Rawa Blues Festival

Rawa Blues Festival (pronounced rava) is the world's largest indoor blues festival. The festival was named after the Rawa River, which flows through the city of Katowice in Poland. The first edition was held in April 1981.

The festival is typically staged in October. The core concerts take place in the Spodek arena in Katowice, while early editions also used local clubs across the region. Rawa Blues Festival is structured around a main ("big") stage and a competitive "small stage" presented in the Spodek foyer; artists are selected by the festival's artistic council and the audience votes for the small-stage winner, who is invited to perform on the main stage.

Among the highlights of past festivals were: Luther Allison, Junior Wells, Koko Taylor, Carey Bell, John Cephas and Phil Wiggins, C. J. Chenier, Nora Jean Bruso, Rory Block, Little Charlie & the Nightcats, , Keb' Mo', Robert Cray, JJ Grey & Mofro, James Blood Ulmer, Vernon Reid, Otis Taylor, Eric Sardinas, The Blind Boys of Alabama as well as many Polish blues musicians such as Tadeusz Nalepa, Slawek Wierzcholski, Dżem and many others.