MIA Magazine March 2016 Jazz in the Gardens | Page 8

8BB

AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO THE SUN SENTINEL

By HCIII

Behind the Scene: Jazz In the Gardens

Every
year The
City of
Miami
Gardens
hosts Jazz
in the
Gardens
(JITG),
which
showcases
the best
music
talent in
Mayor Gilbert,
the world.
The City of Miami Gardens
Over a
three day period visitors come to Miami
from all corners of the globe for the
music. Today we take a behind the
scenes look at how it all comes together
from some of the co-creators of JITG.
Mayor Gilbert explains, “We begin
planning Jazz in the Gardens as soon as
the event ends. Literally, planning is
year-round for a festival of this magnitude. We take our planning seriously
because we want to always take the
event to the next level each year, so we
are always looking for avenues to top

Zach Rinkins

FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2016

ourselves.”
To do
this, the
city
employs
the top
planners
from
around
the
Connie W. Kinnard,
country
Vice President, Multicultural
to work
Tourism & Development,
on all
Greater Miami Convention
aspects
and Visitors Bureau
of the
event from lightning, sound, down to the
vendors.
Miami Gardens has improved the
concert event year after year, but it
wasn’t always so easy. Albert Tucker,
VP-Multicultural Business Development
of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, explains his
involvement with the festival. “When they
started, they weren’t getting much
support, and that’s how we initially got
involved. Now, the festival is a huge draw
selling out all of the hotels in the

Albert Tucker, VP-Multicultural
Business Development,
Greater Fort Lauderdale
Convention & Visitors Bureau

surrounding cities
and
Broward
County.
This year
we have
two
groups
that have
purchased
over 700
tickets.
They are
having a

conference all the day and then going to
the Music Festival at night.”
“JITG is a way to showcase the
richness and diversity of music and
musical events that Miami offers on a
national level,” says Connie W. Kinnard
VP, Multicultural Tourism & Development
of the Greater Miami Convention and
Visitors Bureau. Continuing to plan
ahead she states that, “this year we’ll use
the concert as a showcase event for
meeting planners in town looking at the
city as a potential location for future

Suzan McDowell, President and CEO,
Circle of One Marketing

convention business.”
Suzan McDowell, President & CEO of
Circle Of One Marketing, does all of the
promotions, media, marketing, etc. for
JITG, which generates 30 million dollars
for Miami-Dade County and the state.
When asked ‘what’s it like backstage, “It’s
amazing! So electric! For me, it’s so
satisfying to see all my spreadsheets,
phone calls, negotiations, emails an