Black Sea Jazz Fest FAQs

So, first things first. If you are worried that Jay Kay (of Jamiroquai fame, not that it would ever be possible to imagine the band without him) won’t make it to this year’s Black Sea Jazz Festival in Batumi, you needn’t be. Yes, he had very serious spinal problems and had to cancel a tour or two in May, but has kept his promise and managed to “rebuild himself like an automaton”, an apt reference to his last album. So, if you read in social media that Jay might perform in a wheelchair (a rumor borne out of a joke from the organizers that they’d welcome him with open arms even if he chose to perform while languishing on a sofa) or that he won’t come to Georgia at all, there is simply no truth to it. Jamiroquai will be here and more than that –viewers will have the pleasure to listen to his latest album “Automaton” which came out in March and reached number one in Italy and number four in the UK. How can we be so sure? Why, we spoke with Giorgi Kereselidze, Director of Eastern Promotions group (a company behind the annual Jazz Festivals both in Batumi and Tbilisi), who was eager to answer each and every question pertaining to the festival and its audience.

Jamiroquai question dealt with, lets continue with a basic trivia of the festival that has become the business card of Batumi in recent years. 11th of its name, this year’s Black Sea Festival will kick off earlier than its predecessors – as Mr. Kereselidze explained, in order to boost the early tourist flow to Batumi and Adjara in general (more on this later). It starts on July 27 and ends on the 30th. Besides Jamiroquai, you’ll have the pleasure of listening to Cory Henry, a gospel-weaving, funk-playing musician who is enjoying a steady rise among today’s top performers. There is also Grammy-winning British beauty Joss Stone, who has garnered numerous accolades since her first platinum debut album - The Soul Sessions. (You might also remember her from the TV show Tudors). Then there are the De La Soul, who don’t need much of an introduction – if you still haven’t listened to their sinble with Gorrilaz- Feel Good Inc , I suggest you do so before continuing to read this. These guys are directly “responsible” for the emergence of Jazz-rap, after all. And last but by no means least, there is a lovable duo MF ROBOTS, which is… well, it’s a music for robots, as they themselves call it, but by no means wait till the eventual Robotic takeover of Mankind - listen to it at your earliest convenience: it’s a truly interesting and unique sound.

One thing you might notice that while there are elements of Jazz in each of these performers music, there is not much of what you’d call “classical jazz”. No Keith Jarrett, no Chick Korea or Bobby McFerrin. And then if you go back to the star performers of the last couple of festivals, we had Snoop Dogg in 2015 and well, Prodigy in 2016. Yeap, that Prodigy. So, one of the main questions that Jazz aficionados have concerning the festival is – What happened to Jazz as we know it? Well, time happened. As Kereselidze explained, as the audience is getting younger, the choices become more mainstream, too – and that’s the trend of some of the most renowned festivals worldwide – you get one Big Tasty Star musician and construct the program around him / her. But the lovers of traditional jazz shouldn’t despair just yet – There is also Tbilisi Jazz Festival, also organized by Eastern Promotion, where a more academic approach is preferred.

“In Batumi, our audience has become considerably younger, so it makes sense commercially, too, to invite world famous musicians that perform in various genres,” Kereselidze concluded. So, would that mean that we could theoretically get, say, Rammstein at the Black Sea Festival? Unlikely, but more hip-hop is expected after the tremendous success that followed Snoop Dogg and Busta Rhymes’ performances.

Now, for some logistics. Let's start with the painful questions of ticket price, which, going up to and over GEL 200, while not luxurious, is not exactly accessible for all. And then there are those who complain that last year it was cheaper. The reasoning here is that last year Eastern Promotion got government assistance in the form of the “Check in Georgia” program, with the ten year anniversary festival spanning two weeks. This year, the “well” has dried up, with live concert tickets having become more expensive worldwide, hence the prices “returning to normal”.

Another issue might be how you get to Batumi. Well, if you're not keen on squeezing yourself into a minibus on a hot summer's day for an “unforgettable experience,” or rich enough to afford the flight to Batumi, the Tbilisi-Batumi train would be your best bet. Recently upgraded with air-conditioning, Wi-Fi and other comforts, it makes for the safest and most enjoyable of journeys.

So ok, we’ve got to Batumi. Now what? You need housing and if you’ve purchased the ticket but haven’t done anything regarding where you’ll be sleeping, you'd better start now or chances are you'll have to accept being swindled from local “estate agents” who are all too keen to exploit that you’re in a foreign country and city. Apparently, as Mr. Kereselidze explains, last year, food also became a problem, as pretty much every place was packed. Whether you want to bring your own food or cook your dishes from market-bought goods, again, it's better to book/plan ahead where you want to eat.

Note, there can be wee traffic jam problems in Batumi during the festival, but it’s nothing that you and your nerves cannot handle if you’ve spent at least a day in Tbilisi. 

And finally, the question to silence all doubters – what good is the Black Sea Jazz Festival to the country? We’ll let Mr. Kereselidze explain this one himself:

“First of all, it's put Batumi on a touristic world map as a viable destination for music fans. This was our first and most important goal and I think we’ve largely succeeded in this. The effect the festival has on the tourist flow to Adjara is really noticeable: about 20 percent of our audience are foreigners. That’s a very impressive variable. We did some research last year – During Snoop Dogg's visit. Prior to the festival in mid July, everyday income to Adjara’s budget amounted to 1 million 2 hundred thousand GEL. During the four days of the festival, this number skyrocketed to 78 million, and you know what? Right after the festival, the next Monday, the numbers went down to exactly what they were prior to the festival. I think you can say that these stats speak for themselves.”

Vazha Tavberidze