both days: $65
Gate Purchased Tickets: $45
Children’s Tickets: All children under 12 are free.
Where to Buy Tickets:
Through KKJZ, all Ticketmaster outlets at Tower Records, Robinsons-May,
Ritmo Latino, Blue Café in Long Beach, Fingerprints
Records in Long Beach, Atomic Records in Burbank and Rhino
Records in Westwood.
Blues Festival General Information Phone Number: (562) 985-1686.
KKJZ Service Charge: $4
Festival begins at 10 a.m. and runs until dusk.
Artists scheduled
to perform:
Saturday, Aug. 31
Robert Cray
Jeff Healey
The Ohio Players
Ben E. King
Otis Rush
Arthur Adams
Sunday, Sept. 1
Etta James and The Roots Band
Dr. John
Ike Turner
Tyrone Davis
Roy Gaines
Mable John
Festival seating
is on a grass field, so blankets or low-backed chairs are
recommended. No high-backed chairs or umbrellas will be permitted.
Official festival sponsors, Nissan North America and its Southern
California Nissan dealers will provide two 14 by 19 feet projection
screens, so audience members will be able to view stage performances
from any location on Festival grounds. Also, no alcohol, video
cameras, tape recorders, umbrellas, lawn chairs, barbecue
grills, glass or metal containers (including soda cans), or
pets are allowed on the festival grounds.
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