The inaugural L.A. Jazz Festival was cancelled shortly before it was due to begin, affecting a programme that had promised performances by John Legend, Janelle Monáe and hundreds of other artists. The cancellation matters because the festival had been promoted as a major citywide cultural event expected to draw large crowds, and has prompted online comparisons with the failed Fyre Festival.

Organisers had planned events from 7 to 23 August, including free park performances, club shows, youth programmes and a Venice carnival, with the main two-day ‘Jazz on the Beach’ concert scheduled for 22–23 August at Dockweiler Beach. The festival projected 250,000 attendees, but organiser Martin Ludlow said unforeseen public-safety and municipal costs connected with final permits forced a postponement; its website was subsequently reduced to a brief notice promising updated information.