Jazz In The Gardens is Miami-Dade’s premier spring music festival — a multi-genre celebration of jazz, R&B, hip-hop, reggae and soul held each March in Miami Gardens (now staged at Hard Rock Stadium). The event blends stadium-scale headline sets with festival-style stages, making it one of the region’s biggest music gatherings and a major stop on the live-music calendar each year.

What began as a small community concert in parking lots has grown into a multi-day, nationally recognized festival. Launched in 2006 through an initiative of the City of Miami Gardens, Jazz In The Gardens has steadily expanded its footprint and production values while keeping a focus on Black culture and community celebration. The festival’s own storytelling highlights that evolution — from humble beginnings to a marquee event drawing thousands.

Musically the festival is eclectic by design: you’ll hear straight-ahead jazz and contemporary soul alongside major R&B, hip-hop and reggae acts. Recent lineups and festival announcements demonstrate that blend — past and recent headliners have included legacy R&B groups and modern stars, and programming often mixes legends with rising artists across genres. That genre mix is one reason fans travel to Miami Gardens specifically for JITG each spring.

Beyond the music, Jazz In The Gardens programs community-focused events (marketplaces, food-truck villages, opening-night parties and the Women’s Impact Luncheon) that aim to showcase local vendors, small businesses and regional artists — giving the festival a strong civic and cultural dimension in addition to its concert attraction. Attendance figures in recent years show the festival attracts tens of thousands, underscoring its role as both a cultural and economic draw for the City of Miami Gardens.