San Jose’s Music In the Park ( @mitpdtsj ) is back this year! San Jose’s Music in the Park has been happening in Plaza de Cesar Chavez for almost two decades. The first headliners were John Hiat and the North Mississippi All-Stars. They have also had artists like the Delfonics, Cuco, Ceelo Green, and Maroon 5 perform.
On September 22nd, 2023 at Plaza de Cesar Chavez there will be a night filled with music, food, drinks, vendor shops, and more. This year’s event will include artists CRSB ( @wearecrsb)who indulge in R&B mixes with island reggae. “R&B artists Chris Ramos and Sonny B, known as CRSB are two Bay Area-native cousins, who have fused island vibes with R&B to create an inimitable sound that’s all their own. With over 15 million streams from hits like “The Break Up Song,” “Give It Up,” and “You & I,” they continue to build the bridge between Island music, R&B and Bay Area culture. Their latest track “Vibrations” has been featured on Netflix, ESPN, and more.
CRSB brings island rhythms and the Bay Area’s Historic Hyphee Culture together. Their music is a representation of the cultural melting pot the Bay Area is known for. The duo has also co-produced Adrian Marcel’s upcoming album to be released later this year.
Adrian Marcel ( @adrianmarcel ) who has had a lot of success in the R&B genre will also be performing. The main headliner for the event is J Boog. The Two-time Grammy nominee is returning to the Bay Area to headline the event for the 3rd time in 4 years.
Guided by his mentor, Grammy-winning R&B star Raphael Saadiq, Adrian has earned his stripes with a string of projects featuring heavyweights like Kelly Rowland, Wale and Too $hort. His hit single, “2 AM,” a hyphy-infused anthem that racked up more than 93 million views on YouTube, claimed the #2 spot on the Billboard charts.”
15 years into his musical career, J Boog has been one of the most prominent reggae artists of his generation. J Boog comes from a Polynesian background, growing up in a Samoan household near Compton, CA with 6 other siblings. In a fateful visit to Hawaii, J Boog met with Hawaiian artist Fiji. The two would collaborate and put out J Boog’s first EP “Hear Me Roar” in 2007. “Hear Me Roar” is full of island-vibe love ballads, songs like “Love Season” and “Lifetime Lover” have a great bounce and beautiful vocals from J Boog. J Boog and Fiji collaborate on music to this date. J Boog would go on from this EP to put out his biggest song “Let’s do it again”. This song which sits at over 200 million streams would be off his self-titled album which debuted in 2011 and peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Reggae charts. His follow-up album “Backyard Boogie” debuted at the top of the reggae Billboard charts. His most recent album “Wash House Ting” also debuted at number one on the reggae charts. As of recently, J Boog is still releasing new singles, his newest single “Uma” dropped in mid-August.
J Boog is also on tour with the Hawaiian group Kolohe Kai but on the 22nd of September he will be headlining Music at the Park in San Jose.
This year’s lineup truly represents the spirit of our diverse community and the rich tapestry of sounds that we’ve come to love in San Jose and the Bay Area. Plaza de Cesar Chávez is the perfect backdrop for a night where music bridges cultures and brings people together.
The vibes and all will start at 5pm going until 10 pm in the heart of Downtown San Jose. Tickets are stillavailable at CalTix.com, so there is still time. You can also scan the QR code embedded in the JBOOG graphic. Downtown San Jose has always provided the community with vibrant music, diverse culture and support throughout the years. One of which is through Music In The Park. We hope to see you there.
Music in the Park is definitely on my bucket list. It seems like such a fun event to go to with different kinds of artists and vibes.