10 greatest live shows, music festivals in Sarasota-Bradenton, Tampa Bay in December – Sarasota Herald-Tribune
As we close to the yr’s finish and the winter holiday season, the lineup of live performance excursions and music festivals will begin to decelerate, however not fully — actually, among the greatest live shows of the yr domestically are nonetheless set to happen earlier than 2022 involves a detailed.
All of it begins this weekend with the return of Bradenton Blues Pageant, Sarasota-Manatee’s greatest annual music pageant, together with a headlining live performance by one among Tampa Bay’s greatest musical success tales lately and different rock radio station 97X’s annual music fest Subsequent Massive Factor. Different space radio stations will throw their very own end-of-year live shows, together with US 103.5’s Nation Jam and 93.3 FLZ’s Jingle Ball, with the latter kicking off a complete weekend of dwell music at Tampa’s Amalie Enviornment.
Listed below are the ten greatest live shows and music festivals set to go to Tampa Bay and Sarasota-Manatee in December, offered in chronological order. Occasion particulars are topic to alter.
Bradenton Blues Pageant
Friday-Sunday; Bradenton Riverwalk; bradentonbluesfestival.org
The eleventh annual music pageant that includes nationwide and worldwide names within the blues returns this weekend to its longtime house of Bradenton Riverwalk, after going down at close by LECOM Park the final two years because of the pandemic. Serbia-born blues guitarist/singer Ana Popovic will headline Saturday’s important live performance together with different musicians together with blues-rock favorites Mike Zito and Florida’s personal Albert Castiglia, who will carry out separate units then collectively because the Blood Brothers.
The weekend’s festivities can even embrace a Friday live performance that includes acts similar to Louisiana’s Dikki Du and the Zydeco Krewe and Australian-American harmonica/didgeridoo participant Peter Harper, and a Blues Brunch Sunday at Mattison’s Riverwalk Grille that includes Kansas-based band Dustin Arbuckle and the Damnations. Quite a few Blues Pageant performers can even play headlining reveals at native venues.
97X Subsequent Massive Factor
Saturday-Sunday; MidFlorida Credit score Union Amphitheatre, Tampa; livenation.com
Tampa Bay different rock station 97X’s annual music pageant returns this weekend, going down over two days at MidFlorida Credit score Union Amphitheatre. Machine Gun Kelly, who made a profitable change from rap to pop-punk together with his 2020 No. 1 album “Tickets to My Downfall” and simply earned a Finest Rock Album Grammy nomination for this yr’s follow-up “Mainstream Sellout,” will high the invoice Saturday.
In the meantime, Jack White — who rose to fame within the 2000s as lead singer and guitarist of The White Stripes earlier than a solo profession that features releasing the pair of albums “Concern of the Daybreak” and “Coming into Heaven Alive” this yr — will headline Sunday. He’ll be joined by a number of different performers together with one other acclaimed ’00s rock act, French group Phoenix, who just lately launched their newest album “Alpha Zulu.”
Rod Wave
Sunday; Yuengling Heart, Tampa; yuenglingcenter.com
Florida has confirmed fertile territory for profitable rap musicians lately, together with the Tampa Bay space, house to artists similar to Doechii, the primary lady rapper signed to High Dawg Leisure, and Jagjaguwar-signed hip-hop duo They Hate Change. But the largest success story has been St. Pete’s Rod Wave, who’s earned back-to-back No. 1 albums with 2021’s “SoulFly” and this yr’s “Lovely Thoughts,” every showcasing his model of melancholy, R&B-infused rap.
Regardless of his nationwide success, Rod Wave — who used to play The Corridor in Palmetto and has name-dropped Sarasota in his music — continues to indicate his house area love, enjoying MidFlorida Credit score Union Amphitheatre final yr. Now he returns to Tampa to headline Yuengling Heart, joined by fellow rapper Toosii and singer Mariah the Scientist.
US 103.5 Nation Jam
Wednesday; Exhausting Rock Occasion Heart, Tampa; seminolehardrocktampa.com
Tampa Bay nation music radio station US 103.5 can even throw an end-of-year live performance at Exhausting Rock Occasion Heart, with a portion of proceeds benefiting St. Jude Kids’s Analysis Hospital. Headlining the occasion can be Grand Ole Opry-inducted, Grammy-nominated performer Chris Younger, who’s had round a dozen No. 1 nation airplay hits over his profession, most just lately final yr’s “Well-known Buddies” and “On the Finish of a Bar.”
The latter tune’s visitor artist Mitchell Tenpenny, who has his personal No. 2 nation airplay singles “Drunk Me” and “Fact About You” to his title, can even carry out on the live performance. Nation singer/rapper Jelly Roll (“Son of a Sinner”) and Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Elle King (“Ex’s & Oh’s”) spherical out the lineup.
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Night
Dec. 9; Exhausting Rock Occasion Heart
Set to go to Exhausting Rock Occasion Heart the identical week as US 103.5 Nation Jam can be drummer Jason Bonham together with his Led Zeppelin Night present. (Each live shows are apparently sizzling tickets as nicely; the 2 reveals have been offered out as of press time.)
