San Jose Summer Jazz Fest celebrates 50th anniversary of hip-hop, gives city economic boost

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- The 33rd annual San Jose Summer Jazz Fest is not only bringing music to nine stages but also filling hotel rooms in downtown.

Betto Arcos is the curator of Latin music for the three-day event.

"It's not really just about jazz, cause remember jazz is like a tree and there are all of these branches -- all of these music styles. So you'll hear blues, you'll hear rock, you'll hear pop, you'll hear, you know, Latin music. You'll hear all kinds of different styles of music," Arcos said.

Arcos said the event has been an integral part of the San Jose community.

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"It's really about the excitement of being together at a festival with all kinds of diverse music, of people with different colors and, for that matter, from different countries too. There's people represented here from Mexico, from Colombia, from Cuba, from the Ukraine," Arcos said.

Visit San Jose said this is the biggest weekend for hotel occupancy.

People are traveling to the three-day event from around the country, the state and the Bay Area.

Gail Cooley traveled from Fresno.

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"It's grown. People being grown, you know, I really love the vibe. The musicians that come, they are off the chain," Cooley said.

Oakland resident Gloria Anthony Oliver has been going to SJ Summer Jazz Fest for years. One year she reconnected with her roommate she hadn't seen in 40 years.

"No worry, having fun, relaxing, nothing to do but have fun. I love it," she said.

For the first time an entire stage is dedicated to hip-hop, which turned 50 years old on Friday.

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Richmond resident Tari Tribble said she loves the genre. She grew up in the 1980s and 1990s.

"All different genres. You got the south, you've got the dirty south, the east coast-west coast, Northern California, Southern California -- it's all different, but it's all blended. It's all telling a story," Tribble said.

San Jose Summer Jazz Fest runs through Sunday and is expecting to draw 30 to 40,000 people.

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