Live performances at Blu Jaz Cafe to resume with new entertainment licence

SINGAPORE — Patrons to the Blu Jaz Cafe can expect live performances once again after it reclaimed its public entertainment licence on Saturday (Feb 1), a spokesperson for the cafe told TODAY. 

A year ago on Feb 1, it lost its licence after the authorities found that it flouted licensing conditions by allowing more people on its premises over and above its occupancy limits, putting the safety of patrons at risk.  

Without the licence, the cafe — which sits on Bali Lane at the Kampong Glam district — could no longer host live acts such as jazz band performances, comedy shows and open-microphone poetry sessions as part of its operations.

Ms Aileen Tan, the director of Blu Jaz Cafe, did not respond immediately when asked to comment on the renewal of the licence.  

A regular patron of the cafe, undergraduate Mr Wee Xuan Yi, 25, is glad to hear that it received its public entertainment licence again.

“When the licence was revoked, I felt like it was really such a pity since this was one of the rare few venues where we get to enjoy collaboration between musicians young and old,” he said.

“It was always a favourite of mine, where I could take my friends, both here and abroad, to hang out and listen to live music,” he added. “I’m very excited to learn that we are going to hear some live music again.”

The first week of live performances is scheduled to start on Monday (Feb 3), Blu Jaz Cafe said in a post on its Facebook page. It also thanked the authorities for granting the licence.

Jazz musician Jeremy Monteiro put up a Facebook post on Sunday saying: “Congrats to Aileen and her team! Music will resume soon.”

On Oct 8 in 2018, the cafe was first issued a notice that its public entertainment licence would be terminated. This was because it had exceeded the demerit points allowed due to previous offences. 

It failed to close its windows and doors in July 2016 and November 2017, and had two overcrowding offences in 2018. 

On April 28 in 2018, the police found more than 150 people on the second floor of the shophouse premises, which had an approved occupancy of 30 people. Then a week later, the police again found 200 people on that floor.

Blu Jaz Cafe appealed against the licence termination but the Public Entertainment Appeal Board rejected it on Jan 4 last year.  

The cafe has groomed numerous young talents and hosted a variety of homegrown acts, including comedian Fakkah Fuzz and songwriter Charlie Lim who sang the 2018 National Day Parade theme song "We Are Singapore".

Musicians such as Mr Lemuel Lee, 22, who played at the cafe, was very pleased to hear the news about the latest licence.

Mr Lee plays the alto saxophone and has performed at the venue as part of a jazz band from the Singapore Polytechnic, and was a regular at the cafe’s weekly jazz jam sessions. 

“When Blu Jaz closed, it was really sad and scary,” he recalled, saying it was because there are not many other places for jazz musicians to perform in Singapore. 

“It was not only a safe space for musicians and artists from multiple genres to perform, but also a place for many young musicians like myself to learn from the masters and showcase our work.”

Mr Lee added that he looks forward to playing there again. 

“Definitely… not solely for nostalgia, but because the venue is still under the same management and they have always been a pleasure to work with.”