Helsinki is getting a new summer festival with two anniversary tours at the top of the bill. Kaivopuisto Blues will take over Kaivopuisto Park on the city's Baltic seafront on July 30 and 31, 2027, with Santana and Toto headlining, promoter Loud'n Live Promotions announced, as reported by IQ Magazine on October 19, 2026.
The lineup so far
Santana's set is part of the guitarist's 80th birthday celebrations, and Toto's appearance is part of the band's 50th anniversary tour, according to the festival. Kool & The Gang, Hurts and Rag'n'Bone Man are also on the bill. More than 20 artists are confirmed in total, including Blues Royalty, a blues supergroup of Kenny Neal, John Primer and two B.B. King band alumni, Tony “T.C.” Coleman and Russell Jackson, plus D.K. Harrell, The Amy Winehouse Band, Eagle-Eye Cherry and Danish group Thorbjørn Risager & The Black Tornado.
Finnish acts include guitarist Erja Lyytinen, Honey B & the T-Bones and SF Blues, whose lineup features Dave Lindholm, Pepe Ahlqvist, Jukka Gustavson, Jarmo Nikku, Mikko Löytty and Harri Ala-Kojola. Wentus Blues Band, Emma Salokoski, Emilia Sisco & The Northern Lights and Ina Forsman are also confirmed. The festival says more names will be added before the end of 2026.
Tickets and the site
Discounted two-day “Early Blues” tickets go on sale through the Finnish ticketing platform Tiketti on October 26, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. local time. Helsingin Sanomat reports that the first two-day tickets cost €149, rising later to €189. IQ reports a target of up to 25,000 people for the first edition, and Keskinen told Helsingin Sanomat he hopes for at least 20,000. The festival will use Kaivopuisto's large open field in the southern and central part of the park, near the sea, the same spot used by Helsinki Pride's park party.
Promoter Kalle Keskinen is leaning on hospitality. “If festivals were cars, this would be the Mercedes-Benz of festivals,” he said in comments quoted by IQ, adding that the grounds will include a two-storey Platinum VIP area for 400 guests. The festival also promises food vendors and wine importers on site.
A long road to the park
The event has been years in the making. Keskinen told Helsingin Sanomat that permits were first sought about three years ago and refused at the time, and that the festival was originally meant to happen in 2026 before a headliner pulled out. This time, he said, the permit was granted, half of the artists' fees have already been paid, and he expects to sell out. “Santana and Toto are not the kind of artists who cancel,” he told the paper, in Finnish.
Loud'n Live Promotions also runs Helsinki City Festival, Tampere City Festival, Seinäjoen Vauhtiajot and the Tapiola festival.