Rappers T-Pain and Busta Rhymes will headline this year’s Tequila Fest. Comedian Tim Dillon will entertain at the Tachi Palace. And, you can celebrate Halloween early at Hobb’s Grove Midway to Halloween.

Check out our expanded list of events at this link.

Tequila Fest

Tequila Fest returns to Chukchansi Park this Friday. Now in its second year, 2024’s Tequila Fest, hosted by DJ Kay Rich, promises to grow on the successes of the festival’s first year.

This year features more tequila vendors including Don Julio, Patrón, 21 Seeds, Cantera Negra, Casamigos, Cazadores, El Jefe, and Merezco. Moving from Chukchansi Park’s Cantina area to down on the field for 2024, the Tequila Tastery will offer more space for tequila connoisseurs to enjoy meeting with some of the top brands.

There’ll be food trucks from Fresno Street Eats and over a dozen booths from Vendor Village.

The star-studded affair features the musical talents of rappers T-Pain, Busta Rhymes, Sage The Gemini, Fashawn, and multiple local artists. I saw Sage The Gemini a few months back at Club Encore and he knows how to work a crowd.

T-Pain and Busta Rhymes were very popular hip-hop artists in my younger years. Known for his auto-tune voice, T-Pain turned out classics like “Kiss Kiss” with Chris Brown and “Low” with Flo Rida, to name a few. My peers used to groove to Busta Rhymes’ flows with songs like “Dangerous,” “What’s It Gonna Be?!” featuring Janet Jackson,” “Break Ya Neck,” and “I Know What You Want” with Mariah Carey.

Get your tickets here.

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Tim Dillon

Rising stand-up comedian, writer, and actor, Tim Dillon, will be at Tachi Palace on Saturday.

He was a new face at the Montreal Comedy Festival in 2016. He won the title of New York’s Funniest 2016 at Caroline’s NY Comedy Festival. In 2017, he was named one of the Top 10 comics you need to know by Rolling Stone magazine. Two of his specials premiered in 2018, a Comedy Central Half Hour and a Netflix Quarter hour.

He created and hosts Tim Dillon’s Real NY Tour, which takes the audience on a double decker bus through Manhattan. He’s appeared on the Christ Gethard show on Fusion, Gotham Comedy Live on AXS tv, Fox’s Red Eye, Tru Tv’s Comedy Knockout, and season two of WYFD with Big Jay Oakerson on Seeso. He hosts a podcast called The Tim Dillon Show.

He most recently made a memorable appearance in his big screen film debut in the holiday themed horror/comedy, “Thanksgiving,” from filmmaker Eli Roth. The film became a hit when it debuted on Netflix early this year.

Get your tickets here.

ApCal Rock’n Ranch

ApCal Rock’n Ranch will “Funk You Up” with the Bruno Mars tribute band, Bruno & The Hooligans, this Saturday. The venue calls them a favorite and guaranteed to sell out.

The singer moves, dances, sings, and dresses like he’s the real Bruno. They bring the grooves, the R&B, hip-hop, and all the funky eclectic styles that make Mars one of today’s most popular artists.

Getting the party started is the band Lady and The Tramps. There’ll be beer, dancing, and cigars. Be sure to bring a lawn chair. Gourmet food trucks will be onsite.

Get your tickets here.

Old Town Motorama

The 4th Annual Old Town Motorama returns to Clovis from Thursday to Sunday via The Hot Rod Coalition.

Thursday evening it’ll be at the Backyard Social Club with sixty classic cars and a live open mic night. The massive pre-party is going down on Friday night, in partnership with Fresno Street Eats at Crow and Wolf Brewery. Saturday will feature an array of culinary delights from local restaurants and food trucks, complemented by the allure of Top 75 Awards, car club picks, live music, and hot rod vendors in Old Town. Sunday will include open classic car shops and home garages.

Get your tickets here.

Hobb’s Grove Midway To Halloween

Ghouls and screams are coming to the Central Valley’s haunted attraction, Hobb’s Grove. We don’t have to wait till October to get our scare on.

The Soulless Circus & Carnival returns to Hobb’s Grove for Midway to Halloween. It’ll be a collection of creepy carnies and clowns to give you nightmares.

The Carnival style Midway opens at 6 p.m. with food, a full bar, freak shows, weird carnival games, music, and strange people and things. You must be at least 14 to enter. The single haunted attraction trip through circus and carnival life under and outside the big-top begins at dark.

This is definitely for scary movie enthusiasts. A good way to celebrate Halloween early.

Get your tickets here.

Check it Out:

Movies at the Historic Crest Theatre, Friday-Saturday

The historic Crest Theatre in downtown Fresno will screen “Army of Darkness” on Friday, “Short Circuit” on Saturday, “Blazing Saddles” on Sunday.

