It’s a one-two punch of regional music. On Saturday, Eastown Street Fair boasts sets by 15 bands on two stages; Tip Top Deluxe hosts a Sunday showcase of hip hop, funk and R&B. Get the full schedules here.
‘Out of the Norm’: PotatoeBabies returns to Eastown Street Fair on Saturday. (Photo/Tom Scheidel)
EASTOWN STREET FAIR TO UNFURL ‘DIVERSE’ EXPERIENCE
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It’s a perfect fit: a vibrant event for a vibrant neighborhood.
The Eastown Street Fair will once again see the red-brick streets and storefronts of Eastown lined with booths and vendors of specialty crafts, art, and food, and music filling the air.
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Described by organizers as a “family-friendly celebration of arts, crafts, food and music,” the Street Fair, now in its 42nd year, will take place on Saturday on Wealthy Street between Giddings Avenue and Lake Drive, as well as the first few blocks of Ethel Avenue.
Starting at 9 a.m. and running until 8 p.m., the free event hosted by the Eastown Community Association and Eastown Business Association will host 16 musical acts and nearly 100 booths featuring area businesses and artists.
Bands will perform on two stages: an outdoor main stage that will be set up in the hub lot on Wealthy Street and a second stage located inside Billy’s Lounge, both featuring a diverse group of acts, including local bands Jesse Ray & the Carolina Catfish, PotatoeBabies, Hey Marco!, Brother Adams, Cabildo and many others.
PotatoeBabies will return to the Street Fair for their fifth time, performing their energetic and unique set on main stage at 4:45 p.m.
“We’ve played many outdoor events in Grand Rapids over the years and Eastown has always had a more diverse crowd,” said frontman Rev Charles Preston Smith. “The people are open to experiencing something new. There aren’t people judging or walking away. They come to be turned on to something new or out of the norm…that’s very rare these days.”
Also returning to the Street Fair is the WYCE Annual Record and CD Sale. A wide variety of used records, CDs and cassettes will be available at the radio station’s booth near the Mckendree parking lot, with most items costing costing $1. All proceeds go toward supporting the radio station.
For more information about the Eastown Street Fair and to view a full list of vendors visit eastown.org.
GRAND RAPIDS UNDERGROUND SHOWCASE TO SPOTLIGHT HIP HOP, SOUL, MORE
Getting Lots of Artists Involved: Sligh. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
A jam-packed night of hip hop, R&B, soul, funk and “a fusion of different styles“ is coming to the Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill on Grand Rapids’ West Side this weekend.
On Saturday, the premiere of the Grand Rapids Underground Showcase will feature a local DJ, Mantis Thee Unshambler, who will kick things off at 9 p.m., followed by three full sets by artists Candy Laprie, Sligh, and Samuel Reed 1:11.
Doors open at 7 p.m. and admission is $10. The show is 21 and over. To purchase tickets online, click here.
“There’s a lot of talent in Grand Rapids and a lot of us are working together to just make great music,” said Mathew West, one of the organizers who will perform himself under the stage-name Sligh.
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“It was gonna be a smaller show but we just got to thinking and got other people involved in it. Hopefully we get a good turnout and people can just let loose.”
West’s set will emanate a “West Coast G-Funk sound” and he will utilize a talkbox for many of his songs.
Multiple collaborations with other artists will also makeup a large portion of his performance, with guests including Je’Wade, Red Rum, Jay Charles, Arimas, J Scott, The Portal, and Samuel Reed 1:11.
Closing the evening out will be Samuel Reed 1:11 with his laid-back rap and soul, mixed with a little reggae. Looking forward, West says that if things go well, it is his hope that the Underground Showcase will become a regular event, saying “we’re gonna see how it goes and if it becomes a regular thing that would be cool.”
For more information on the event, visit the event page.
Copyright 2015, Spins on Music LLC
