The summer concert season is just about to bloom into full force and one of the season’s most anticipated area jazz concert series kicks off this Saturday with the first show of the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach Jazz Festival.

Starting the series off on a high note is a sensational trio of saxophonists featuring Jessy J, Marion Meadows and Paul Taylor bringing the sound of  ‘Sax In The City’  to the festival opener. We had the pleasure of speaking with Jessy J about her upcoming performance at the Hyatt as well as her many recent TV performances on American Idol and The Voice!

If you’re a fan of Idol or The Voice, then chances are you’ve probably seen Jessy playing on stage with the contestants! She explains that “it was a real blessing” that she was chosen to perform on the shows after a friend put her name in for consideration first on The Voice, and things just snowballed from there.

She’s used to performing in front of live audiences already during shows, but Jessy explains a few differences to performing on live TV that makes it extra exciting.

“I love the energy of live television and it’s kind of addicting in itself because everything has to go by the clock and you only get one shot to play it down,” Jessy said. “It’s really fun. It’s kinda like theater but with a lot of lights.”

“You have maybe 5-10 minutes to memorize a song and then it’s ready to go,” Jessy added. “The more songs you can learn for aspiring musicians out there, the better you’ll be.”

In between her stint on live TV, Jessy is gearing up for her summer tour with her “silly” bandmates Meadows and Taylor on their group tour Sax In The City. The trio will be the festival opener this Saturday, May 19th at The Hyatt Regency Newport Beach Jazz Festival.

Tickets are on sale now to catch Sax In The City this Saturday at the Newport Beach Jazz Festival at hyattnewportbeachjazzfestival.com. Listen to our full interview with Jessy J to hear more of her recent TV experiences, being honored as the homegrown series at the Grammy Museum and more below!