Bonham is the son of legendary late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, following in his father’s footsteps from an early age and ceaselessly paying tribute to his dad’s band, together with performing “Stairway to Heaven” alongside Coronary heart’s Ann and Nancy Wilson through the 2012 Kennedy Heart Honors, the place Led Zeppelin members Jimmy Web page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones have been among the many honorees. Bonham additionally performs drums in quite a few bands, together with Sammy Hagar and the Circle.
Kenny Loggins
Dec. 13 and 15; Ruth Eckerd Corridor, Clearwater; rutheckerdhall.com
The King of the Film Soundtrack, Kenny Loggins visits Clearwater’s Ruth Eckerd Corridor for 2 nights of reveals. He earned his title for movie theme songs similar to “I am Alright” from the 1980 Florida-filmed comedy “Caddyshack,” the Oscar-nominated title monitor to 1984’s “Footloose,” and “Hazard Zone” from 1986’s “High Gun,” which had a outstanding look on this yr’s hit sequel “High Gun: Maverick” as nicely.
Loggins has additionally had hit songs exterior the movie world together with “That is It,” co-written with Michael McDonald, with the 2 additionally penning Music of the 12 months Grammy winner “What a Idiot Believes.” Cannot make both of those reveals? You will have one other likelihood to catch Loggins dwell in live performance domestically quickly, as he was simply introduced because the headliner for the Inspiration Gala at Sarasota’s Van Wezel on March 10.
93.3 FLZ’s Jingle Ball
Dec. 16; Amalie Enviornment, Tampa; amaliearena.com
iHeartRadio’s annual vacation live performance Jingle Ball, represented domestically by radio station 93.3 FLZ, commonly options among the greatest names in up to date pop, with musicians similar to Lizzo and Shawn Mendes performing lately. But this yr’s lineup has a bit extra of a throwback really feel, with two of the most well-liked acts in ’90s and ’00s music on the high of the invoice.
Backstreet Boys, the Orlando-formed boy band behind hits similar to “I Need It That Approach” and “All people (Backstreet’s Again)” that is additionally launched No. 1 albums as just lately as 2019’s “DNA,” headline this yr. The lineup additionally contains pop-rap group Black Eyed Peas, recognized for hits together with “I Gotta Feeling” and “The place is the Love?” and who simply launched their newest album “Elevation.”
R&B Music Expertise
Dec. 17; Amalie Enviornment
Talking of throwback, Amalie Enviornment will host this live performance that includes among the greatest names in Nineteen Nineties and 2000s R&B music the night time after Jingle Ball. Woman group Xscape, who had quite a few High 10 hits within the ’90s together with “Who Can I Run To” and “Simply Kickin’ It,” will the highest the invoice together with Bell Biv DeVoe, greatest recognized for his or her No. 3 hit “Poison” off their multi-platinum 1990 album of the identical title.
Additionally on the lineup is Ginuwine, the R&B singer recognized for his hit 1996 tune “Pony” that had a resurgence in recognition when it appeared within the Tampa Bay-set and shot 2012 movie “Magic Mike” and its 2015 sequel. Raheem DeVaughn, Tamar Braxton, 112, H-City and Subsequent are additionally set to carry out.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Dec. 18; Amalie Enviornment
Amalie Enviornment’s full weekend of live shows culminates with two reveals by Trans-Siberian Orchestra, arguably the largest Christmas onstage manufacturing domestically. The rock group originates from Tampa, based in 1996 by Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli of heavy steel band Savatage, together with Robert Kinkel and the late producer Paul O’Neill.
Since their formation, Trans-Siberian Orchestra has launched a number of Christmas-themed albums which have gone multi-platinum, similar to 1996’s “Christmas Eve and Different Tales” and 2004’s “The Misplaced Christmas Eve,” together with non-holiday themed albums. Pitrelli leads a roster of musicians on this “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve — The Better of TSO and Extra” tour.
Benny Benassi
Dec. 31; The Ritz Ybor, Tampa; theritzybor.com
When you’re trying to ring within the new yr with a live performance, the largest New 12 months’s Eve present introduced so far domestically appears to be Italian DJ, producer and remixer Benny Benassi headlining The Ritz Ybor. Benassi’s accolades embrace successful a Finest Remixed Recording, Non-Classical Grammy for his 2007 remix of the Public Enemy basic “Deliver the Noise” and making DJ Journal’s High 100 DJs checklist quite a few years.
Benassi continues to collaborate with and remix songs by different musicians, similar to South Korean woman group TWICE, and onetime Florida tourism ambassador Pitbull and DJ IAmChino just lately. Not an digital music fan? Different New 12 months’s Eve reveals set to take place in Tampa Bay embrace funk group Lettuce at St. Pete’s Jannus Reside.
E mail leisure reporter Jimmy Geurts at jimmy.ge[email protected]. Assist native journalism by subscribing.
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