The Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival (former Playboy Jazz Festival) is a two-day jazz event held every June in Los Angeles, California. The festival was established by Playboy's founder Hugh Hefner. Its first edition took place in 1959 in Chicago, Illinois, at the Chicago Stadium. However, the second edition took place 20 years later in 1979, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. It was dedicated to Playboy's 25th anniversary.
The Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival has attracted many famous musicians and comedians. Bill Cosby was the MC for many festivals between 1979 and 2012. George Lopez has been hosting the festival since 2013.
The weekend jazz fest is broadcast live by the KKJZ, a public jazz radio station. The lineups include musicians like Marcus Miller, Grammy Award winner Lalah Hathaway, Corinne Bailey Rae, Gregory Porter, TajMo’, Jacob Collier, the Arturo Sandoval Latin Big Band, Bobby Hutcherson, Angélique Kidjo, Boz Scaggs, The Maceo Parker Big Band, Sheila E., Béla Fleck and The Flecktones, Harold López-Nussa, and Sona Jobarteh.
The Hollywood Bowl is a famous amphitheatre located in the Hollywood Hills that was included in Top 10 best live music venues in the United States by Rolling Stone Magazine.
