Jan Hoozee (°1976) was born and raised in Ghent, Belgium, where he studied cultural anthropology and cultural management. He is a DJ, amateur musician and radio producer. He used to run the internationally acclaimed world music record label Zephyrus Records and produced more than 20 albums.
Currently Jan is the artistic director and programmer of Trefpunt Festival, the main organizer of the Ghent Festivities (Belgium), a ten day city festival attracting more than 1.6 million people. His main goal: to connect people through culture and music. His passion: music from all around the world.
Trefpunt was created by the late Walter De Buck, folk singer and sculptor from Ghent, as a meeting point for artists, writers, academics and left wing thinkers. In 1970 he started the Gentse Feesten (Ghent Festivities) in front of his macrobiotic restaurant, which grew out into one of the biggest city
festivals in Europe. Trefpunt Festival is still the core, the soul, the biggest and most diverse organizer of the huge open air event, bringing local and international artists in world music, jazz, folk, pop, rock and hiphop, as well as street theater, circus, dance, visual arts and debates. Jan Hoozee / Trefpunt is the leading partner of Sounds Of Europe, a collaboration project funded by Creative Europe of 13 festivals from 11 countries. Sounds Of Europe gives opportunities to bands from around Europe, both rooted in local traditions and from migrated cultures, exchanges expertise through residencies and sessions around Europe. 11 video portraits are being released end of 2024 as well as a short documentary Sounds Of Europe.