Tickets are $5

Get your tickets here.

Slice of Comedy Jen Murphy, Friday

Danny Minch hosts these comedic events every weekend at DiCicco’s in Old Town Clovis. Jen Murphy is a nationally touring comedian and started her stand-up career in New York. She relocated to Los Angeles and has been seen on “LaughsTV” on FOX, NBC’s “Last Comic Standing,” and ABC’s “Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen.” She also filmed her own half hour special for TLC,  “This is Why You’re Still Single.”

In 2014, Murphy was named as one of the “Five Comics to Watch Out For” by OC Weekly and she can also be seen in the independent comedy “Dumbbells” along with Jon Huck and Carl Reiner that was released in 2015.

Get your tickets here.

Old Town Clovis Farmers Market, Friday

The Old Town Farmers Market is home to amazing produce and local products. You’ll always get super fresh and peak-of-flavor produce. There’s wonderful food selections and live music. Fun for the whole family.

For more information click here.

Roar & Pour at Fresno Chaffee Zoo, Friday

It’s going to be a roaring good time at Fresno Chaffee Zoo this Friday. It’ll be an exclusive 21+ after hours event featuring some of the Central Valley’s best brews and food trucks and live performances.

Get your tickets here.

Kingsburg Swedish Festival, Thursday-Saturday

Experience and taste the rich culture of Sweden in Kingsburg. Besides the many great shops & restaurants on Draper Street in downtown Kingsburg, it’s also where you will find the Swedish Cultural Village. Here you can experience the Swedish Culture as you discover food and craft booths and entertainment.

Get your tickets here.

Fresno Pirate Festival, Saturday-Sunday

The Fresno Pirate Invasion sets sail this Saturday and Sunday at Kearney Park. Attendees will dress in their pirate attire and all the activities and dress will be historically accurate. There’ll be food, vendors, and entertainment.

Get your tickets here.

Arts Visalia Presents: Exhibitions by Marty Azevedo and Kirk Cruz, Friday-Saturday

Arts Visalia is hosting the art of Marty Azevedo and Kirk Cruz this month. Azevedo’s work explores ideas of symbolism, archetypes, masculinity, power, narrative, and allegory. Cruz artwork depicts his bold process in color theory and light.

Get your tickets here.

Events Recap:

Sandra Bernhard

Comedian/actress and LGBT+ icon Sandra Bernhard made her Fresno debut at the Tower Theatre last Saturday in a comedy and musical performance kicking off the 2024 Fresno Rainbow Pride Festival. The LGBTQIA+ community and her fans showed up strong to her show.

She made the crowd laugh and rock out with support from her band, The Sandyland Squad Band. It was a no-holds-barred performance. She was in your face, she cursed, and didn’t hold back. The marquee should’ve had a Parental Advisory sticker attached to it, but that’s what added to the appeal of the show.

No subject, celebrity, politician, or situation was safe from Sandra. She riffed on immigration, tore Trump a new one, showcased her distain for Brett Kavanaugh, expressed her admiration for Stormy Daniels, and made it known she dislikes Staples and White Claw.

She got personal with the audience sharing how she had to prove she isn’t a senior citizen while traveling to the Hamptons, her funny encounter with Debbie Harry at the bank, and she does have male crushes. The special men are Cat Stevens, John McEnroe, Bruce Springsteen, David Letterman, and Huey Lewis.

Each joke, insult, and song was met with uproarious applause from the audience. She got a bigger response when she demonstrated her love and appreciation for Fresno noting our place as a top agricultural area and listed her love for pistachios, almonds, and beans.

The highlight was her rendition of a song from the late Tina Turner, “Help.” Sandra definitely communicated her affection for the Queen of Rock ‘N’ Roll.

“We wanted to bring someone with a big name to entertain our supporters who’ve been with us as we celebrate 34 years of Fresno Rainbow Pride,” said Bryan Cauwels, president of Fresno Rainbow Pride.

This is the first time the organization has done a kickoff to Pride. The festival takes place June 1. It’ll be at the Fresno City College campus. As in past years, the parade will be in the Tower District. The festival celebrates the LGBTQIA+ community and its allies and features food, music, vendors, and entertainment.

“For the community, she was the first openly LGBTQIA+ person on television. Like her portrayal of Nancy on Roseanne. She gave us representation and is an icon. She was a great choice for our first time doing this,” said Cauwels.

Sandra loved Fresno and going by the cheers and applause that echoed throughout the theatre, it’s evident that Fresno loved Sandra.

Have an Event to Publicize?

If there’s an event you want us to consider, contact steven.sanchez@gvwire.com